Today we publish details of the sad erosion of the ANC Youth League, the original political home of towering nationalist leaders such as Nelson Mandela, Oliver Tambo, Walter Sisulu, Robert Sobukwe and Anton Lembede. From its proud beginnings in the 1940s as a home of radicalism and principle, it has degenerated into a platform for populist grandstanding, infighting and the pursuit of money and power. Afflicted by deep organisational disarray, it has become an unsightly blot on South Africa’s political landscape. Instead of standing on the shoulders of its founding leaders, the ‘Young Quirks†are directionless and seem intent on undermining key democratic structures the league helped usher in.
How has this happened?
The rot set in shortly after 1994 as the youthful politicians went ‘blingâ€. They started chasing flashy cars and big bucks, selling the soul of the organisation to the likes of disgraced mining magnate Brett Kebble instead of charting a way forward for the mass of South Africa’s young people, who have yet to taste the fruits of freedom.
Recently, its campaign of support for the ANC deputy president, Jacob Zuma, has shifted from apparently principled backing for a comrade in a tight spot to irresponsible grandstanding that has had the effect of undermining democratic structures, notably including the National Prosecuting Authority and its crime-busting Directorate of Special Operations.
The insults hurled by youth league leader Fikile Mbalula, his sidekick Zizi Kodwa and other political yuppies at Zuma’s detractors — including the extraordinary attack on respected writer and academic Njabulo Ndebele — have been designed to cow critics and watchdogs and have served to undermine South Africa’s judiciary.
Clearly not the organisation of Mandela or Africanist philosopher Lembede, it falls short even of Peter Mokaba, who spearheaded the campaign to ensure leadership regeneration within the ANC.
This paved the way for Mbeki, Zuma, Steve Tshwete, Mosiuoa Lekota and others to take the baton and guide the movement into the 21st century.
Now that this generation is greying or has passed on, the league should be grooming a new set of leaders capable of confronting growing inequality, runaway crime and South Africa’s biggest challenge, HIV/Aids. It has signally failed to do so.
The internal report on the collapse of the league’s provincial structure, covered in this edition of the Mail & Guardian, throws a harsh spotlight on leaders who should be focusing far less on succession, and far more on succeeding.
Excessive zeal
South Africa has a proud record of legislating to emphasise the dangers and undesirability of public smoking, largely because it seems patently clear that it is the sensible thing to do.
The existing regulatory regime is tough: tobacco advertising is banned, smoking in public places is restricted, packages carry prominent health warnings and heavy taxes are levied. This week MPs heard why the minister of health should be given even greater powers through a fresh set of amendments to the tobacco control laws.
The idea is to bring local regulations more closely in line with the guidelines of the World Health Organisation. The proposed changes tighten up rules on smoking in public places, enhance state oversight of manufacturing and limit the extent to which packaging can be used to advertise.
This is all to be applauded. It treads the right line between limiting the harm caused by a dangerous and addictive product, and the right of grown-up people to risk a lingering death in the pursuit of transitory pleasure.
But the anti-smoking lobby wants the committee to go considerably further. Anti-smoking activists have asked the committee to ban all smoking in the workplace, including in the tightly regulated smoking areas that are currently available. They also suggested that waiters needed more protection from smoking in bars and restaurants, while householders should be prohibited from smoking in the presence of their domestic workers.
Both of these proposals seem excessive.
It is one thing to say adults should not smoke in the presence of children, but asking adults not to smoke in the one place where they should feel most comfortable, their own homes, creates an imbalance between their rights and those of their staff. And there is no evidence that the miniscule amount of smoke that might escape from legally compliant workplace smoking areas is likely to be harmful.
The rights of workers in smoky restaurants and bars must be safeguarded, but existing occupational health and employment equity legislation would probably suffice to protect those who wish to look after their lungs and their job prospects.
Parliamentary health committee chair James Ngculu has said MPs ‘need to look at†these suggestions, but he should not allow an overzealous agenda to supplant balanced regulation.
Laws that are aimed at social behaviour need the legitimacy conferred by a broad consensus, rather than the fear of enforcement. Existing tobacco legislation has fulfilled that requirement admirably, and the latest changes should continue in the same vein.