IT was in March 2010, at the height of newspaper investigations of ANC Youth League (ANCYL) president Julius Malema’s business dealings, that Floyd Shivambu, the league’s spokesman, was thrust into the spotlight.
A few days earlier, City Press had reported that Malema’s company – SGL Engineering Projects – had amassed an estimated R140 million in contracts from municipalities in Limpopo between 2008 and 2010.
Not only was how Malema got the contracts questionable, but the quality of work done was brought to the fore, too, prompting ministers at national level to demand an investigation.
Public Protector Thuli Madonsela exonerated Malema of any wrongdoing while the press ombudsman absolved the young Limpopo politician’s company of poor workmanship.
Shivambu distributed, clandestinely, a document accusing City Press journalist Dumisane Lubisi of fraud, money laundering and tendering with the Gauteng government.
This, according to Shivambu’s logic, was proof that reporters were taking bribes to write bad stories about Malema.
Since then, Shivambu’s relationship with the media has taken a severe knock to the point where he is now suspended from the ANC.
The ANC national disciplinary committee (NDC) has found him guilty of contravening its constitution for swearing at a newspaper journalist who had asked Shivambu a question about Malema’s trip to the Kruger National Park last year and for issuing, in his capacity as the league’s spokesman, a statement on Botswana which was against ANC policy.
In his defence, which the NDC threw out, Shivambu said the journalist provoked him and claimed his charge on the Botswana comment was politically motivated.
His membership was suspended for three years and he was ordered to vacate his position on the ANCYL national executive committee, where he is a spokesman and is in charge of the political education and research subcommittee.
He was given 14 days to appeal his sentence.
Shivambu has a BA Honours degree in international relations, political science and economics from Wits University.
In the past, he was national co-ordinator of the process that led to the launch of the SA Union of Students, was on the SA Student Congress NEC and the national committee of the Young Communist League, where he was brought to its disciplinary committee for labelling SACP deputy general secretary Jeremy Cronin a racist.
His relationship with Andile Masuku, the SABC weather anchor who is the mother of his child, appears to have soured.
Shivambu has denied that he is the father of Masuku’s newborn baby.
However, he said he could have handled the matter differently. Maybe his relationship with reporters could have been handled differently, too.
When did you decide that politics was for you?
I believe I have always been so admiring of and inspired by various political leaders and personalities since I was young, and I never thought I would one day be elected to lead, despite that I have always been a passionate supporter and follower of the ANC.
If you were not a politician, or an activist, what would you be?
I would most probably be in the sphere of knowledge production and exchange in a manner that would influence society to move forward successfully.
Describe yourself in three words?
Focused. Selfless. Courageous.
What music are you currently listening to?
I listen to all kind of music, but mostly Joyous Celebration, Kirk Franklin and more recently, Worship House.
What is the most extravagant item you have purchased?
I do not spend money on extravagant items. I am a strong believer in modesty and I practise it.
When was the happiest day of your life?
When I received a Bachelor degree at Wits University, because with the difficulty I encountered during my studies, I now know everything is possible.
What or who inspires you?
I am inspired by the suffering people of SA, Africa and the world, because I believe that responsible political activism can free a great majority of our people from starvation.
What is your earliest childhood memory?
Village rioters who used to sing struggle songs and say “Viva Mandela”, while their common purpose was to burn, banish and kill people they said were “witches”.
Describe your ideal Sunday?
On the majority of Sundays I am in political gatherings of the ANC and ANC Youth League across the country. When I am not, I spend time with my friends and visit parents in Soweto.
What are you currently reading?
Many books, but mainly The Leaderless Revolutions by Carne Ross and Conflicting Missions: Havana, Washington and Africa by Piero Gleijeses.
When was the last time you cried? Why?
I dropped a tear when I saw the suffering orphans in an orphanage we visited in Tembisa in 2009. They appeared hopeless.
If you were making a film about your life story, who would you like to play you?
I honestly wouldn’t know, because I don’t know many actors.
What do you like about living in SA?
SA has many opportunities and possibilities and that inspires many people to wake up in the morning every day.
What irritates you about this country?
A reactionary section of society that is intolerant to new ideas, and does everything to suppress alternative political and ideological perspectives. I am also worried about people who want to stay in leadership positions even when they are not bringing new ideas and methods to take the country forward.
Who makes you laugh?
I have so many good friends, and we laugh about so many things that happen in society.
What are you secretly good at?
It’s a secret.
What is the most outrageous thing you have ever done?
I recently responded via e-mail to some family magazine article to clarify something someone had said about me without my knowledge and approval. I had to clarify the confusion, but I now believe I should have done it differently, not in the public space.
Where do you like to go on holiday?
Limpopo. It’s a beautiful province with loving people. Outside SA it has to be Cuba.
What was a defining moment in your life?
Everything I do is a defining moment, particularly my selfless commitment to the ANC and people of SA.
What is your greatest fear?
That the ANC can one day believe that the struggle is over, while we have not even gone 10 percent on the route towards real and genuine economic transformation and redress.
If you could edit your life, what would you change?
Nothing. I think the circumstances and difficulties I have gone through have contributed magnificently to my political and ideological outlook, and I am fine with that.
Where is paradise for you?
A society where all South Africans will live in a Freedom-Charter-inspired society, where mineral wealth, banks, and monopoly industry are transferred to the ownership of the people as a whole. These Freedom Charter values should apply to the whole of Africa and across the world.
What is the best advice anyone ever gave you?
Advice from many revolutionaries, particularly the Cuban Commandante Risquet that the struggle against imperialist and capitalist domination will never be easy, because those who are supposed to be allies will become enemies.
What’s your favourite book?
State and Revolution by Lenin, because it simplifies the character and role of the state in a class-divided society. I also like the Conflicting Missions book I am reading.
What is the most important family value you learnt that you will pass on to your children?
Utmost generosity and solidarity with those who do not have, particularly the ability to share the little you have.
How would you like to be remembered?
As a selfless activist.