The main opposition party in South Africa has accused its main radical left challenger of stirring up animosity by engaging in a divisive anti-apartheid chant and blocking any broad alliance before the elections the following year.
Julius Malema, the leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), performed “Kill the Boer, the Farmer” to some 90,000 screaming fans in a packed stadium in Soweto on Saturday during a rally.
The earliest Dutch settlers left behind the Boers.
“Here is a man determined to start a civil war,” accused John Steenhuisen, leader of the liberal-inspired Democratic Alliance (DA). He described Julius Malema – “Juju“, as South Africans call him – as a “bloodthirsty tyrant” determined to incite “mass murder“.
EFF did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The flamboyant and blatantly confrontational Mr. Malema, 42, will be the target of a complaint from the Democratic Alliance (DA). On a high stage on Saturday in a flurry of red and gold confetti, the latter lifted his fist for an extended period of time while donning his invincible red beret.
Less than a year out from significant elections in which the ANC, in power since the end of apartheid, could for the first time lose its parliamentary majority and, consequently, the presidency, this enormous show, intended to honour 10 years of its movement, also assumed the form of a show of force.
- Alliance Rejected
As opposition parties actively explore alliance tactics to topple the ANC in 2024, this most recent plummeting result has occurred.
Recently, Julius Malema declared that he was prepared to form a coalition with the DA, which is in charge of a collection of six minor parties. John Steenhuisen, however, disqualified it last week by asserting that the EFF does not concur with the coalition’s “values and principles.“
On Monday, John Steenhuisen’s characterization of the EFF as “political enemy number one” appeared to rule out any possibility of reconciliation, at least on a national level.
According to a recent poll, the DA, which is still mostly seen as a white party, might garner 16% of the vote, compared to the EFF’s 13%. The EFF is notable for supporting land reform that is favorable to black South Africans.
