Let’s contest elections – young reds
THE Young Communist League (YCL) has again called on its mother body, the SACP, to consider contesting elections.
Since 1994, the SACP has been supporting the ANC during national and local elections and in turn some of its senior leaders are serving in government, such as its general-secretary Blade Nzimande, who is the Minister of Higher Education and Training.
Taking a swipe at opposition parties yesterday during the YCL national youth rally held at the Johannesburg City Hall, the league’s secretary general Mluleki Dlelanga labelled parties such as the EFF and DA as “fake” and told young people at the rally to vote for the ANC in the upcoming elections.
“This country doesn’t deserve to be led by fake people, this country deserves to be led by the ANC and ultimately not by the ANC but ultimately by communists, this country is for communists,” Dlelanga said to loud cheers.
“We are urging you as young communists that for now you must go and vote for the ANC but as YCL we are beginning to panic because the level and the frustration that our people on the ground are experiencing requires communism to take a clear path and lead the people.
“Comrades, we don’t have to wait for when the working class will be coming to Cosatu House demanding the Communist Party to lead this country,” he said.
However, speaking earlier, secretary-general of the SACP Blade Nzimande said even though they were encouraging young people to vote for the ANC, it did not mean that the SACP is “blind to the fact that there are a number of things that we might be unhappy about in the ANC as communists”.
“So we don’t want anyone saying they are a candidate of the SACP.
“That debate is continuing and we are not going to shut it down, but as things stand now comrades we are going to vote for the ANC,” Nzimande said.