Mmusi can thank ANC for his white wife, boasts Ace Magashule

Free State premier Ace Magashule took a swipe at President Jacob Zuma’s enemies, including leader of the DA Mmusi Maimane, on Thursday.

While addressing the ANC’s cadres forum in Sasolburg in the Free State on Thursday, the premier had a truckload of scathing remarks on the DA leader, who he claims received a South Africa ready-made for his benefit allegedly thanks to ANC freedom fighters.

Magashule says Maimane now has the “freedom of choice”, which gave him the right to propose to a white woman.

“He arrived now when things were fine. That even if he wanted to propose to a white person, he does so freely. Freedom of association … of movement … of everything. We’ve made things possible for him. And he claims to be the brave man now,” said Magashule to an audience clapping hands.

The premier said the call for “radical economic transformation” did not mean white people would never benefit, “they’ve benefited and continue benefiting. But it is time for you, the majority, so that there’s peace and friendship and calm and everything in South Africa.”

The premier said “radical economic transformation” was a matter of “life and death”, and went further to praise Zuma, saying he was a “simple, humble man”.

In what appeared to be an attack on Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, the premier said that money would not get ANC leaders elected to positions of power. He said the decision was in the hands of the party’s structures.

“You must stop thinking that you’ll be elected because you have money. Even if you have money … if branches want you and you serve the branches, they will elect you.

“If you’ve never served and worked for the ANC, the branches will never elect you. Money or no money, education or no education.

“And we are not encouraging you not to go to school. It was difficult in the past to get education. So now it’s easy to go to school, and there’s no reason why you can’t get master’s and doctor’s degrees. There’s no reason.

“But those leaders built the African National Congress. They delivered political freedom in our lifetime.

“It’s our time now. Economic transformation must happen.

“It should not be about people who were bought by money. This is the time to defend the African National Congress.

“We say, life or death, radical economic transformation has arrived. And you must not retreat.

“Jacob Zuma is a simple humble man. He is approachable. Check Nkandla during Christmas times. We went there as the executive in 2009. We went there as a PEC [provincial executive committee]. There was a queue of ordinary people – rich, white, Indian, poor, literate, illiterate, Jews and Gentiles … Christians and heathens, they are there.”