Ramaphosa warns ANCYL leaders of ‘negative tendencies’ in party
ANC President Cyril Ramaphosa has urged the party’s youth league to ensure the political education of South Africa’s young people.
On Sunday, Ramaphosa delivered the closing address at the ANC Youth League’s national conference at Nasrec, outside Johannesburg.
Ekurhuleni’s Collen Malatji was elected unopposed as the new president of the ANC Youth League at the structure’s first successful conference since 2015.
“I want you to lay emphasis on political education because it should be the ANC Youth League that composes of young people who are the most informed, aware, highly conscious and who are able to exercise leadership of the organisation as well as society,” said Ramaphosa.
Ramaphosa warned the youth league not to fall into the same trap as many others have done in the mother body.
“You will also have to deal with negative tendencies that crept into all our structures over a long period, such as factionalism, gatekeeping, and the use of money, and you will have to do this in an organisational and principled manner and without any fear or favour”.
Ramaphosa said the newly elected youth league leadership would be the voice on issues affecting young people in South Africa.
“This newly elected leadership will lead young people at a time when the cost of living in our country is high and unemployment, in particular, youth unemployment is unacceptably high,” Ramaphosa said.
“More than 11 million people in our country are unemployed. Critically, for this congress, the most recent quarterly labour survey says that youth aged between 15 and 24 years and 24 and 34 years recorded the highest unemployment rates of 62%.
“Approximately 3.7 million young people between the ages of 15 to 24 were not in employment or training or education. You are, therefore, correct when you say that youth unemployment is a ticking time bomb,” added Ramaphosa.
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