Johannesburg - The ANC Youth League in Gauteng has criticised the government for its insistence on implementing e-tolls.
Provincial secretary Matome Chiloane said the implementation of e-tolls on Gauteng freeways was a reversal of the liberation gains.
“We make a call that as much as the leadership has tried to bring a balance in e-tolls, we don’t want them. The reality is that we don’t want them,” said Chiloane.
He was among the speakers at on Thursday’s memorial service for anti-apartheid stalwart Ruth Mompati.
The event at the Johannesburg City Hall was attended by hundreds of ANC members, mostly from the ANC Women’s League (ANCWL).
Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa on Wednesday announced a reduction in e-tolls rates that will see motorists being charged the e-tag rate, which is the lowest cost and about half of the punitive rate for those without e-tags. People who refuse to pay will be unable to get their vehicle licences renewed.
Chiloane said e-tolls were a betrayal of the legacy of stalwarts such as Mompati.
“We remain consistent in calling for scrapping of e-tolls. We’re struggling daily as young people. The reality is that we don’t want e-tolls at all. What we want is jobs, free education and houses,” he said.
Chiloane’s statements were met largely by silence, sparking some clapping from the back, where a few ANCYL members were sitting.
“We don’t want further economic suppression. This (e-tolls) pushes us back,” he said.
In a glowing tribute, the first Speaker of a democratic Parliament, Frene Ginwala, described Mompati as a selfless, remarkable and humble woman who defied economic hardships and apartheid’s oppressive laws in the pursuit of justice and a free and equal society.
“While a teacher, she would be worried about the children who came to school without adequate food. She had deep humanity and was always concerned about people,” Ginwala said, imploring the current generation of leaders to emulate Mompati.
“She was a very great human being. Ruth was also a strict disciplinarian. I believe the biggest testimony would be to emulate her life, her work and the diligence to change South Africa.”
Umkhonto weSizwe Military Veterans Association deputy secretary-general Tshediso Paka called on the ANCWL to save the ANC from ill-discipline and corruption.
“As we go to the (ANCWL) conference, we are requesting that comrades must build the ANC. We are now appealing to the ANCWL to save the ANC,” Paka said, hailing Mompati as an example to follow.
To applause, he added: “We want (you) to go back and teach members of the ANC the discipline that we had from the likes of Lilian Ngoyi. We must teach the youth the respect for the leadership because that leadership was elected by us. Our organisation is under siege. We must expose those corrupt elements in the ANC because our intelligence is failing us.
“Today we have Operation Fiela; you must clean the ANC. We are under siege from our own comrades,” he said.
Cosatu president S’dumo Dlamini and SACP second deputy secretary Solly Mapaila appealed for unity within the ANC-led tripartite alliance.
Mompati, who died last week at the age of 89, is due to be buried in her hometown of Vryburg, North West, on Saturday.
President Jacob Zuma, who has declared a special official funeral for Mompati, will be among those expected to attend the funeral service.
The Star