EFF deploys top brass to key metros as Malema unveils mayoral candidates

The EFF has deployed almost its entire top leadership to contest the biggest metros, with party leader Julius Malema unveiling a slate of high-profile mayoral candidates during the party’s 13th anniversary celebrations and local government elections manifesto launch in Thohoyandou in Limpopo on Saturday. The announcement signals the party’s determination to make major gains in coalition battlegrounds before the November 4 local government elections. Among the biggest surprises was the selection of former UN special rapporteur on the right to health, Tlaleng Mofokeng, as the EFF’s mayoral candidate for Johannesburg.

Mofokeng, an internationally recognised human rights advocate, is expected to face the DA’s Helen Zille, ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba and the ANC’s yet-to-be-announced candidate. The EFF’s deputy president Godrich Gardee has been deployed to contest the City of Mbombela in Mpumalanga, while treasurer-general Omphile Maotwe will lead the EFF’s campaign in Tshwane. National chairperson Nontando Nolutshungu will contest Cape Town, with national spokesperson Sinawo Thambo selected to lead the party in Nelson Mandela Bay.

Former deputy secretary-general Hlengiwe Mkhaliphi has been named the party’s candidate for eThekwini, while former Ekurhuleni speaker Nthabiseng Tshivhenga will contest Ekurhuleni. Other strategic deployments include Mkhululi Dlepu for Buffalo City, Sam Matiase for Mangaung, Lawrence Mapoulo for Polokwane, Ncedo Kolanisi for King Sabata Dalindyebo, Israel Monaisa for Rustenburg and Lerato Tito for Sol Plaatje. Addressing thousands of supporters before unveiling the candidates, Malema described the elections as “a choice between victory or death”, saying the collapse of municipalities had robbed South Africans of their dignity.

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“The collapse of our municipalities and the failure of local government in South Africa are not just about broken pipes, potholes, refuse collection, water and electricity supply. It is about the daily lives and lived experience of our people.” Malema said communities around the country had grown tired of political promises and insisted the EFF’s manifesto offered practical commitments to restore municipalities through clean governance, reliable service delivery and accountability. “There can be no real freedom without functioning municipalities. There can be no dignity without water, reliable electricity, safe roads and functioning clinics,” he said.— TimesLIVE

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