MBOMBELA – The ANC Youth League (Ancyl) president has lashed out at the Save Mpumalanga ANC campaign.
The youth league’s president, Mr Collen Maine is in the province as the 12th ANC Provincial Elective Conference is scheduled to take place this weekend. Mpumalanga will elect its new leaders ahead of the national elective conference in 2017.
The Save Mpumalanga ANC group argued that the decision to approve the chairman, Mr David Mabuza, for a third term was invalid as it had been made by delegates who were not mandated by branches to represent it.
Speaking after a meeting with the House of Traditional Leaders in Riverside, Maine said the group was made up of disgruntled leaders who had become anarchists.
The Ancyl also engaged traditional leaders on the safety of illegal initiation schools that have claimed lives of many children.
Maine said members of Save Mpumalanga ANC were angry because they did not get leadership positions. “They are a group of anarchists who have led the organisation and failed. They must either follow the tradition of the movement by going to back to their branches to serve or leave the organisation,” he added.
He also claimed that there were lot of comrades who were being used by outside political forces to destabilise the organisation. “We know that some of these people are funded by international organisations to disband the ANC. We do not recognise them.”
Alongside Maine was Mr Desmond Moela, the league’s deputy president who hails from the province. Moela said the provincial general council (PGC) had resolved to support Mabuza for a third team.
“We are going to support Mabuza because he understands that our youth, particularly the locals, must benefit from the local economy,” said Moela.
Echoing his deputy’s sentiments, Maine said the ANC in the province will do what the branches resolved. “If the branches want comrade Mabuza to continue with his chairmanship, then who are us to object to that?”
Maine also cleared the issue of the premier’s league said to be a lobby group made up of Mabuza, Mr Supra Mahumapelo of North West and Mr Ace Magushule of the Free State.
“That league doesn’t exist, the ANC only recognises the three formal leagues, the youth, women’s and veterans league,”
Maine said.
