ANC Youth League president Collen Malatji has called on older ANC leaders to retire and hand over to younger members. He said veteran politicians were harming the future of the party.
His comments came after ANC national chairperson Gwede Mantashe walked out of the Cosatu 15th National Congress in Kempton Park on Monday, October 12. The walkout followed a disagreement over the order of speakers.
“Pensioners are killing the ANC every day,” Malatji said while on a campaign trail in the Eastern Cape.
Malatji said the ANC could not tell its alliance partner how to run its own conferences. He said Mantashe had forgotten that he was there to speak to workers on behalf of the ANC, IOL reported.
“He went there thinking that he is representing his jacket and his family, he forgot that he went there to address the working class on behalf of the African National Congress,” Malatji said.
“The ANC, it is not an arrogant organization. We can’t go to a conference of COSATU and tell COSATU what time we want to speak,” he added.
Malatji said the incident could make people believe the ANC was arrogant. He said the party had to show respect to its alliance partners.
He also pointed to Mantashe’s plan not to stand for another leadership post when his current term ends. Malatji said older leaders leaving would give younger members a chance to lead the party.
“At least that pensioner, unlike other pensioners, he spoke out that he is retiring, he’s coming back here at Qala to take care of grandkids. The sooner he retires with his friends, the better. So that we take over the ANC and correct it,” Malatji said.
He went further and called on young ANC members to act if older leaders did not step down on their own.
“And if they don’t retire voluntarily, the youth of the African National Congress must rise and remove them out of position and install ourselves,” he said.
Malatji said the history of the ANC would help it get through its current problems. “The ANC of Oliver Tambo can’t be killed by pensioners. The ANC of Oliver Tambo survived apartheid,” he said.
Mantashe left the Cosatu congress after he objected to the planned order of speakers. He was set to speak before leaders of the SACP and Sanco.
He reportedly wanted the ANC to speak last. He saw this as the normal tradition at such gatherings.
Cosatu criticised his departure. The labour federation saw the walkout as disrespectful to its conference. It also raised concerns about how the ANC treats its alliance partners.
In comments reported by TimesLIVE, Malatji called the walkout “irresponsible and arrogant”. He said he planned to speak to Mantashe to understand why he left.
Malatji also apologised to Cosatu over the incident. He called on ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa to step in.
Source: this article is based on reporting by IOL. Image: IOL. Written with the help of AI and published by the Tzaneen Voice News desk. See our Editorial Standards.
Kgomotso Maake covers news and politics for Tzaneen Voice. Kgomotso reports on government, Parliament, municipalities, courts, crime and service delivery across South Africa, with a close eye on how national decisions reach towns like Tzaneen and the wider Limpopo province. Stories are written in plain English and focus on the facts: who made the decision, what it means, and what happens next.