Inanda club is a ‘secret society’ where Rupert holds meetings – Mngxitama

Black First, Land First (BLF) held a pre-election press briefing on Wednesday, where leader Andile Mngxitama said his party plans to visit the Inanda Club in Sandton.

The BLF leader made a number of incendiary claims about the establishment.

The exclusive club made news after the Sunday Times reported that Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema and his wife, Mantwa, had joined it.

Rival radical party the BLF have different reasons for their visit than the EFF commander-in-chief, who presumably goes there to enjoy the club’s facilities.

Mngxitama believes the club is a “secret society” equipped with hidden rooms where businessman Johann Rupert holds clandestine meetings.

He also questioned Malema’s knowledge of the sport polo, played at Inanda, which is an equestrain club.

“What does Julius know about polo?” he asked.

The party did not expand at the press conference on what they base this belief on or whether they have any actual evidence.

The BLF, which came to prominence after Mngxitama was expelled from the EFF, has long maintained that Malema’s party sold out, changing its “revolutionary” ways after the party’s 2015 visit to London, where they had a meeting with former diplomat and British member of parliament Lord Robin Renwick.

Renwick has vehemently denied that he in any way has any sort of influence over the EFF though, and the EFF says conspiracy theories about their meeting are ridiculous since they themselves had never attempted to hide the engagement, even publishing photos of it.

READ MORE: BLF wants to unite with ‘all progressive black parties’, including EFF

The BLF believes this change of values from the EFF was evident in their decision to vote with the DA in the 2016 municipal elections, which led to the ANC being ousted in key municipalities Johannesburg, Tshwane (where the EFF has since had a turbulent relationship with the DA and their mayor Solly Msimanga) and Nelson Mandela Bay (where the EFF switched to side with the ANC, leading to the removal of DA mayor Athol Trollip).

The BLF came up with the hashtag #EFFSoldOut as a result of this decision.

Malema’s Inanda membership divided South Africans this week, inspiring debate about whether a self-professed socialist revolutionary should be pursuing the good life in this way.

Others, however, felt it’s perfectly legitimate for him to spend his money and leisure time however he pleases.

The EFF leader slammed the Sunday Times report, saying the fact that it got more media attention – according to him – than a recent EFF Women’s March, demonstrated the skewed priorities of South African media.

The march was, however, reported on in major publications including The Citizen, News24, IOL, and Daily Maverick.

(Background reporting, Gopolang Chawane and Charles Cilliers)

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