Malema changes tune to ''kissing the Boer"

He told white land owners "their days are numbered", but extended an invitation to them to join the EFF in their fight for equal land ownership. Malema landed himself in hot water last year when he repeated the controversial call "Kill the Boer".

On Monday though it was the ruling party in his cross-hairs, when he lashed out at the ANC at the rally in Inanda, a traditional ANC stronghold.

While EFF supporters were transported in, the ANC held their own Freedom Day rally at a nearby ground, in an apparent effort to counter a groundswell of support for Malema in the province.

People clad in vivid red regalia, among them children, packed the stands after receiving a free meal and party T-shirt.

Entering the grounds to cheers of his faithful fighters, a grinning Malema waved to the crowds.

Before Malema spoke, EFF chair Dali Mpofu said "Die Stem must fall", before singing the national anthem without it.

On taking the podium, Malema led the crowd chanting "down with Zuma".

While some speakers were jeered for not speaking Zulu, Malema said he would speak in English to share his message with the world.

'We must be ashamed'

"We were supposed to be a proud nation today [Monday] but I stand before you ashamed to be a South African. We are not proud of what happened leading up to this. We have embarrassed those who fought for our freedom. When it was difficult they left the country and went into other African states so that they could come back and fight for us."

"They were welcomed and given shelter and aid so they could come and fight for me and you," he said.

"We are free but we look down on those who helped to liberate us. Today you forgot those Africans who died in Mozambique and Lesotho for us. We must be ashamed."

"You are ignorant because today's government fuels ignorance. They know that the day you know the truth you will rise against them. It is in the interest of colonialist and imperialist forces that we ignore our history."

"If we took all the foreigners away you would still be unemployed. It is the ANC who are selling RDP houses so don't blame our brothers and sisters from Africa," Malema said.

"You stay in a shack, you should blame your government and blame the people you voted for. The ANC only increased their votes in this province. If you are angry, vent that anger on the ANC and not foreign nationals. The people of Mozambique did not tell Zuma to build a fire pool," he jeered.

"Blame the ANC for your suffering. You are in shacks with no water and power. Your children are not properly educated. The ANC is responsible for that. If you are looking for the criminals stealing your houses and jobs, look at the penthouse called Luthuli House."

"The people of KZN deserve better than this. When visiting the squatter camps, I could see some of our people have not experienced democracy. We are celebrating political freedom but we want bread on the table. We want roofs over our heads and our children to have a free education. Through education we will usher in economic freedom."

Malema had faced-off with Social Development MEC Bathebile Dlamini at a transit camp for victims of xenophobia when the party handed out blankets and mattresses on Friday.

"For as long as you do not own the land and the minerals therein, the freedom you have is not complete. We need to continue with the struggle. Mandela knew that political freedom is not enough and we need to fight for economic freedom and give our people total liberation."

'Sharing the land'

"They [the ANC] didn't want us in this stadium today [Monday]. They are scared of the EFF. They feel threatened by everything red. This is a Red Sea, let's hope the SABC will show it all and it will have their stomachs turning. They will not believe this took place in Inanda," he said.

"We are the future and no one can stop it. Next year we will take Durban, they [the ANC government] are dying here and killing each other instead of governing the people. We will make Durban look like Miami. It will never look like Miami with the corrupt thugs in power."

Speaking on issues of land reform, Malema said the hard line thinking was here to stay.

"I met with white people in Cape Town and they asked if they had a home in this country. I told them there will always be a home for those who were willing to share the land with all the people.

''Right now it is the same as it was during apartheid. The only difference now is our black president who protects the privileges of the white South Africans. White people are enjoying the freedom. All they care about is making more money for themselves. A life of a black person is still cheap and we must fight for the dignity of an African.

''White South Africans, you owe it to us to join forces with us and fight for economic freedom for all. We want our resources and country back. South Africa is in the hands of white males and they must know their days are numbered," he said.

Malema said that they would continue to hold the ANC to account in parliament.

"We make the ANC sweat for their money in parliament. We don't let them sleep anymore."

"When Zuma thinks about parliament for the next five years he must shiver. It is not an ANC rubber stamp. We will hold the executive to account. Baleka Mbhete didn't invite me to parliament. That Zuma puppet is going to die of a heart attack," he said.

"Be proud of us in parliament, we are not like those rotten potatoes we kicked out. We rid ourselves of them and the EFF in front of your won't retreat," Malema said.

A large police contingent was on high alert as nearly 2 000 party supporters flooded in to the John Dube Stadium.

Ranks of Public Order Policing Unit members, bolstered by a water cannon, stood watch over the gathering, the culmination of a series of public appearances by Malema in KwaZulu-Natal over the weekend.

Malema and a high-level delegation have been visiting the transit camps which house foreign nationals who have been displaced by xenophobic violence at the weekend.

 

Author: News24 

NewsWire ID: 2015 

File photo: Gallo images