Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) commander-in-chief Julius Malema walked to a loud applause as thousands of red berets party supporters swelled the the iconic Moses Mabhida stadium on Saturday afternoon. The party was launching its election manifesto at the event.
Almost filled to capacity
About 50,000 supporters, mainly students who had been recruited from various campuses in KwaZulu-Natal filled the venue. The turn-out bolstered the EFF’s ambitious plan to wrestle KZN from the ANC. The iconic stadium has a 56,000 capacity.
“It took us six months crisscrossing different provinces gathering the views of various communities on what kind of government they would want. The people of KwaZulu-Natal are tired of being taken for a ride by the ANC government. We are tired of being led by greedy politicians. They do not care about the sufferings of the people on the ground,” explained EFF provincial chairperson Mongezi Twala.
Supported by ATM, PAC
He said the EFF was the only political formation that will emancipate the people from the bondage of hopelessness and unemployment.
ATM leader Vuyo Zungula said black people should unite to wage their own struggle. He said in his message of support.
“Only black people kill each other for political reasons. Black people must unite and safeguard our votes. Because we know that the ANC would want to steal the elections,” said Zungula.
The PAC said the EFF are the only political parties that genuinely represent black people and the struggle for land.
Real threat to ANC in the province
The stage is set ahead of the the much anticipated 2024 polls. KZN is where the governing ANC faces the real threat of losing its stranglehold. The EFF has made it known that it wants no less than 1 million votes in KZN. This is besides the partnership of the DA and the IFP in the province.
The newly formed uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party, whose face is former President Jacob Zuma, is also aiming for the ANC’s scalp. The party made a strong showing in its maiden by-elections under the Abaqulusi local municipality. This shows that the party has potential to cause an upset. It recorded an impressive 19%, becoming the third biggest party in the ward.
Favoured by survey
The red berets launched their manifesto in Durban buoyed by the results of the Political and Public Opinion Polling (Ipsos) survey. The survey showed that the EFF is likely to overtake the DA as the official opposition in the national assembly.
According to the survey, the governing ANC will dip below 40% on the national ballot. It further polls the EFF at 18.6%, DA 17.3%, IFP 3.6%. The Herman Mashaba-led ActionSA is set to occupy 5th spot with 3.4% of the national voter share.
