The EFF is setting the stage for their December national elective conference, with the spotlight falling on the expected epic showdown for the secretary-general position between ex-spokesperson Mbuyiseni Ndlozi and incumbent Marshall Dlamini.
A well-placed source, who only agreed to speak on the condition of anonymity, told Sunday World that some party structures are already lobbying strongly for Ndlozi to go toe-to-toe with Dlamini.
“Mbuyiseni is definitely girding his loins to contest Marshall, but I don’t know if he has the capital to beat the SG.
“The SG has worked the ground and will mop the floor with Mbuyiseni,” said a senior EFF leader who did not want to be named because he is not allowed to speak to the media.
The person also said contrary to media speculation, both EFF president Julius Malema and deputy president Floyd Shivambu will glide through the elections without opposition.
“Floyd is safe, no one is going to contest him. These media reports about Marshal contesting Floyd are misguided and false. It’s not true,” said the leader.
Another leader confirmed the real drama is reserved for the race for the secretary general position.
Although Ndlozi, the party’s former spokesperson and resident heartthrob, is a favourite with the party’s student wing leaders and branches, the source revealed that he has a slim chance of mobilising the necessary resources for a campaign compared to Dlamini.
The resource mogul Dlamini, the incumbent, is expected to make a triumphant return because he has more experience .
During the recent May 29 elections, Ndlozi led the Gauteng leg of the EFF campaign. Despite his charisma and brilliant intellectual capacity, he only managed to secure 12.46% of votes. For
context, that was a 1.07% drop from the 13.53% the party obtained in 2019.
Dlamini, who was catapulted from obscurity to prominence on Malema’s ticket during the 2019 EFF national conference in Nasrec, is no stranger to the political limelight. Thanks to the Malema lobby group, affectionately dubbed Amatorokisi, Dlamini was credited with expanding the party’s support base in KwaZulu-Natal by an astronomical margin.
The EFF’s KwaZulu-Natal votes in the 2019 general elections went from a mere 70 000 in 2014 to over 300 000.
Dlamini has a background in business, particularly construction and plant hire. He was initially reluctant to take up a formal party position because that would mean giving up promising business interests.
Despite Dlamini’s golden touch and his promotion to man the party’s engine room, the EFF’s support in KwaZulu-Natal nosedived in the May 29 elections, plummeting from almost 10% in 2019 to just over 2%.
The EFF elects candidates for the top six positions by an open show of hands, requiring the support of 30% of delegates.
