Chaos erupts within the ANC Youth League

Rumours are circulating that the ANCYL President, Collen Malatji, has been suspended, and others suggest Secretary General, Mntuwoxolo Ngudle, has been suspended. The two leaders have been clashing for months.

ANCYL National Spokesperson Zama Khanyase said that no one has been suspended yet, but added that the ANCYL is convening an urgent meeting to discuss the matter today.

This is after a letter, signed by Ngudle, was published, claiming that President Malatji has been suspended due to misconduct.

The letter was sent to the structures of the league this morning and has been leaked on social media.

According to the SG’s letter, the President has been suspended with immediate effect, pending an investigation. The reasons for his suspension, cited in the letter, include unilaterally convening a parallel meeting of the ANCYL.

The letter further accused Malatji of having “misled all our structures in terms of the role of the president.”

He was also criticised for excluding Ngudle and the Treasury general in preparations for the upcoming 27th Congress, set to take place from 14 to 17 December. 

Malatji confirmed that he excluded certain members from an official meeting, according to the SG, saying that he did not trust those he excluded. 

“The President’s conduct was a deliberate act aimed at undermining the policies of the organisation and weakening its fighting capacity,” the letter read.

Meanwhile, Central News reports that Malatji has suspended the SG as well.

Khanyase has categorically refuted the contents of Ngudle’s letter, telling Newsday that the president had “definitely not” been suspended.

When asked about the Secretary General’s suspension, Khanyase said a meeting is being held today to discuss the matter.

Tensions reach boiling point

According to party insiders who spoke to News24, the President and SG Ngudle have been clashing over the planning of the upcoming 27th congress of the ANCYL, and tensions between the two have been brewing for months. 

Leaked WhatsApp conversations of the event planning show tensions rising, with Ngudle accusing Deputy Secretary General Tsakani Shiviti of stealing. 

In a separate incident, Ngudle removed the youth league’s spokesperson, Zama Khanyase and national communications manager, Kelebogile Chokoe, from the party’s WhatsApp group. 

Another source told News24 that the tensions can be traced back to the ANCYL’s decision to hold an elective conference so soon after the current leadership was elected in 2023. 

Malatji admitted there was a difference of opinion on the coming conference, but said it was “not a serious thing.”

Culminating in the suspension, Central News reported that the President sent an invitation for an urgent National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting without consulting the NEC. Another invitation was issued by the leadership of the ANCYL for the same day. 

Several provinces have been endorsing Malatji to be elected for a second term during the December elective congress.

Ngudle, after turning 35 this month, will age out of the ANCYL at the coming congress.

This is a developing story.