Malema hails EFF’s ‘hardworking female cadres’ who received CR17 payments
Tebogo Mokwele and Nkagisang Mokgosi stepped down as MPs but remained members of the party.
EFF leader Julius Malema is seen addressing his supporters outside the North Gauteng High Court after the matter between Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane and Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan, 23 July 2019, Pretoria. Picture: Jacques Nelles
In the early hours of Wednesday morning, Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema issued an expression of support for Tebogo Mokwele and Nkagisang Mokgosi, the two EFF MPs who stepped down from their parliamentary positions after admitting to each receiving R80,000 from President Cyril Ramaphosa’s successful campaign for the ANC presidency.
Describing the pair as “hardworking female cadres of our movement”, he added that “this too shall pass” and ended with the Spanish saying “Hasta la victoria siempre” (“Until victory, always”), a well-known slogan of South American revolutionary Ernesto “Che” Guevara.
Malema’s party released a statement on Tuesday which sought to spin the recent revelation of two of its party’s receiving money from the “the enemy camp” as a victory for the revolution.
According to the party, “the manner in which they have accepted blame and taken responsibility leaves the image of our movement in an even stronger position”.
While expressing “disenchantment” over the loss of “two hard-working women [sic] cadres”, the party also “applauds” the pair for “taking responsibility” by way of their confessions and by “giving up their positions of leadership”.
READ MORE: Two EFF MPs resign over Ramaphosa payments of R80K each
The party said they “above all” applaud Mokwele and Mokgosi for “insisting on keeping their membership of the organisation”, a decision they said was “rare across the world”, with most politicians in similar positions electing to “seek greener pastures” with other parties.
While admonishing the pair for falling prey to “the enemy camp”, saying “no amount of personal suffering must lead a revolutionary” into this camp as the enemy “will always use this to achieve their own objectives against” the EFF’s “cause”, the statement also praises the two former MPs for being “humble enough to bow out”.
“We must do so, instead of holding the organisation to ransom for totally selfish reasons,” the statement concludes.
The EFF has been at the forefront of outrage directed at the president following the leaking of emails from the campaign, meaning that the revelation that two of the beneficiaries were EFF MPs could be considered ironic.
Commissars Tebogo Mokwele and Nkagisang Mokgosi, the two hardworking female cadres of our movement, this too shall pass. #HastaLaVictoriaSiempre 🙏🏿
— Julius Sello Malema (@Julius_S_Malema) August 20, 2019
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