“I said at the press conference that I wouldn't have expected that from a brother. And once I say that, a word for that is betrayal. But it's water under the bridge now. Nothing of us [EFF] depends on his existence. We are doing much better now without him.”
When asked about the possibility of Shivambu's return to the party, Malema said while he initially expressed a willingness to welcome him back, the party's constitution governs such decisions.
“That was a demonstration of me not having anything against him as a person, but the EFF has a constitution. It has its own membership. I've got nothing against this guy. I've not done anything to this guy, and even if he calls on me tomorrow, I'll show up.”
The party leadership advised him against a hasty reconciliation, he said.
“They said, 'No, not here. You can forgive each other there, but not here.' The constitution of this organisation applies, and I ought to respect that.”
As the EFF faces challenges of members leaving to join other parties, Malema said he remains aware of dissenting voices within the party.
“They are there, and we're looking at them. There comes a season in politics where these things happen. We ought to hold tight and make sure that we remain unshaken.”
TimesLIVE
'If he calls on me, I'll show up': Malema on Shivambu
Multimedia reporter
Image: Kabelo Mokoena
EFF leader Julius Malema says he felt a sense of relief when his long-time comrade and EFF co-founder Floyd Shivambu left the party last month.
“Though his departure was painful, I got some sense of relief. I don't know why — it was as if I've put down some heavy load. So it's not always that bad things will always produce bad results. Perhaps at times they do produce very good results. So we are fine,” he said in an interview with the SABC.
Shivambu, who served as the EFF's deputy president, joined the Jacob Zuma's MK Party (MKP) last month. Reflecting on their long-standing relationship emanating from the ANCYL, Malema said they were brought together by a common purpose to build a party.
“What brought us together was a common purpose. We met in the trenches. What brought us together was sharing the common agenda for the revolution. Once we start seeing things differently, what brought us together no longer existed, and there's no need for me to be having any kind of relationship,” he said.
Malema defended his varied responses to Shivambu's departure, with his demeanour at a press conference contrasting with his tone during rallies.
“There’s a different posture you take when you're in a press conference, when I'm talking to you now, and when I go to speak in a rally... A political talk cannot be like some boring history lecture in a lecture room. My responsibility is to agitate and to instil confidence in the ground forces and say to them we're still rocking the boat, we are in charge, let's move forward.
Courtesy of SABC News
“I said at the press conference that I wouldn't have expected that from a brother. And once I say that, a word for that is betrayal. But it's water under the bridge now. Nothing of us [EFF] depends on his existence. We are doing much better now without him.”
When asked about the possibility of Shivambu's return to the party, Malema said while he initially expressed a willingness to welcome him back, the party's constitution governs such decisions.
“That was a demonstration of me not having anything against him as a person, but the EFF has a constitution. It has its own membership. I've got nothing against this guy. I've not done anything to this guy, and even if he calls on me tomorrow, I'll show up.”
The party leadership advised him against a hasty reconciliation, he said.
“They said, 'No, not here. You can forgive each other there, but not here.' The constitution of this organisation applies, and I ought to respect that.”
As the EFF faces challenges of members leaving to join other parties, Malema said he remains aware of dissenting voices within the party.
“They are there, and we're looking at them. There comes a season in politics where these things happen. We ought to hold tight and make sure that we remain unshaken.”
TimesLIVE
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