Pretoria - EFF national spokesperson Mbuyiseni Ndlozi has challenged the youth to emulate the 1976 generation in confronting their challenges.
He was speaking during the Tshwane Leadership Talk at Unisa at the weekend.
The MP told more than 1000 young people to adopt the attitude of the 1976 Soweto Uprising youth.
He said they should use the same energy to fight against the current challenges such as corruption, inequality, abuse of power, lack of proper infrastructure and free education, inadequate public healthcare, poverty, unemployment and other socio-economic problems.
“The generation of 1976 did not wait for anybody to save them.
“They were not waiting for anybody to come with an AK-47 from exile and liberate them. They were not waiting for uMkhonto weSizwe.
“In actual fact, they protested that the ANC should be unbanned and come back to the country; they protested that Nelson Mandela be freed from prison.
“It’s not the other way around; it’s people who liberated the liberation movement as opposed to the liberation movement liberating the people.
“Their attitude is the attitude you need,” said Ndlozi.
He lamented the high levels of youth unemployment in the country and corruption in government. He accused the government of neglecting young people.
“The government of the day has abandoned young people. Today 58% of the people who are unemployed are the youth between the ages of 15 and 24.
“Youth unemployment is standing at 38% and we all know that broken down to race it goes the highest among black people.
“The youth has turned to drugs and alcohol because there is no access to sporting facilities and even if there are sporting facilities there are no opportunities to rise to great sportsmanship in the country.”
That the country had not made desirable progress to address the population’s needs was blamed on the present government, Ndlozi said.
He took a swipe at the ANC government for not creating sustainable jobs, its perpetual nepotism and jobs for cronies.
“Their greatest success is corruption. Theirs is to produce jobs for their families, boyfriends and girlfriends. They have failed in flying colours to build public healthcare; to give us free quality education.
“They are failing to reduce the cost of data so that internet access is made affordable, particularly for learning,” Ndlozi told the cheering crowd.
For young people and South Africa to change the status quo, Ndlozi said, there was a need to stop the culture of consuming. He pointed out that opening factories could be a step in the right direction.
“We have been waiting for investors for 23 years. Our first president, Mandela, was the most famous black man in the world. He was morally astute and loved by everybody, but investors didn’t come.
“Thabo Mbeki was the most educated president we have ever had - but investors dololo. Investors did not come when Mandela and Mbeki were presidents; are they going to come with this one?
“Nobody is on the way to save us young people. For the past 23 years the government lacked the confidence to direct all the investments in the country to opening factories so that jobs can come.”
Event organiser Thabang Ramoroka said Ndlozi had given young people a picture of where they wanted to go.