No permanent friends or enemies in ‘strategic’ politics

Somewhere in the rolling hills of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), oil and water met. They gathered, shared a simmering cup of tea and shared laughter.

As bitter as their feud, so shocking was their gathering: how can you embrace the one that tormented you for so many years?

How do you go from the closest of allies to the most bitter of rivals, but then have a tea party?

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) categorised themselves as the disruptors of SA politics: not a State of the Nation Address (SONA) went by in an orderly manner.

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Their disruptive behaviour became the new normal.

This is the confrontational politics that we have come to know, and some of us forgave their juvenile behaviour because we told ourselves it was endemic of the youth that occupied its seats of power.

But the EFF also got some things right: the party champions, the cause of the workers; the voiceless.

It was a party for the people, though their leaders were so removed from the masses in their expensive attire and homes of sheer opulence, they were the slogan of “black child, it is possible.”

Political power in South Africa was slowly shifting. Slowly the ANC was losing ground.

Then came the Covid-19 pandemic. Business was conducted differently and life changed. The National Assembly met in a different way and there was a noticeable shift.

The disruptions are now minimal, the ANC a constant topic.

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In comes the strategic mind of Julius Malema: let’s have a tea party with the man whose son has garnered a liking with the young black voter, Duduzane Zuma.

The EFF knows the importance of alignment and neutralising the potential threat that rests its head in Dubai and, to some extent, Nkandla.

So while we there are no permanent friends or enemies in politics, we need to remember that everything in politics is strategic – and so should we be when we head to the polls.

There is more to the tea parties than the laughter we see – there is political intelligence and for this reason, we should learn to think outside the box, lest we want to continue being fodder for the games they play.

Kekeletso Nakeli-Dhliwayo.

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