Malema: Ramaphosa’s toughest opposition isn’t just me, Magashule or Maimane – it’s himself

Journalist Ferial Haffajee took to Twitter on Thursday to post a poll, asking who was President Cyril Ramaphosa’s “most challenging opposition”.

The options given by Haffajee were ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule, Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Mmusi Maimane and Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema.

Malema himself soon responded. According to the leader of the red berets, it’s not just him, Magashule, or Maimane the president should be worried about, it’s also himself, as well as two of his own allies – Minister of Public Enterprises Pravin Gordhan and executive committee member and former minister Derek Hanekom.

Over 3,500 people had voted in Haffajee’s poll at the time of publication. Almost as many people who had voted for Malema as being the president’s “most challenging opposition” (50%) appear to think that Ramaphosa’s biggest threat comes from his own party, with Magashule coming a close second (45%).

Not many people, however, feel Maimane offers much opposition to the president. He had received only 5% of the vote at the time of publication.

Malema’s mentioning of the president, Gordhan, and Hanekom in his reply to the poll is unsurprising.

The EFF has been engaging in an ongoing and messy war against Gordhan, who Malema has alleged is the man really running South Africa. They have also been outspoken against the president following the R500,000 donation made to his CR17 campaign for the ANC presidency by Bosasa’s Gavin Watson.

EFF deputy president Floyd Shivambu has laid complaints with the public protector over both Ramaphosa and Gordhan.

His was one of three complaints (the other being from Maimane and the third from a person Mkhwebane described as an anonymous whistleblower) that led to Mkhwebane’s recent report that found Ramaphosa had misled parliament over the campaign donation. He will seek to overturn this report by way of a judicial review.

READ MORE: Derek Hanekom admits he met with EFF, with allegations it was to plot removal of Zuma

Mkhwebane’s report finding Gordhan guilty of violating the constitution through his involvement with the so-called Sars “rogue unit” and by allegedly lying to parliament about meeting with the Guptas, likewise resulted from a complaint from Shivambu.

Hanekom, meanwhile, appears to have entered both the fray and the media cycle following his confirmation that he met with the EFF to discuss the “ousting” of former president Jacob Zuma, which has led to an angry statement from Magashule and the MK Veteran’s Association calling for his expulsion from the ANC and Zuma himself calling the former minister a “known enemy agent”.

While the EFF and Hanekom were willing to collaborate to remove Zuma, their relationship has since apparently turned sour.

Shivambu on Tuesday called Hanekom “self-serving” in a tweet after Hanekom referred to the EFF as “fascists”, and it was Malema himself that exposed the fact that Hanekom met with him over attempts to remove Zuma, speaking to his supporters outside the High Court in Pretoria on Tuesday, where Gordhan was attempting to interdict the remedial action that is meant to be enacted following Mkhwebane’s report.

Malema also alleged that Hanekom had provided him with a list of ANC members willing to vote against Zuma in a vote of no confidence and that Hanekom and others were planning to form a breakaway party from the ANC if Zuma’s removal did not work out.

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