Malema said the DA also could not meet their demands. He said the DA had said it did not have powers to expropriate land.
The ANC and DA are both parties which protect white capital. This was the message firmly delivered by Julius Malema when he briefed the media on the coalition plans of the Economic Freedom Fighters.
Malema began by outlining the EFF’s negotiation processes with the ruling and opposition party. He laid out the conditions he provided to each and insisted the EFF was not willing to compromise on these.
Malema said they had put eight conditions on the table, but that the ANC could not meet them.
“We told them we were prepared to work with them if they could meet our demands.”
The demands included: Taking their votes and using them to appropriate land without compensation; nationalisation of mines; free education immediately; removal of Die Stem from the national anthem; eradication of e-tolls; no signing of the nuclear deal; and the removal of President Jacob Zuma as the head of state.
Malema said the ANC had welcomed the input, but had asked for time to meet its collective.
“On all issues, they were not committed. They said there was no nuclear deal at the moment and therefore they couldn’t discuss an issue that was not there.”
Malema said the DA also could not meet their demands. He said the DA had said it did not have powers to expropriate land.
He said they also had asked the DA to support them in removing Die Stem, and not to change the name of Tshwane.
“There is no deal with the DA.”
Ultimately, an agreement was not reached and so the party would no be entering into a coalition with either the ANC or DA. “There was no one who met our conditions.”
The EFF’s commander-in-chief made it clear, however, that neutrality is not an option. The party will thus support the IFP in KwaZulu-Natal and the DA in the major hung metros – namely Tshwane, Port Elizabeth, Johannesburg, and Ekurhuleni.
“We don’t want any positions, we don’t want any mayorship. We don’t want anything from anyone … We offer support to the parties for appointing a mayor and deputy mayor, but we don’t have an agreement with the parties.”
Malema continued to reiterate that the EFF could not back the ANC – a party they view as extremely corrupt. “What will the widows of Marikana say [to the EFF] when we support the party that killed their husbands and fathers?” – Additional reporting by News24