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By Vhahangwele Nemakonde

Digital Deputy News Editor


Ndlozi: Before I could develop a great crush, Baleka Mbete got married

The People's Bae is probably still the only man in history to make the speaker of parliament blush.


Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) national spokesperson Mbuyiseni ‘people’s bae’ Ndlozi has opened up about his personal life in a hilarious interview with T-Bose on Kaya FM on Friday.

Ndlozi said he grew up in a female-dominated house, with his grandmother and mother, who he described as his “maker” because she educated him. Just like his party’s CIC Julius Malema, he respects his grandmother because she taught him discipline.

“If you want me to bow to order, bring my grandmother up,” he told T-Bose.

The ‘people’s bae’, as he is affectionately known by South Africans, said he did not know where the name came from, urging T-Bose to ask Black Twitter as they came up with it. He has tried to keep his distance from the name, to no avail.

Though he has been nationalised, he told T-Bose that he has a partner and, from the sound of it, he is very much in love. However, there might be hope – a little bit – as he said “we’ll see about that”, when asked if polygamy was an option to accommodate the many people who have a crush on him.

Though he said the women in parliament were “too old” for him to have a crush on, Ndlozi said he could have had a “great crush” on speaker of parliament Baleka Mbete, but she got married before it could happen.

Here are a few things we learnt about Ndlozi from the interview:

  • He’s the first born and has a sister and two brothers.
  • He does not have a problem with asking his girl for money. “We help each other, we’re equal.”
  • He was a preacher at church. He had a passion for scripture and prayer.
  • He finished his master’s cum laude. Though the PhD has been a struggle, “it’s coming together”.
  • His ultimate spiritual sound is Barorisi ba Morena and Jerusalem Entsha.
  • His mother used to call him Fan.
  • His grandmother had seven sons and five daughters.
  • He was named Mbuyiseni, after his uncle Jabulani, who was a thug, died and was buried in prison. It took months before his family knew about it. The day Ndlozi was born was the day the police arrived at his home and told his grandmother her son had been buried in prison. So the lament of his grandmother was “Mbuyiseni Jabulani”.
  • The longest he has slept was for 14 hours after the elections last year, but normally four hours are enough for him.

He doesn’t take power naps either because the revolution is demanding, though he said he was shocked when he saw that naps were a culture in parliament.

“One of the cultural shocks that I associated for the longest of time was the amount of sleeping that happens in parliament. It actually was horrific to watch and parliament starts at 2pm, and 6pm, it’s done, mara eh yah.

“Even Zuma sleeps during a debate of his own speech. He’s not aware and then he passes out. It’s exhausting I guess.”

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