Four more ANC Youth League top officials have been charged with bringing the ANC into disrepute after they allegedly violated the party’s constitution by calling for regime change in Botswana.
Four highly placed sources within the youth league confirmed to the Mail & Guardian on Tuesday afternoon that the league’s deputy president Ronald Lamola, secretary general Sindiso Magaqa, his deputy Kenetswe Mosenogi and treasurer general Pule Mabe, were formally charged soon after the ANC press briefing, which was addressed by the ruling party’s secretary general Gwede Mantashe earlier in the day.
During the press briefing, Mantashe and party spokesperson Jackson Mthembu refused to say whether or not the party was intending to charge the other four officials.
The decision comes a week after the ANC announced it had charged the youth league’s president Julius Malema and spokesperson Floyd Shivambu.
The charges came after youth league leaders said they were intending to send a team to Botswana to consolidate local opposition parties and help bring about regime change as it believed the government there was “in full cooperation with imperialists” and was undermining the African agenda.
The charges against the youth league leaders has already divided the ANC, with some leaders threatening to revolt against President Jacob Zuma and his supporters.
“We are not going to be cowards. We are going to fight,” said an ANCYL national executive committee member. “[Zuma and his supporters within the NEC] want to do away with the league of Nelson Mandela and Oliver Tambo? Even [former ANC president] Thabo Mbeki was better. [Zuma and his supporters] are determined to destroy the ANC. They do exactly what the ANC used to do in the camps — dealing with the enemy through disciplinary actions. It is going to be war.”
“We are receiving calls from everywhere in the country, with ANC members saying they want to take the fight to him [Zuma]. They say they want to come to Luthuli now to register their unhappiness,” the youth league NEC member added.
According to one youth league leader, the charges against the other four league members related to their storming of a meeting of the ANC’s top six officials recently.
Magaqa is also being charged for publicly attacking Public Enterprises Minister Malusi Gigaba.
Earlier this month, Gigaba came under scathing attack by the league for telling the American Chamber of Commerce in South Africa that the nationalisation debate was damaging the country.
The league rebuked Gigaba, saying it hoped that the courage he had “suddenly” found to speak out on the nationalisation of mines had not been inspired by his audience.
It also questioned Gigaba’s track record from when he was president of the ANC’s youth wing between 1996 and 2004, claiming that he “never had any impact [or] influenced any policy shift, including on youth development”.
Meanwhile, the M&G has established that Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga proposed during the ANC’s NEC meeting this weekend that the youth league should be abolished as a structure of the ANC. Motshekga was not immediately available for comment.