Vaccine picket, alcohol & 'the new black' — 8 quotes from Malema's Youth Day address

EFF leader Julius Malema has urged South Africans to not drown in complaints or hope for solutions from the ANC, claiming it “will never come”.

Malema addressed a packed Youth Day rally outside Uitsig High School in Tshwane on Wednesday. 

In his speech, the outspoken politician tackled issues such as the Covid-19 vaccine rollout, education and the future of SA's youth. 

Here is Malema's Youth Day speech in eight quotes:

June 16 is not a day of celebration

“We don’t celebrate revolutionary days, we commemorate them. How can you celebrate people being killed? How do you, in your rightful state of mind, say, 'Happy June 16'?

“How do you say 'Happy Murders Day'? Even with the unveiling of tombstones, we don’t say 'Happy Unveiling of Tombstones'. The people who are saying 'Happy June 16' are people who do not appreciate what the families of those children are going through today.”

'Happy Youth Day' means 'Happy Unemployment'

“When you say 'Happy Youth Day', you mean 'Happy Unemployment'. You are saying 'Happy HIV and Aids'. When you say 'Happy Youth Day' you are saying the graduates who have graduated and do not have jobs must be happy with that condition”.

There is no solution to unemployment in alcohol

“Drugs and alcohol are not good. You cannot say 'we are unemployed; therefore, we are drowning in alcohol'. Whoever said to you that you will find a solution in alcohol, that person misled you. There is no solution to unemployment in alcohol. There is no solution to poverty in drugs. You are worsening the situation.” 

Restoring dignity and not drown in alcohol

“Don't drown in complaints and wanting solutions from the ANC, they will never come. Just fight to restore your dignity by doing the right thing, by visiting alcohol and not becoming a resident, by doing away completely with drugs, by fighting to wanting to be admitted in higher education- be it college or university.”

The 'new black' 

“We must be the new black, the black they don’t know. The black who doesn’t take nonsense from them. The black who doesn’t behave in a typical way they define a black person.

“We must be a generation of responsible black people — not the way white people are defining us. We must define ourselves.”

Won't abide by lockdown level 3

“From today we don’t listen to what [President Cyril] Ramaphosa says about Covid-19, we don’t comply with the nonsense he says about it until he gives us vaccines and vaccinates our people.”

Level 3 robbing youth of jobs 

“Level 3 will not give the unemployed youth of SA jobs. Reducing gatherings will not give them jobs. What will give them jobs is a vaccine and opening of the country so that they can go hunting. They are not lazy to hunt.”

Planned picket at Sahpra

“Friday, we are at Sahpra [SA Health Products Regulatory Authority]. We want the Sputnik V and Sinovac vaccines. Failure to do so we are going to sleep outside the home of the CEO of Sahpra.

“It is personal like that. There will be a sleep-in at the CEO's house until the vaccines are provided by this government.”