Former Nelson Mandela spokesperson Carl Niehaus was sworn in as the EFF MP at the first sitting of the National Assembly of the seventh administration on Friday.
A beaming Niehaus said he was all about fighting for freedom and was happy to be part of a political party that continued the fight.
“It is quite an interesting experience to be back after 27 years, and I am excited because this time around, we are really going to make a change,” said the former ANC spokesperson.
“I know that the Economic Freedom Fighters are going to be the leaders in bringing about that change. So, ultimately, yes, 2024 is going to be our 1994.
“I am looking forward to the great role that we are going to play in the legislature and in the national executive, and we will do so in a principled way; we will never sell out, and we will never sell our souls for positions.”
Niehaus joined the EFF after dropping the African Radical Economic Transformation Alliance, a political party that he started in 2023.
The former ANC MP said he has dedicated at least 45 years of “uncompromising commitment” to the struggle for liberation and expressed fulfilment as he will now stand in the first parliament meeting to take an oath of allegiance.
Niehaus announced the termination of ANC membership and his resignation in December 2022, during which he emphasised that he would continue the fight that had initially led him to join the party.
His resignation came a year after he was suspended for criticising the ANC leadership on a public platform, which was considered, among other things, to bring the organisation into disrepute.
This included him questioning issues of land.
He has also served as the Umkhonto weSizwe Military Veterans’ Association spokesperson.
He also shared an extract from when he was charged with treason and sentenced to 15 years. In the extract, he describes apartheid as a heresy and a crime against humanity.
Niehaus also asserted that if granted a chance, he would kill then-state president Pieter Willem Botha because he considered him a murderer and a criminal.
