Firstly, the African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) should be congratulated for successfully holding its leadership elective conference, because it would not be a good thing to celebrate 71 years of its existence without proper leadership in place.

However, ‘Uvuk’ayibambe’, as the youth league is popularly known should now know that it must prioritise issues affecting the youth of South Africa. Hence, it should hastily come up with a clear programme of action to uplift the youth of South Africa. In our country, we have a high rate of youth unemployment, inadequate funds for youth to further their studies, high crime rate and drug and substance abuse. However, some political pundits believe that the ANCYL won’t put their weight behind these thorny youth issues as its mother body (the African National Congress) would be approaching its elective leadership conference in 2017.

And anyone who disputes this perception may consider what has been said by KwaZulu-Natal’s ANCYL General Secretary Thanduxolo Sabelo (the current KZN Provincial Secretary) to replace Senzo Mchunu, the current ANC Provincial Chairman. However, we can’t dispute the importance of leadership elective conferences in any political organisations. They are within their democratic right to come up with their leadership choices per se.

But, that won’t help the youth get employment. That won’t help end racial prejudices currently around at institutions of higher learning. Elective leadership conferences won’t secure employment for the unemployed youth. They won’t even do away with drugs of which our youth has fallen prey to. In fact, such elective conferences only benefit a few people.

Meanwhile, I would abhor to be wrongly interpreted. Leadership elective conferences are important but I am still intransigent that youth issues should be the first priority. Hence, it would be a travesty of justice to the youth if such issues affecting them are ignored.
In fact it is the youth that comprises the majority of voters in the country. Meanwhile, I am reluctant to be hypothetical about the rumoured premier league within the ANC who are allegedly influential in ensuring that Bathabile Dlamini’s and Collen Maine’s ‘camps’ won in the women’s league and ANCYL elective conferences respectively, as it is not in my headspace to comment about it.

Philani Hadebe is a freelance journalist