Malema accuses Ramaphosa, Lesufi of trying to get Sars to investigate EFF gala dinner

Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema has accused the African National Congress (ANC) of using state resources for political purposes.

The EFF held its gala dinner at Emperor’s Palace in Ekurhuleni on Thursday evening ahead of the party’s  10th anniversary celebration rally over the weekend.

The fundraising event, which was attended by United Democratic Movement (UDM) president Bantu Holomisa and controversial businessman Adriano Mazzotti among others, saw Malema boasting about how his table, priced at R1.2 million, was fully booked.

Other tables at gala dinner cost between R250 000 and R750 000.

‘Battle lines are now drawn’

In a media briefing on Wednesday, Malema alleged that the ANC was unhappy about the donations made to the EFF.

The EFF leader read out a message allegedly shared by Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi on an ANC social media group, in which he expressed his dissatisfaction over the gala dinner.

“Good evening leadership, I was going through the guestlist and business that contributed to the EFF’s 10th birthday [gala dinner] and I’m shocked that we are taking this lightly.

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“Notwithstanding the right of individuals and business to association, to have this formation getting opportunities from our institution and then donating to other parties without recognising the party that gave them opportunity can’t be described as freedom of choice, but we are being treated as fools.

“This must stop… we have to take ourselves serious from now on. This is a battle and the battle lines are now drawn,” Lesufi’s message allegedly read.

Lesufi was previously accused by the EFF of using the Nasi Ispani initiative as bribery for young people to vote for the ANC ahead of next year’s elections.

‘Sars investigation’

Malema also alleged that he has learnt from “a reliable source” that President Cyril Ramaphosa instructed the South African Revenue Service (Sars) to vet the guests who attended the EFF’s gala dinner.

This followed a meeting between the president and Sars commissioner Edward Kieswetter that allegedly took place on 31 July, two days after the EFF’s rally at FNB Stadium.

“Cyril has tasked the Sars commissioner to investigate all the guests that attended the EFF gala dinner due to extravagance and flamboyance displayed. The investigation by Sars is to determine the nature of the business interests of the guests, [whether] their tax affairs are up to date and if any of the guests are doing business with the state,” Malema told reporters.

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The EFF leader further alleged that Kieswetter has since appointed a person to oversee the investigation, which must allegedly be concluded by December this year.

“This is politicians wanting to use the state to settle political scores and when we raise these points [the media] thinks we are just hallucinating.

“The state is going to punish people for having taken a political choice, for having made a political choice and Panyaza is part of the people who are saying everybody who attended the EFF gala dinner, who gets a tender from our state must no longer get a tender because they take us for fools. So which criteria do we use, that only those who give money to the ANC are the ones who must get tenders?” he said.

Watch the briefing below:

‘Public Protector compromised’

Malema said the EFF had an option to file a complaint with the Public Protector’s office over the matter, but would not do so because the Chapter 9 institution’s acting head, Kholeka Gcaleka was “extremely compromised”.

“She’s an ANC mascot,” the EFF leader said.

“We are not going to run to an ANC branch called the Public Protector and just humiliate ourselves in that way. We are going to ensure that we expose these shenanigans until these people are held accountable because we can’t allow the state to be used as if it’s a tool of the ANC,” Malema added.

Gcaleka has recently come under fire after clearing Ramaphosa of wrongdoing over the Phala Phala farm scandal.

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