ANCYL president Collen Malatji, left, pictured with President Cyril Ramaphosa on 3 February 2024 in Soweto. The Youth League leader wants action from Ramaphosa after the May 2024 election. Image: @ancylhq via X (formerly known as Twitter)
ANCYL leader warns Ramaphosa: ‘We are not a peaceful Youth League’
ANCYL president Collen Malatji says Cyril Ramaphosa and Fikile Mbalula need to deliver for the youth after the 2024 elections.
ANCYL president Collen Malatji, left, pictured with President Cyril Ramaphosa on 3 February 2024 in Soweto. The Youth League leader wants action from Ramaphosa after the May 2024 election. Image: @ancylhq via X (formerly known as Twitter)
President of the ANC Youth League (ANCYL), Collen Malatji, has warned President Cyril Ramaphosa that he does not have a “blank cheque” from the ruling party’s youth body ahead of the 2024 general elections, set for 29 May.
Speaking at a volunteers rally at Alexandra Stadium, Johannesburg, on Sunday 10 March 2024, Malatji told the attendees that the ANCYL wanted its demands about socio-economic issues met after the 2024 general elections.
ANCYL wants its demands met. Or else…
“We told the president [Ramaphosa] that we are not a very peaceful Youth League. The volunteers are going to do door-to-door [campaigning], to fight for the African National Congress to win elections. But we are not fighting fo the African National Congress to win elections with a blank cheque.
“We are saying ‘president, the youth here are not doing to door to door for free. They are doing it because they believe that the ANC will solve their socio-economic problems,” Malatji said.
Malatji also predicted that the ANC would get 100% of the vote come the 2024 elections and said if Ramaphosa and the ruling party’s secretary-general Fikile Mbalula – who was in attendance – did not meet the ANCYL’s demands, the Young Lions would shut down the seat of government.
“If post-elections, after we win with 100%, and the president of the country and SG Fikile Mbalula don’t deliver on youth demands, a re tswafe ho ya Union Buildings ro e tswalela rena [we will shutdown the Union Buildings],” he said.
It is unclear how Malatji arrived at a 100% election victory for the ruling party, with the latest poll showing the ANC could hover around the 39% mark.
According to the Brenthurst Foundation poll, the Democratic Alliance (DA) and former president Jacob Zuma’s newly formed uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party will win in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal, respectively, the two biggest provinces where electorate numbers are concerned.
Matjila not returning to Parliament
Malatji was elected in July 2023 as ANCYL president and ahead of the 2019 elections, he was the youngest member on the ruling party’s candidate list for Parliament, at 26 years old.
In January this year, Malatji declined nomination and announced that he would not be part of the seventh democratic Parliament, saying “it would not best fit my current goals and aspirations”.
“I believe it would not be fair to accept the nomination knowing that my goals do not align with the requirement of being a member of Parliament, ” he said.
