African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) president Julius Malema on Sunday said that a newspaper reporter faked his signature to portray him as a bad person.

"We will not be broken by newspapers. They just put my name to sell newspapers. The journalist faked my signature because they want to portray me as a bad person," said Malema in Durban's Wema.

He was addressing members of the ANCYL during the 2011 local elections mobilisation rally.

The City Press reported that Malema lied when he told the media that he held no shares in a company which has won lucrative contracts in Limpopo. The newspaper reported that according to a company registration record, Malema owns 70% of shares in SGL Engineering Projects.

He had also signed on as a director, signed to pass power of attorney to his business partner and signed a third time to take up his majority shareholding.

Malema claimed that he had deregistered from company directorship soon after being elected ANCYL president in Bloemfontein in April 2008.

Malema described newspaper reports as a campaign aimed at demoralising the youth league.

"If I have done something wrong, President Jacob Zuma's government has a right to arrest me. If I have something wrong I must be prosecuted," said Malema.

He said he would never steal from the "poor".

"We are being baptised with fire. The youth league will never steal from the poor because we are children of those who suffered under the apartheid," Malema said.

The youth league would never be broken by newspapers which also reported bad things about Peter Mokaba, one of his predecessors, he said.

"Mokaba was portrayed as an apartheid spy because he represented change. The media will never win because we (youth league members) are encouraged by the spirits of our forefathers," said Malema.

He said that the media had also tried to portray Zuma as a bad person. He did not say whether he would sue the reporter for allegedly faking his signature.

City Press reported that company registration documents in its possession showed that Malema registered SGL and took majority shareholding in May last year.

In the past three years, SGL has received several contracts worth R140-million from eight municipalities in Limpopo.

Since 2007, Malema has bought two luxury houses, one in Polokwane and other in the affluent Johannesburg suburb of Sandton. He has also revamped his grandmother's house in Seshego.

His business dealings have attracted a storm of criticism from opposition parties and emerging businessmen in Limpopo.

KwaZulu-Natal ANCYL deputy secretary, Mthandeni Dlungwane said that they were concerned with "attacks on Malema".

"We are fully behind Julius. We have seen the attacks and we believe that they want to isolate him. We will defend Malema and the league."