Unopposed: ANC MP Collen Malatji takes the helm of ANCYL in conference clean-sweep

• The ANC Youth League has a new leadership after almost a decade of political upheaval and squabbles.
• Collen Malatji, an ANC Youth League leader from Gauteng, was elected unopposed along with his entire leadership slate that dubbed its slogan "economic freedom now or death". 
• Thuthukile Zuma, who had attempted to contest the treasurer-general position, did not meet the threshold from the conference floor, squashing any chance of her ambitions for a role.

It was a busy day at the ANC Youth League conference on Saturday as delegates ensured Collen Malatji, a 30-year-old member of Parliament, was elected unopposed to lead the once-limping league. 

The conference was held at Nasrec, Johannesburg - after eight years of shaky ground for the organisation.

Malatji led a slate comprising a mixture of candidates from the ANC-led provinces of KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, Limpopo and the Eastern Cape in the "economic freedom or death" slate. 

The league also adopted constitutional amendments ahead of nominations, including creating a second deputy secretary-general position. This went to North West delegate, Olga Seate, who was also elected unopposed. 

The only drama to emerge in the nomination process was the acceptance of the nomination for the treasurer-general role by Thuthukile Zuma, a former member of the national task team.

READ | 'You can't lead ANCYL if you serve in NEC': Malatji calls out double-dipping ahead of league election

She did not meet the 600-delegate threshold to elicit a vote against Zwelo Masilela. 

ANCYL delegates, dressed in full ANC regalia, took turns marching to the microphones positioned across the Nasrec plenary, begging that nominations be closed for leadership positions, a clear sign that Malatji's slate was the only leadership composition members were willing to stomach. 

Zuma's bid for the treasurer-general role was the closest the conference came to a fierce contestation, but as very few hands were raised for her support, it was clear her bid would fail.

Malatji faced some contestation from ANC Eastern Cape member Aphiwe Makhangelwa, whose name was raised, but he was not at the venue to decide whether to contest.

In fact, he had to be called via cellphone to indicate that he declined the nomination. 

Ahead of the congress, News24 spoke to some ANCYL members who had dismissed any likely contest from Makhangelwa, saying he was unknown outside the Eastern Cape and no threat to Malatji.

The conference also moved quickly to adopt credentials, a topic which had been predicted to raise some debate. 

There were concerns raised by some regions and branches about a membership audit ahead of the conference. 

Last-minute leadership meetings were held on Friday into Saturday morning as some members of the temporary leadership structures raised these concerns. 

ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula spoke about these concerns along with ANCYL leaders, who insisted that every branch in good standing was present at the conference. 

ANC Youth League conference leadership slate led by presidency nominee Collen Malatji.

Gauteng ANC Youth League (ANCYL) member Collen Malatji.

Twitter PHOTO: @Collen_Malatji3, Twitter

The ANC sent in a high-level national executive committee delegation of over 10 members to the conference to help quash fights about conference outlines. 

READ | Fikile Mbalula denies hidden hand in ANCYL leadership race, warns league to focus on youth matters

In a political overview address, the league heard how its focus in the past decade had been on the political dynamics of its mother body and not on the youth. 

Fasiha Hassan, a former convenor of the league, said it was time the league focused on itself and driving a message attractive to the young people who have grown disillusioned with the league. 

She said the league had to take the issues impacting young people more seriously and pressure the ANC on its promises to provide jobs, and the dangers of corruption in stealing from the state and citizens.

"We must be more aggressive in utilising our political power to create reforms that will supply jobs and opportunities for young people. We must address corruption in the state and private sector that robs us of these opportunities as young people.

"We must continue to hold those who steal from us accountable. The era of digitisation is upon us, and the opportunity for young South Africans to be active participants in a growing digitised economy must not be missed. The existing skills gap must be addressed urgently so that we can fully benefit from this," she said.  

On Sunday, the league was expected to deal with commissions dealing with policy considerations.

The conference was expected to be closed by President Cyril Ramaphosa.