Julius Malema. File photo M&G
Accountability seems to be the mood of the seventh administration.
Exposure of how funds have been illegitimately used for personal gain during the sixth administration have come to the forefront and made headline news. So too have scandals predating both administrations, with the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and its leader, Julius Malema, alleged to have heavy involvement in the Venda Building Society (VBS) Mutual Bank scandal.
On 11 July this year, former VBS Bank chairperson Tshifhiwa Matodzi agreed to a plea deal with the National Prosecuting Authority, resulting in a 15-year sentence. His affidavit alleged the involvement of a number of people in the looting of the bank, including Malema and EFF deputy president Floyd Shivambu.
It detailed how both senior leaders were aware of the illicit nature of payments made to them through Sgameka Projects, registered under the name of Floyd’s brother, Brian Shivambu.
Allegations of the two EFF leaders’ involvement in the VBS scandal date back to 2018.
Matodzi said in the affidavit that “the EFF constituencies were VBS’s target market” and “I further informed them that VBS was willing to offer a donation to the EFF. I then proposed that VBS can donate R5 million immediately once a bank account has been opened at VBS and R1 million per month to the EFF. I also made it clear that the amount could only be deposited into a VBS account, and that the EFF should therefore open a bank account with VBS.”
The EFF is now in a more difficult position.
The party did not see the growth it expected in the 29 May elections, failing to surpass the threshold of 10%. The newcomer, the uMkhonto weSizwe party, replaced the EFF as the country’s third largest party.
After calls for a government of national unity were made by the ANC, which had lost its majority in the elections, the EFF refused to join because it said it would not work with the Freedom Front Plus and the Democratic Alliance, because this would be giving power back to white monopoly capital.
Other shifts in power are also taking place. The ANC and EFF jointly ran the Johannesburg, Ekurhuleni and eThekwini metros but it appears that the ANC is cutting ties with the EFF, according to a report by the Mail & Guardian, locking the Red Berets out of the opportunity to govern.
Now with the story about the involvement of senior EFF officials in the VBS Mutual Bank heist, it appears the party has become everything it advocated so strongly against. The party constantly criticised the ANC for its leaders’ involvement in state capture and continuing corruption, and the EFF leaders now face similar criticism.
After 10 years of the EFF claiming to be for the people of South Africa and advocating for the common person, it is clear that senior officials had other agendas and plans. This will have a negative effect on the EFF and its claims to be on the left and an advocate for a more socialist state.
The only question now for the EFF is: what next? With parties calling for an arrest warrant for Shivambu and Malema, this could lead to the collapse of the EFF.
Malema, the commander-in-chief, has been the figurehead of the EFF and he has held on to the position. The party has never had a succession plan — at least in terms of public knowledge.
But it may not be all doom and gloom for the EFF. It’s too early to tell whether Shivambu and Malema will face charges or time in prison. But the removal of a figurehead might establish the EFF as a political party that exists beyond Malema. It might allow for new individuals to move up the ranks.
But that is easier said than done. It may be the case that if Malema is removed from the party, the party and its ideology might die with its charismatic leader.
Can the EFF recover, or was this the moment where it flew too close to the sun?
Khumo Kumalo is the founder of the website Misunderstood, which unpacks social, identity and economic issues in South Africa, and a student at Morehouse College, studying political science. He is also a Mail & Guardian 200 Young South Africans 2024 winner.