Only 34 percent think he cares more about poor people than government does

More than a half of young South Africans surveyed think expelled ANCYL leader Julius Malema was making trouble by addressing striking miners, Consumer insights company Pondering Panda said on Wednesday.

“Although the majority thought Malema was a trouble-maker, 39 percent said they supported him getting involved with the miners at Marikana and 8% felt unable to express an opinion,” Pondering Panda said in a statement.

The survey was conducted with 3727 respondents aged 15 to 34 across the country.

Based on the survey results, it was clear Malema did not have the support of the majority of South African youth, Pondering Panda spokeswoman Shirley Wakefield said.

The survey revealed that 62% of respondents believed Malema was just trying to make a name for himself, compared to 34 percent who felt he cared more about poor people than government did.

“What the youth really want to see is more government action in strikes of this nature,” Wakefield said.

When asked about government’s efforts to solve the problems at Marikana, 87% of respondents said they thought government should be doing more.

“This should be a wake-up call for government to take decisive action far sooner when similar situations arise,” she said.