By Julius Malema
As I took the podium on Saturday in Moses Mabhida I was affirmed by the people of KwaZulu-Natal that the EFF has indeed built a solid base in the province and reminded that in the 2019 elections, the EFF obtained an impressive figure of 350,000 votes.
This says to us and the rest of South Africa that the EFF is welcome in KZN and that the people of this beautiful province are ready to choose a government that is progressive, new and will be accountable to the electorate.
Not only is the EFF thriving on a provincial scale, but even on a local level, the number of EFF councillors increased from 68 in 2016 to 168 following the 2021 elections.
As a movement, we will forever be grateful to be embraced by the people of KwaZulu-Natal, the love they have shown the movement is equally reciprocated and appreciated.
We are confident in the provincial leadership led by Mongezi Twala, and we can assure the people of KwaZulu-Natal that post-elections, no outsiders will come and occupy positions that should deservedly go to the people of KwaZulu-Natal.
We know that millions of South Africans and the the continent at large is already aware of the EFF, but it is good to never be presumptuous and with the launch of the manifesto, it presented a befitting occasion to reintroduce the Economic Freedom Fighters.
The EFF is a revolutionary, radical, militant and fearless emancipation movement founded in South Africa and expanding to Africa.
Since the formation on July 26, 2013, we have grown in strength and have 44 members of Parliament and are represented in all nine legislatures in South Africa with over 1,200 councillors. We are part of government in the metros of Gauteng, and in eThekwini, we have taken it upon ourselves to tend to the neglected and dilapidated infrastructure, making it possible for people to enjoy beaches over the last festive season.
We have championed education by taking thousands of children to pursue higher education in TVETs and universities and have participated in the restoration of divinity of our people by building houses and assisting in other social imperatives.
We have fought racism without fear or favour and are the ones that have made it possible for white people to respect black people.
The EFF is the only organisation that has brought the land question to the fore and escalated it all the way to Parliament.
Our achievements include fighting GBV and insourcing of security guards and cleaners. We are the only organisation that is intolerant of corruption and incompetence and we will never be held hostage by our own members who are under-performing.
Through #SizofundaNgenkani, thousands of South Africans will be afforded an opportunity to access institutions of higher education, irrespective of affordability. As long as marks allow for access, a student must be given an opportunity to study.
We are of the belief that freedom without access to economic emancipation is meaningless and that is why we are entering the 2024 elections with the intention of winning.
The people of South Africa, from KwaZulu-Natal to Free State to Limpopo and all corners of the country must rest assured that their freedom is coming tomorrow.
Nothing much has changed since the dawn of democracy in South Africa, because in 1994, the majority of the land belonged to the white people and the same is true in 2024.
In 1994, the economy was in the hands of white people and that has not changed after 30 years. Clearly proving that the current government is incapable of advancing the cause of the people of South Africa. There is no freedom without free education and flushing toilets. Under the ANC, there’s no freedom, as our people are without jobs, electricity and healthcare services.
Political power without economic power is meaningless, yet we are pursuing political power in order to use it decisively. Our manifesto, our battle cry for this year’s election is OUR LAND AND JOBS NOW! STOP LOAD SHEDDING!
This is informed by the fact that 30 years later, the majority of the land still belongs to the white people. The emphasis of jobs is because 15 million South Africans who are willing to work are jobless and we are lamenting on the now, because these are realities that we are currently facing. We don’t have jobs, now. We don’t have access to land and healthcare, now. So we need to change things, now.
We are saying load shedding must stop, now, because we are in darkness, now. Load shedding has destroyed lives, jobs and education, now. Ramaphosa continues to kill people through load shedding, and that is why we must vote to end load shedding, now.
The EFF manifesto is about commitments and not promises. We plan on implementing all our commitments because our manifesto was not sponsored by any businessman. It is the product of the people. From security guards, to teachers, domestic workers and all those who are suffering.
Our commitment is that we are going to take back the land. We are going to go back to Parliament and change section 25 of the Constitution and make it explicit that land will be taken without compensation. The majority of the land will be given back to women and young people. Redistribution of land will be done rapidly, 51% to be done by the end of 2025.
We are going to create jobs (skilled and unskilled) through social housing and road infrastructure and this will create four million jobs. One million jobs will be created from insourcing of security guards. We must prioritise trading among Africans in order to grow the African economies. Western companies can leave if they want because we have China and the rest of Africa.
We need to decentralise our economy and incentivise people who open factories in the rural areas. We need to begin to produce goods that we use on a daily basis in South Africa as that will illustrate a working economy.
The manifesto makes provisions for the support of SMMEs and the need to relook at the PFMA and the MFMA and make provisions for government to source 80% of goods and services locally. The EFF will create nine million jobs through ending load shedding. The government of the EFF will end load shedding within six months of taking over government.
We are going to reactivate coal-fired stations and introduce 6,000 mega watts nuclear energy. Diversification and optimisation are what is best when dealing with the current electricity challenge. This will be done in line with non-negotiable maintenance plans.
Municipalities will be given grants to implement hybrid and off the grid electricity solutions. The EFF will assist the municipalities in grant applications.
The EFF will introduce free decolonised education and 40,000 posts will be created for ECD (early childhood development) with 50% of those to be occupied by women or young people.
Higher education will be free and students will not be left with government debt upon completion of their studies. Money should go directly to institutions and students should learn.
We need to reclaim our streets and our country and introduce harsh sentences for criminals and especially those who point guns at the police. This will result in a 25 year jail sentence without pardon. Police salaries will increase, with incentives for catching dangerous criminals.
Police members must maintain shape under the EFF because they must always be fit for purpose.
The army needs to be revamped because army infrastructure has collapsed. From land to sea to air, the army must be retrained in order to assist police in fighting crime and assisting in preventing dangerous weapons from entering the country.
Under the EFF, doctors will do their six months community service because we never want doctors to be unemployed in this country. Clinics will operate for 24-hours and our database will be strengthened, with punitive measures for anyone who misuses this database.
Under the EFF, the social granted will increase for the elderly to R4,000, veterans to receive R4,200 and for the child support grant to increase to R1,200. We will also introduce a graduate fund where unemployed matriculants will get R1,000, unemployed graduates to get R3,000 and those with honours degrees will get R4,000.
The EFF will nationalise the mines, and work with the Chinese, Russians and other African states to build infrastructure. We need to prioritise housing and ensure that homes are built with flushing toilets inside. Apartheid names must be removed from our streets and replaced with iconic Africans such as Steve Biko.
It is possible for the EFF to turn this country around, we have a clear plan for our people that is backed by scientific research. We have zero tolerance for corruption and laziness in all spheres of government and internally in the organisation. Our commitment to the people of South Africa is solid, and come elections, they must vote EFF so that we begin to claim our land and country back.
Julius Malema is the President and CIC of the Economic Freedom Fighters.
The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IOL or Independent Media
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