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By Faizel Patel

Senior Journalist


WATCH: EFF rejects ANC’s Government of National Unity

Malema said that the EFF cannot work with parties funded by the billionaire Oppenheimer family.


The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) will not be participating in the African National Congress (ANC) Government of National Unity (GNU).

This was announced by the red berets leader Julius Malema on Thursday.

The once-dominant ANC lost its majority in the worst showing for the party in the national and provincial elections since it came to power 30 years ago.

Watch Malema speaking about rejecting the ANC’s GNU

With the elections not producing an outright winner, the ANC said that it will be forming a Government of National Unity (GNU) where it will govern with all parties represented in Parliament.

ALSO READ: ‘Zuma will not allow violence or country to deteriorate’ − IFP

DA is the enemy

EFF leader Julius Malema said that the EFF cannot work with parties funded by the billionaire Oppenheimer family.

“Despite our commitment to unite all opposition parties to completely remove the ANC  from power since it was rejected by 59% of voters in South Africa, we did not and will  never meet with the Democratic Alliance (DA) and all right-wing Oppenheimer funded  political parties. The DA is our enemy.

“These right-wing and neo liberal parties represent a reactionary,  counter revolutionary, and neo-colonial agenda which seeks to protect the existing  property relations in South Africa where the white minority continue to be the economic  majority,” Malema said.

Melema said  while the EFF shares common values with the ANC, it doesn’t with some other parties in the GNU.

Choices

Malema said South Africans have made their choice.

“The people of South Africa must swallow what they have decided to chew… They decided to chew 40% of the ANC… They chose load shedding, [and] Ramaphosa, the highest level of unemployment and racism.”

“We will fully participate in this Parliament, we have decided that we will not disrupt the seatings. You will never see us on the stage, fighting any bouncer. We are here as a 10-year-old organisation with matured parliamentary politics, well-experienced to make sure that the views of those who vote for us are well-represented,” Malema said.

During the elections, just over three million voters supported the EFF, giving the red berets 39 seats in the National Assembly and making it the fourth biggest party in the country.

ALSO READ: ‘Give us the Speaker position’ – Inside Malema’s chat with Ramaphosa

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