The newly re-elected ANC Youth League president, Collen Malatji, has laid out a sweeping list of demands at the league’s national conference, focusing on youth unemployment, economic reform, and education.
Addressing delegates in Polokwane, Malatji called for unemployment to be declared a national disaster. He emphasized the social impact of joblessness, asking, “How do you date when you are unemployed?”
Key economic demands include state-led mineral beneficiation, export quotas to keep resources in South Africa, and the urgent industrialization of the economy to create mass jobs in sectors like agriculture, mining, and manufacturing.
On education, the league demands fully funded free quality education, the cancellation of all student debt, the removal of blacklistings for indebted students, and the expansion of NSFAS to include postgraduate funding.
Other demands include the full implementation of the National Health Insurance (NHI), the employment of all unemployed healthcare workers, increased social grants, and the death penalty for those who rape women or kill children.
Politically, Malatji demanded the removal of all DA ministers and deputy ministers from government, accusing them of undermining the National Democratic Revolution. He also called for small businesses to be reserved for South Africans, stating that “illegal foreign nationals” should not own spaza shops.
Malatji was re-elected unopposed as ANCYL president during the conference.