Phuti Mosomane
ANC Gauteng Provincial Secretary Thembinkosi ‘TK’ Nciza fired back at the EFF leader Julius Malema’s utterances at the party’s 10th Anniversary celebrations over the weekend, that the party is bribing the youth with temporary employment.
Addressing thousands of EFF supporters at the FNB Stadium on Saturday, Malema said Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi has hired crime prevention wardens and provided many young people with jobs in an effort to “bribe them” to campaign for the ANC.
“When the ANC is removed from power in Gauteng, we are going to reverse everything done by Premier Panyaza Lesufi. Our first task is to remove and expel all those thousands of people employed by him as wardens. Ama Panya Panya,” he said.
Malema said those who were hired did not follow proper government processes and were employed on the basis that “they are members of the ANC”.
He said the decision to target Soweto and recruit a large number of people on Thursday last week was a deliberate effort to ensure that residents do not attend the EFF rally on Saturday.
“Premier Lesufi filled Soweto Stadium on Thursday and offered people jobs. Those are not jobs but bribes. It was an attempt to contest us,” Malema added.
However, Nciza rejected Malema’s claims saying the ANC in the Gauteng province is immeasurably pleased by the success of the ANC-led government Nasi iSpani Mass Recruitment Programme that took place at Orlando Stadium in Soweto on the 27 July 2023.
Nciza said on Thursday Lesufi handed out 40 000 employment contracts to deserving, qualified youth and further announced that more jobs would be created for Gauteng’s youth until July 2024.
The drive included the 12 000 job opportunities for young people to install wi-fi in townships, informal settlements and hostels.
“Nasii Spani is a transformative programme of the Gauteng Provincial Government under the leadership of Premier Panyaza Lesufi, which aims to address the scourge of youth unemployment in the province.
“Since its inception, Nasii Spani has created sustainable jobs for tens of thousands of young people in a province that is particularly affected by urban hunger, unemployment and structural inequalities.
“As the nerve centre of the South African economy, Gauteng is the most populous province in the country. This amplifies the structural challenges that it (and South Africa, broadly) is confronted with, necessitating more innovative solutions that are targeted at the multiple-layered problems that confront its youthful population,” he said.
Nciza said this intervention not only addresses the issue of youth unemployment, but it also addresses the challenge of the digital divide that is impeding on the capacity of the people of Gauteng to find alternative ways for livelihood generation.
“The ANC in Gauteng wishes to reassure over 40 000 youth that have been employed through the Nasiispani ANC led government programme that no one will fire them and they should not be fazed by the stand-up comedy show that took place at FNB stadium yesterday,” he said, adding that the employment of all the 40 000 residents of Gauteng who were handed employment contracts are above board.
Although there is no coalition agreement between the EFF and the ANC, Malema’s comments and the ANC Gauteng’s response show a growing chasm in the working relations between the two parties.
Lesufi has been instrumental in securing the support of the EFF in Tshwane, Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni.
On the ground, there appears to be a push by ANC Ekurhuleni regional leaders to end the working relationship with the EFF in the council where both parties share an equal number of portfolios (Members of the Executive Council).
Some of the complaints are about the belief that the EFF has taken stronger portfolios such as MMC for Finance and therefore are in control of the economic activities in the region for their benefits.
Former ANC Ekurhuleni Chairperson Mzwandile Masina was criticized heavily for not supporting an EFF candidate in council.
Last week, ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula said the party must not be afraid to exist political agreements at local government level.
“They are complaining about Panyaza here at Local government because he is attending to issues. We are in those things of coalitions and we must review them. We must look at the ANC and see if we are gaining anything or are we losing. We must pose these questions,” he said.
The ANC will be careful on what they do next as their relationship with EFF is also seen as critical in other municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal, Western Cape and Eastern Cape.
On Friday, Deputy President Paul Mashatile, in his capacity as Leader of Government Business, will convene a National Dialogue on Coalition Governments.
The aim of the dialogue is to lay the foundation for a National Framework on Coalition Governments, which will serve as a guide for effectively managing and navigating coalition governments where they become necessary.
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