Born as one of the sons of a prominent Umkhonto weSizwe soldier, Young Lion, ‘S’ (name changed to protect his identity) agreed to speak to Jozi Cadre about his childhood, being immersed in the ANC and what he wants to say to leadership. He asked to remain anonymous to avoid upsetting his larger family.
Where are the guns?
“Being a child of an MK soldier was not a good experience as our home was always being visited by the SANDF and the SAP and I was forever being questioned about who came to the house and where are the guns?” The soft-spoken UJ student was born in the fire of the Struggle.
“I grew knowing that my father is somewhere running from PW Botha’s government and Roelf Meyer’s police. I did not know if he was still alive – as Grandpa would say, ‘Your father is alive – he is schooling in exile”. The unbanning of the ANC happened while he was in primary school growing up in an ANC family, his grandfather (a former school principal and school inspector of the former Transkei) “taught us a lot about the UDF/ANC, SACP/PAC, and about black consciousness.” ”In 1988, I was doing Grade 2 (Sub B) and De Klerk made the announcement of unbanning the ANC – all I knew was that some of my family members would be coming back from London and the USA”. The next year, political riots between the IFP and the ANC in Kwazulu Natal “made me understand that I’m ANC – regardless of age, boys were forced to attend meetings.”
He has learnt that bringing South Africans together is not easy Asked what he learnt from his ANC childhood, he replies, “I learnt a lot from my childhood days pre-’94 and after – I learnt about lies, police power, and that bringing South Africans (races, tribes) together was never an easy thing. Inequality grew, money changed hands and that changed everything”.
The young man, who is on first-name terms with our leaders, prefers to shake hands and then retreat, back to his books. Asked what he would say to leadership, he answers, “Put South Africans first.”
Bring more investors to SA and strengthen borders He explains that we need “quality education, rural development, and protect our borders and citizenship.” He continues, “Intelligence must be strengthened, racism/tribalism are among the most concerning factors, bring more investors to SA and amend SADAC/AU laws for security reasons”.
His message for the youth – make education your priority
As a Young Lion, S says this to youngsters, “Our youth needs to understand what patriotism is – and not to listen from everything that is being said by politicians like Malema. Education should their priority”.
People who succeed in achieving social change do not do so by asking for permission but by acknowledging that social agency is not given – it is claimed”
Joel Netshitenzhe