Comments at UDM youth rally in Umtata - media statement
issued by UDM President (18 June 2005)On the current political landscape:
“The revelation of Mr Zuma’s relationship with Schabir Shaik has had a massive impact on the political landscape. It is a pity that not only has the country been brought into disrepute, but now we see increasing signs of instability. The timing of this scandal is terrible because it comes at a time when the nation is demanding quality service delivery. Undoubtedly the focus of the ruling party will not be on service delivery now, but rather on infighting over the leadership succession.
We still don’t know what will be the final outcome of the Arms Deal scandal… in three month’s time we cannot predict who else will be exposed. Already rumours are flying that Messrs Yengeni, Shaik and Zuma were not the only people involved, and may have been very small participants in a much larger web of corruption.
There is no doubt that the judgement by Justice Squires must be interpreted and must result in future investigations and prosecutions. However, we must also look beyond the current implications for Shaik, Zuma and internal ANC divisions; how will we as a country deal with the long-term consequences?
Perhaps the nation must do introspection now. The time has come to look at the Constitution and electoral laws, and consider separate elections for the President. Other countries in Africa and across the world have this system. Although our Constitution is advanced and respected internationally, it lacks this aspect of personal accountability for the national leadership, separate from the party they come from. Clearly we cannot continue to have leaders who refuse to answer simple questions about where the money for their cars, houses and luxury items come from. In addition, the pro-Zuma faction in the ruling alliance has demonstrated that they will not tolerate any other candidate. The country should not allow that questionable candidates are forced upon them by the ruling party. The time has come for a national leadership that is directly elected and directly accountable to all the people of South Africa, and not just the ruling party.”
On addressing Youth concerns:
“There is a growing restlessness among the Youth. We notice that they are a significant portion of those involved in the municipal protests across the country. President Mbeki should seriously consider convening a Youth Summit, so that he can hear directly from the Youth what their concerns are. It is apparent that the so-called Youth representatives in the ANC Youth League, and the National Youth organisations which they have hijacked, are failing to express adequately the hopes and aspirations of the Youth. Three issues that should be high on the agenda of such a Youth Summit are: job creation, HIV/AIDS and education.
The Summit should be attended by the role-players of the previous Jobs and Growth Summit, in order to integrate its resolutions with current programmes. Such a Summit should focus on one question: How do we address the problems facing the Youth? We have been theorising about the problems facing the Youth for ten years. Now we need to say how are we are going to address Youth unemployment, create an effective education system, and how will we stop the unrelenting spread of HIV/AIDS. This Summit must deliver solutions and deadlines for implementation. It must be not just another photo session.”
