Johannesburg – President Jacob Zuma called on South Africa at the weekend to back Bafana Bafana for next year’s World Cup.

Speaking at the ANC Youth League’s 65th anniversary gala dinner at the Johannesburg Country Club, he said: “If we don’t have Bafana we have nothing, so we have to encourage them. Bafana will make us proud. Bafana will demonstrate we are a soccer nation.”

Zuma said that it was South African’s fault that the national soccer team had become so weak. “We are responsible for what happened to Bafana Bafana. We love winning and hate losing – and we sack the coaches when we lose. We cannot change a coach so much and think we are going to win.”

Zuma said he would prefer that the national coach was South African. “We have coaches in South Africa, we could choose any one of them.”

He honoured the league’s guests, 800m World Champion Caster Semenya, Berlin long jump silver medalist Khotso Mokoena and 800m gold winner Mbulaeni Mulaudzi.

A number of political heavyweights, like Winnie Madikizela-Mandela and Matthews Phosa attended the gala.

Zuma also honoured other athletes including like the Springboks, the Proteas, the paralympic games team and the deaf Olympics team.

League president Julius Malema said the organisation would campaign for Semenya to run “as a girl”.

“When we speak on Caster’s behalf it is not about her, it is about the treatment young women get,” he said. – Sapa