Nokukhanya Mntambo21 June 2024 | 6:30

Hands off Mashatile, says ANCYL amid concerns DA gunning to see him criminally prosecuted

This is amid concerns that the DA won’t back down from attempts to see deputy president Paul Mashatile criminally prosecuted.

Hands off Mashatile, says ANCYL amid concerns DA gunning to see him criminally prosecuted

Deputy President Paul Mashatile in the National Council of Provinces on 12 March 2024. Picture: X/@PresidencyZA

JOHANNESBURG - The African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) says hands off Paul Mashatile amid concerns the Democratic Alliance (DA) won’t back down from attempts to see the deputy president criminally prosecuted.

The DA laid criminal charges against Mashatile earlier this year, following allegations of corruption levelled against him which span almost two decades.

These include an alleged intricate web of nepotism and family patronage, with Mashatile as the ultimate beneficiary.

ANCYL president Collen Malatji: "The ANC says those that have been charged must step aside. The deputy president has not been charged by anybody. If the DA says they’ve got enough evidence, they must allow the law institutions to take its course. We will not be told by them that the deputy president is corrupt when the institutions of the law have not charged him."

Malatji also hinted at Mashatile’s future.

"He’s still the deputy president of the ANC and we know that he might be appointed the deputy president of the country because that’s how the ANC works."