It's time the youth league took a long look in the mirror

Just when African National Congress Youth League President Julius Malema believed he had an iron grip on the Limpopo province following the banishing of former youth league chairperson Lehlogonolo Masoga via NEC disciplinary channels, along comes the Sekhukhuni municipality to kick him where it hurts most.

IOL on Sunday reported the municipality are charging current chairperson Frans Moswane with fraud — who unlike Masoga supports Malema’s re-election as youth league leader at next year’s elective conference. The charges arise from the fact that he was paid a salary of R35 000 a month despite allegedly not reporting for duty since June 2009.

Moreover, the conduct complained of does not appear exhaustive of Moswane’s infractions.

Another former employer, the Limpopo Economic Development Department, wants repayment of about R146 000 after Moswane continued drawing an R11 000 monthly salary after he had resigned in 2007.

This means that, all things being equal and the allegations proving to be correct, the present chairperson of the youth league in Limpopo continues to carry the vote of the party forward despite charges of numerous counts of fraud — each salary draw is one count — while the previous chairperson Masoga, whose only crime was insisting that a proper conference be held in the province, has been expelled.

It does not take rocket science to work out that there is something terribly wrong with that picture.

Worse, the youth league embarrassed the ANC when they tried to mediate a solution. The ANC had suggested to Masoga that he drop the urgent application he had made in the high court — to interdict disciplinary proceedings against him by the youth league — in order to allow the party to deal with the matter internally. In return they requested the youth league drop the disciplinary hearings against Masoga. These flowed because he persisted in his stance that the Limpopo elective conference, where all those who were against Malema were evicted by police, was not a proper conference and had to be redone.

Needless to say, Mosaga listened to the ANC and dropped his application while Malema went beserk, refused to listen to advice, advised the ANC and courts to stay out of his business and went ahead with the hearing. Masoga was found guilty of “grave” and “serious” offences and expelled from the party.

As a result you have Masoga — who follows procedure and the ANC has been banned from the party — and Moswane — who presently faces multiple counts of fraud charges — as chairperson of the province.

It seems to me that the youth league need to look up what constitutes “grave” and “serious” offences.

Moreover, there can be no doubt that the only reason this peculiar and unacceptable situation exists is because Masoga opposes Malema while Moswane supports him.

It also speaks volumes about the youth league’s lack of judgement as well as their continued efforts to manipulate results. Instead of allowing the delegates to decide appointments they use the police, disciplinary committees or anything else they can find to push through the candidates certain parties want.

This is neither healthy for the ANCYL or conducive to bringing through the best candidates.

It’s time they took a long look in the mirror.