Malema’s masterstroke: EFF leader hit journos for six

EFF leader Julius Malema achieved his objective when he invited five journalists to grill him on his supposed involvement in the VBS Mutual Bank scandal, as the reporters played right into the hands of the red beret’s commander in chief, allowing him to shape his narrative virtually unchallenged.

In the two-hour open session which only four of the five journalists attended, Malema successfully answered every question thrown at him, as he continued to claim his innocence in any corrupt dealings by himself, his party, or relatives.

The round-table discussion came after eight people were recently arrested for their alleged involvement in looting the bank, leading to its collapse.

Malema called the briefing, saying he wanted to clear the air following allegations that he and the EFF benefited from the scandal. He denied that he or his party were involved in the looting of the bank and vowed to resign should it be found that he influenced municipal leaders into making deposits with the bank.

“I’ve never benefited any cent from VBS and why would I benefit from VBS? In exchange for what?” asked Malema.

Malema could have opened himself up to scrutiny due to mounting pressure and also out of fear that he had lost control of the narrative, said political analyst Somadoda Fikeni. This could have harmed him politically ahead of the local government elections, especially considering the new laws mandating disclosure of any political funding.

“Any reputational damage will make it harder to raise funds from companies… Also, because of the new disclosure of funding for parties, other funders will find it awkward to fund a party if they know this is going to be disclosed, and they will then be associated with some of these reports if the reports are not cleared. There are many calculations in the mind of the politicians,” Fikeni said.

He says the EFF leader “came out well” in explaining himself and achieved his objective – to tell people what he regards as facts, in order for them to make their own judgement.

The success of his objective though, was due to the calibre of journalists which political analyst Professor Lesiba Teffo felt were not suited for the job.

Teffo preferred to describe the briefing as a “conversation”, rather than the expected “interrogation”. Since the session had not been bound by time, Malema used the platform to his advantage, he said.

“In the extreme, I found them less qualified and capable of engaging in a conversation at that level and as complex as that one… They didn’t give an impression of people who researched and had clear straightforward questions. It was nothing but a conversation because it was everywhere but nowhere. It was not focused.

“He was even assisting them in asking the questions and how best to raise certain questions. The journalists didn’t come out well for me. They played into his hands and he acquitted himself very well,” said Teffo.

His performance at this media session could gain him more supporters, particularly among the unemployed and disgruntled youth, as the leader was often seen as the “voice of hope”, said Teffo.

“He might be seen as the champion who is vilified because he is not into conventional politics. He is one who can rattle the ruling party and raise issues that resonate with [the unemployed youth] and the poor. He may be perceived in some quarters as the champion of the poor,” he said.

rorisangk@citizen.co.za

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