Johannesburg - ANC Youth League convenor Fikile Mbalula on Friday denied reports that some ANC leaders imposed presidential candidates such as Collen Maine at the league’s national elective conference.
“It is not true that comrades are imposed, they emerged from the democratic processes of the organisation…we must debunk that notion,” Mbalula said ahead of the conference in Midrand, Johannesburg.
Leaders such as North West premier Supra Mahumapelo, Free State’s Ace Magashule and Mpumalanga’s David Mabuza reportedly forwarded the nomination of Maine, the league’s chairman in the North West.
Mbalula added that the youth league was not “a desk in the ANC”.
“The fact that people have managed to implant the concept of so called ‘premiers’ league’ will not make us understand what the youth league is. This is a foreign concept meant to direct us the other from this conference. This is meant to plant negativity in the conference.”
He added that those who took the ANCYL to court on Thursday would face a disciplinary hearing.
“The disciplinary committee will deal with them… we really mean it when we say they will face the wrath of the organisation because they brought the ANCYL and the ANC into disrepute... their act will not go unnoticed.”
Thabo Arafat Molamu and others from the ANCYL in the North West approached the court, on the eve of the congress, to stop proceedings alleging that there were irregularities in auditing of branches.
The group said they had exhausted all internal processes and had no choice but to go to court.
Judge Moses Mavundla ruled that the application was not urgent and dismissed it with cost.
Meanwhile, the Gauteng provincial general council collapsed late Thursday night. Mbalula said the conference would go ahead nonetheless.
“This means that the PGC could not conclude its business, the higher stage of conference is the national conference. It is important to understand that the national conference is a conference of branches, not PGC’s,” he said.
“As long as delegates from branches are here, they will be able to chart way forward with the conference. PGC’s are not a constitutional requirement.”
The run-up to the presidential race for the league saw North West ANCYL chairman Maine being nominated by most provinces. Former ANCYL treasurer Pule Mabe, Lesego Makhubela from the Tshwane region and former deputy president Ronald Lamola are also presidential hopefuls.
Delegates had started arriving at the venue, waving placards with names of their preferred candidates.
Mpumalanga members arrived singing revolutionary and waving the name of their chairman Desmond Moela. KwaZulu-Natal has 800 delegates, surpassing all the other provinces in terms of numbers.
At least 3 000 delegates are expected to fill up Gallagher Estate’s hall two, and would be joined by some members of the ANC national executive committee. Representatives from international youth formations of SWAPO of Namibia, Zanu-PF of Zimbabwe and MPLA of Angola were also expected to grace the conference.
South African Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa is scheduled to address the conference, while Mbalula would later deliver the organisation’s political overview.
ANA