Totalitarian talk shop: NYDA runs up drinks bill of astonishing R100 million

The Democratic Alliance (DA) Youth is appalled that, according to the National Youth Development Agency's (NYDA) own calculations, a staggering R100 million was spent on the farcical World Festival of Youth, hosted by NYDA in South Africa at the end of last year.

At a NYDA press conference this morning, NYDA head Andile Lungisa announced the staggering R100 million total figure, which was raised from various state sources. According to Mr Lungisa, there is still a shortfall of approximately R17 million.

At the press conference, which the DA Youth attended, I was surprised that Mr Lungisa emphasised that the R83 million NYDA had raised came from outside the ordinary NYDA budget, as if that excused this flagrant misuse of public funds.

It doesn't. This money was raised from state bodies and departments in South Africa. A full breakdown of known figures, including the figures released today, is as follows:

• R29 million from the Presidency
• R40 million from the National Lottery Board
• R3 million from the Department of Arts and Culture
• R5.5 million from provinces (revealed today)
• R1.8 million from the Department of Communication (revealed today)

An additional R2,8 million was apparently raised from registration fees, as well as a further indeterminate amount from several municipalities. This is a shameful litany of misspending from entities under ANC control.

The DA-governed Western Cape refused to contribute money to the festival and the DA Youth refused to participate. We have remained strenuously opposed to this festival from the beginning because our country has far more urgent priorities than hosting what was in effect an ANC Youth League (ANCYL) social extravaganza.

It demonstrates exactly the contempt the ANCYL and its satellite bodies have for the priorities of youth development in South Africa. Millions of South African school children go to school without having desks to sit at or chairs to sit on and libraries remain a pipe dream for most public schools. These are the sorts of issues we should be tackling, not rubbing elbows with the blossoming autocrats in the youth divisions of Zanu PF and the Korean Workers Party.

We have already called for President Zuma to dismiss the NYDA board as is his right in terms of Section 10, 4 of the NYDA Act. In the face of this evidence, we reiterate that call. Only in so doing can President Zuma show us that in this week of his State of the Nation address, his concerns for the youth are not mere platitudes designed only for rhetorical grandstanding.

Statement issued by Makashule Gana, MP, Democratic Alliance Youth Leader, February 8 2011

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