South Afrca's ANC suspends Malema for five years

South Afrca's ANC suspends Malema for five years
Collins Atohengbe, Pretoria

South Africa’s ruling party, African National Congress (ANC) has suspended its Youth League leader Julius Malema and his executive for five years.

Delivering the verdict of the disciplinary committee at a press briefing at the Luthuli House headquarters of the African National Congress, the committee Chairman, Derek Hanekom, said that both the ANC Youth League leader, Julius Malema and his executives are guilty of anti party activities and are therefore suspended from the party for two years.

The youth league was accused of going beyond its bounds by its pledge to help overthrow the Botswana government, making defamatory statements about leaders of the ANC and thus bringing the party into disrepute and causing very serious diplomatic consequences for the ruling party.

The two-year suspension is in addition to a three year suspended sentence during which they are expected to be of good conduct.

Hanekom said as members of the youth league, their actions and pronouncements should be consistent with the rules and regulations of the mother body at all times but this has not been so.

"His careless, negligent or reckless pronouncements and utterances were a deviation of established and ongoing ANC policy and had the effect of embarrassing and bringing the organisation into disrepute within and beyond the borders of South Africa," Hanekom said.

The disciplinary committee said the youth league is not in the same category as the other parties in the ANC alliance, the South African Communist Party and the Congress of South African Trade Unions, COSATU, because their existence is not derived from the ANC as a body unlike the Youth League which is an off-shoot of the ruling Party.

Suspension implications

The suspension means that Julius Malema ceases to be the leader of the youth league, an action which is seen as a control measure to shore up the position of President Jacob Zuma who will be seeking a second term in office during the ANC national convention slated for Mangaum in January next year.

Julius Malema, who is writing exams in Polokwane, said he would take advantage of the two weeks period given by the disciplinary committee to appeal the verdict.

Williams/Ekata