Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema speaks at a press conference on 10 June 2021. Picture: Michel Bega
Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema has accused President Cyril Ramaphosa of being incompetent and seemingly suggested that South Africa was on “flight mode”.
Speaking at the EFF’s 10th anniversary celebration on Tuesday, Malema said he was of the view that Ramaphosa didn’t have what it takes to be president.
The EFF leader hinted at Ramaphosa’s alleged desire to step down following the release of the Section 89 panel’s report on the Phala Phala scandal.
WATCH: ‘Delinquent’ Ramaphosa will not finish his second term – Malema
The panel concluded that Ramaphosa had a case to answer regarding the 2020 burglary at his Phala Phala farm in Limpopo and that he may have violated the Constitution and anti-corruption laws.
“The president has resigned and you all know that. The people who work with him, the people who typed his speech, told me: ‘It’s done, chief, we are just waiting for the time to call a press conference’.
“Until a faction went to persuade him not to resign the same day. His conscience has concluded that he doesn’t have what it takes to be a president,” he said.
“The body might be there; the guy is gone. If we raid his offices or homes, we are going to find a resignation letter.
“You have a president who is there by body, but the soul is gone. It’s not there [and] that’s why he tells you it’s not his responsibility to give you electricity.”
READ MORE: EFF not removed to protect Ramaphosa, only his feelings – Malema
Using the same phrase former State Security Agency Director-General Jeff Maqetuka told the State Capture Commission in 2020, Malema said the country was on the “brink of collapse”.
“Sise kakeng. We are big trouble, nothing is coming right,” the EFF leader said.
“Conditions in South Africa have worsened under Ramaphosa with rising levels of unemployment poverty, corruption and the collapse of our state-owned enterprises [SOEs].”
Malema also placed the blame for South Africa being greylisted by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) last Friday on Ramaphosa.
Labelling him as a “money laundering chief”, the EFF leader claimed that the president had contributed to the listing because he did not declare the dollars in cash found at his farm to the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) and the South African Revenue Services (Sars).
With the EFF having planned a protest on 20 March, Malema added that the party would demand Ramaphosa’s resignation.
“The longer Ramaphosa remains the president of this country, the more likely it will be that the future generation will not have a country to inherit,” he said.
“It is only through demonstrations on the picket lines, that we can rescue our nation from the hands of the corrupt and incompetent ANC government led by Cyril Ramaphosa.”
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