LISTEN | Malema: Madlanga commission testimony has not dented EFF support

The EFF has rejected the notion that the revelations at the Madlanga commission surrounding its leader have hurt the party.

EFF leader Julius Malema came under severe public scrutiny after revelations of his close ties to crime intelligence’s Feroz Khan who has been become a central topic at the commission.

Malema dismissed suggestions that the revelations have led to a negative public perception which could potentially affect the party at the local government elections in November.

He said the EFF had not been negatively affected, as two of its rallies, including its 13th year anniversary and manifesto launch in Thohoyandou, were packed to the rafters.

Speaking at a media briefing in Sandton, Malema said there was no evidence implicating the party in any wrongdoing, only rhetoric.

“The EFF calls on all South Africans to resist the urge to succumb to juvenile and politically motivated insinuations drawn from the work of the commission which are not rooted in any evidence or fact,” said Malema.

He said there was a deliberate attempt to cast doubt over the EFF.

“Despite all attempts to cast doubt over the organisation and its leadership, there’s been no evidence that ties the EFF to any wrongdoing and this is a fact we remain proud of,” said Malema.

Malema has accused the evidence leaders at the commission of using media reports as evidence to suggest wrongdoing, something he said would hurt the credibility of the commission.

“We encourage the commission and its evidence leaders to rely on evidence drawn from verifiable and credible processes of the law and legal institutions,” said Malema. “Tabloid journalism and speculation by the media outlets who have proven vendettas do not constitute evidence and the use of news article as evidence by such a credible commission only serves to undermine the credibility of that process and turn the commission itself into a weapon of propaganda.”

He said the EFF stood fully behind the commission but was not happy that the interim reports sent to President Cyril Ramaphosa had not been publicly available.

He said since some of the interim reports and recommendations were being used to arrest and prosecute people, keeping them a secret did not give the public the confidence that the secrecy was not being used to target certain people.

“We reiterate the call for all preliminary findings and interim reports by the Madlanga commission to be made public as those reports do not belong to the president but to the people of South Africa,” said Malema.

“To handle preliminary findings and reports with secrecy undermines the constitutional principle of transparency and risks selective and politically motivated conduct as it relates to prosecutions and arrests related to the work of the commission.”

Asked if he still believed the now former Idac head Andrea Johnson was comparable to the late Winnie Mandela, given her calamitous session at the commission, Malema said he had been busy and had not followed her evidence.

He said his likening her to Winnie Mandela was based on the evidence she gave at the parliamentary ad hoc committee on allegations made by KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi.

On Khan, Malema said they were friends but he had not been able to speak to or visit him since he was shot.

He said if Khan was found to have done anything wrong, he should be hauled over the coals.

Malema defended himself, saying it was not possible for himself alone to stop the ad hoc committee from calling Khan to testify. He said if the commission wanted him to testify, that should have been an easy thing to arrange.

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