YCLSA Statement in Response to the Letter by the Men of the Cloth

The YCLSA notes the letter written to President Jacob Zuma by a group of church leaders calling for leadership and action on what they refer to as 'moral decay', 'corruption', 'self-serving leadership' and a basket of unsubstantiated allegations aimed at the ANC, the alliance and government leadership.

As an organisation, we believe that there is concern in relation to the building of a non-racial, non-sexist, prosperous and democratic country without poverty, unemployment and racial inequality.

This is the collective responsibility of the entire nation to ensure that we build such a society, and thus, the call by the ANC President for a radical, accelerated and urgent transformation which is on the agenda of the ANC Conference to be held in Mangaung.

We also agree that there is an urgent need to strengthen government institution to meet the immediate and long-term demands of our people as part of the historical and current mandate of the ANC and its government. According to the Census Statistics released earlier in the year, a lot has been done, and we agree that government needs to do more. But we cannot suggest that our country is facing an apocalypse of proportions as prophesised in The Book of Revelations.

The ultimate liberation of our people lies in a political, social and economic system that we strive for: Socialism. We hope the church leaders will soon join us in building such a society for the benefit of all and the ultimate abolishment of all institutions that breeds immorality, corruption and self-serving leadership.

The YCLSA has been working with many youth formations, including in the church, without reducing ourselves into complainants, to deal with issues of corruption, unemployment and making education fashionable as the critical task of making our democracy work and bringing practical realisation to the notion of equality and common prosperity.

We however respectfully differ with certain assertions and pointers made by the Men of the Cloth.

As to what the Men of the Cloth refer to in relation to moral decay, and as to who appointed them to be the guardians of morality, it begs the question.

Collectively, as a society, we hold various but yet connected moral values that we should consistently guard and hold dear. Thus, collectively, we cannot declare the leadership of one institution above all as the arbiters of morality and the mortal judges of what is moral and what is immoral.

There has been moral doubt, for instance, cast on some of the individuals who co-signed the letter to the president on the same issues which they asked him to act on in the letter.

The timing of the writing and leaking of the letter can only lead us to interrogate the motives of the church leaders. We all know the biblical assertion: "Though Shalt Not Judge". But for church leaders to judge and judge publicly can only imply that theirs is not to offer counsel but condemn the current leadership of the ANC in the light of the ANC Conference in Mangaung. This is clearly their way of casting a vote, abusing the trust of their congregants who may be delegates to that Conference.

To the extent that the church is used by the Men of the Cloth to factionalise prayer along party political lines and choose to only pray for the leader of a party (Helen Zille, DA) that is presiding over farmworkers exploitation and shooting in De Doorns; the closure of 20 public schools, alleged wasteful and fruitless government expenditure, alleged continued internal white and male domination, can only serve to expose their ill intentions and lack of political integrity and honesty. They are openly campaigning for the DA.

A genuine concern for our people and their conditions are used to buttress the motion of no confidence on our government using the name of God and of the same people. This cannot be accepted.

The Men of the Cloth have abused the trust and faith entrusted on them by the church to support one political party over another, and even drew the name of an ailing former President, Nelson Mandela, into the fray.

We will work along the same lines with the church as a whole to bring about non-racism, non-sexism, democracy and prosperity and to end corruption and immorality, but not in such factional political lines as done by the Men of the Cloth.

Statement issued by Buti Manamela, YCLSA National Secretary, December 12 2012

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