Malema tells Inanda rally the MK Party is 'dead' as EFF launches KZN manifesto

Economic Freedom Fighters leader Julius Malema told supporters at the party’s KwaZulu-Natal local government elections manifesto launch in Inanda that voters should not back the uMkhonto weSizwe Party, arguing its internal leadership disputes make it unfit to run municipalities.

Speaking at the Dr JL Dube Stadium, north of Durban, on Saturday, 19 September, Malema said the MK Party’s record of leadership turnover ahead of the 4 November elections showed it could not offer stable governance.

“MKP is dead before it was born, they are killing each other, they are destroying each other, they’re expelling each other,” he said. “If you elect them as a mayor on the 4th [November], on the 5th bazomxosha lo mayor [they would fire the mayor]. So, how are we going to have a municipality where you’re not sure whether the mayor would still be mayor the following day?”

The South African reported on 20 September that Malema made the remarks at the manifesto launch.

What the MK Party’s record shows

Malema’s criticism points to a documented pattern of changes inside the MK Party in the months before the local government elections.

In March, Sibonelo Nomvalo replaced Bongani Mncwango as secretary-general. The party also made changes to its KwaZulu-Natal leadership and electoral structures.

In June, the party expelled former MP Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla and former national spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela, citing conduct it said undermined organisational unity and discipline. Both have challenged their expulsions.

In August, it expelled MPs Pumlani Kubukeli and Khanyisile Litchfield-Tshabalala, again citing conduct it said was detrimental to the organisation and its unity. Litchfield-Tshabalala disputed the basis of her expulsion.

That month, Jacob Zuma announced a restructuring that included appointing his son, Duduzane Zuma, as first deputy president, while John Hlophe was removed from the position.

Malema contrasted that with the EFF’s own continuity, naming Marshall Dlamini as an example.

“Only the EFF is clear, Marshall Dlamini was a secretary from the NPA [elective conference in 2024] and is still the secretary till today,” he said. “How many secretary-generals did MK have? It’s less than three years but it has had more than 15 secretary-generals [sic] that is a sign of disorganisation.”

He added: “You cannot vote for disorganisation, you must vote for organisation. The EFF is the only organisation that is organised in the whole of South Africa.”

Claims on councillor registration

Malema also claimed the EFF had registered councillors in every ward it is contesting, and framed the party’s election effort as a test of organisational discipline.

“We want to organise government the same way we’ve organised the EFF,” he said. “Not even the ANC can match the EFF.”

He pointed to the African National Congress’s difficulties in registering candidates across all the municipalities it intended to contest, including key municipalities in the Eastern Cape, the party’s traditional stronghold.

The Enquirer has not independently verified Malema’s figures on secretary-generals or the EFF’s ward registration, and the MK Party did not respond in the material available.

South Africa’s local government elections are set for 4 November, with parties across the country finalising candidate lists and manifestos. Municipal councils elected on that date will appoint mayors and run services including water, electricity reticulation, refuse collection and local roads, which is why the stability of a governing party’s internal structures has a direct bearing on how a municipality is run day to day.