ANC Youth League president Collen Malatjie has become the latest leader to publicly criticise ANC chairperson Gwede Mantashe following his controversial remarks on unemployment.
Malatjie joined a growing list of political figures who have spoken out after Mantashe suggested that unemployment persists because some South Africans are not proactive enough in seeking work.
Speaking at an ANC January 8 Women’s League Manyano gathering in Rustenburg on Thursday, Malatjie delivered a pointed response directed at Mantashe, although he did not mention him by name.
Swipe at Mantashe
“At the rate of unemployment, you find leaders of the ANC saying people are unemployed because they are lazy to apply for jobs,” Malatjie said.
He added that some senior figures who comment on unemployment have never experienced the realities of job-hunting themselves, arguing that they lack the moral authority to lecture citizens.
Malatjie went further, calling for party discipline. He urged the ANC members to challenge what he described as irresponsible conduct by deployed leaders.
“Mothers must stand up against irresponsible leaders who speak outside what the ANC has asked them to do. When you are deployed by the ANC, we do not want your views. We want the voice of the ANC and its revolution, not personal opinions.”
Youth accused of basking in the sun
Mantashe’s original comments were made during an interview with the SABC. He questioned whether unemployed South Africans were making sufficient efforts to secure work. He urged them to stop “basking in the sun” and apply for opportunities he claimed the ANC government had created.
“The ANC has given you a fishing rod, must it now catch fish for you?” he asked.
“You queue for a job, you look for the advert, and you apply in real terms. We must move away from being a ‘parcel society’ and become an active society,” he added.
Backlash from opposition
The remarks sparked immediate backlash on social media and across the political spectrum. Critics described them as insensitive in a country grappling with one of the highest unemployment rates globally.
Former public protector and current MK Party Mpumalanga convenor Busisiwe Mkhwebane labelled the comments “irresponsible”. ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba blamed the ANC for the crisis. He cited failed economic policies, corruption, state capture and cadre deployment.
