EFF leader Julius Malema (centre) addresses the media. September 5, 2019. Picture: Twitter (@EFFSouthAfrica)
At a press conference at Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) headquarters in Braamfontein on Thursday, party leader Julius Malema expressed the view that white South Africans must take responsibility for the recent spate of xenophobic attacks, which saw mostly foreign-owned shops looted in areas surrounding Johannesburg.
“No one takes a job from South Africans, they are offered,” he said.
“The owners of the means of production are white people. It is white people who prefer foreign nationals over South Africans,” he continued.
“We can quantify between the government and private sector who employs foreign nationals,” he said elsewhere in his speech.
“The private sector and white monopoly capital must take full responsibility for this mess that we are faced with. The problem we have is in the private sector and that sector is owned by white minority.
“That’s why when we are killing each other, the rand strengthens because the owners are happy that the animals are at each other. The rand is a strengthened by black on black violence,” he added.
“We call on our fellow South Africans to stop the violence against other poor people in our communities. Xenophobic violence will never resolve the problems our country face because they were never caused by foreign nationals in the first place.
“Unemployment, poverty, lack of service delivery and high levels of crime are all created by the ANC government and its bosses in the white monopoly capital quarters [sic].
“To kill another poor person with the hope that it will resolve your own poverty is a sign of self hate, and that we live a lie. It is impossible for a poor person to be the cause of the poverty of another poor person.
“The battle must be taken to the real people who control our lives; the ANC government and big business that have failed to make our economy grow, create jobs, defeat poverty and unemployment.
“Africa’s problems will never be resolved by disunity. Only a united Africa can resolve the problems that have troubled the continent for centuries.We therefore make no apology when we call for African Unity, in particular renouncing the colonially imposed borders,” Malema said, repeating a call the EFF has made several times before.
READ MORE: Government blamed for spate of xenophobic attacks
Malema said outrage at the attacks accross Africa is “justifiable”. “What do you want them to do? To give us roses for killing their brothers and sisters?” he asked.
“We will soon realise, we are nothing without this continent. We have no other home outside of this continent.
“The oppressors, who control our minds, are the ones who have instilled in us the hatred of our brothers and sisters. They have told us we are better than the rest of the continent.
Malema ended his addressing of the issue of the attacks by asking his fellow Africans for forgiveness.
“Find it in your hearts to forgive us. We are sorry. We are ashamed. Forgive us. We come from a traumatic past and we are still struggling to find ourselves.
“We are saying to our fellow African brothers and sisters, it is not all of us. We are not South Africans, we are Africans. We make no apology to side with the victims of xenophobic and Afrophobic attacks. We see ourselves in them,” said the leader of the red berets.
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