Durban — Speculation is rife that prominent EFF Member of Parliament (MP) Mbuyiseni Ndlozi is going to ditch the party amid his fallout with party leader Julius Malema.
The rift between Ndlozi and Malema has been deepening, leading to Ndlozi snubbing the Red Berets’ third National Peoples Assembly (NPA) (internal party elections) last week.
Three EFF sources, independently of each other, told the Daily News that Ndlozi was already planning his exit from the party he joined when it was formed in 2013. Ndlozi is also the EFF former spokesperson.
On Thursday, Ndlozi removed his EFF MP banner from his X account, further fuelling speculation that he was going to resign from the EFF.
“We have known for a long time that Ndlozi is planning to dump the EFF in favour of the uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP). That is what led to the strained relationship between him and the party leader, Julius Malema. Their relationship is now irreparable,” said an EFF leader in KwaZulu-Natal.
Malema was blunt during a media briefing last week during the party’s NPA, where he said the party’s elective conference in Nasrec, Johannesburg, will go ahead with or without Ndlozi, who has been a key figure of the party since its formation 11 years ago.
“We are not going to answer the question about Mbuyiseni Ndlozi. You have got his number, and some of you talk to him. We are not responsible for Mbuyiseni Ndlozi. Ninety percent of the people who were to be here are here. That is what matters. Whoever is not here was not supposed to be here, and it is not in our interest to entertain such nonsense,” said Malema last week.
Another EFF source said: “The fact is that Ndlozi is well on his way out from the party. And he has made up his mind. His absence from the NPA speaks volumes about the growing animosity between him and Malema. It is unclear what came between the two leaders as they were once joined at the hip, especially during Ndlozi’s tenure as the spokesperson of the party. We are not happy as party members and leaders.”
Ndlozi was, for a long time, seen as the face of the EFF during his tenure as the spokesperson of the party.
In the lead-up to the party’s recent internal elections, Ndlozi’s backers were punting for him to contest the party’s deputy presidency – a position left vacant after the abrupt departure of Floyd Shivambu to the MKP, led by former president Jacob Zuma, in August.
However, Malema was said to have been secretly punting for former secretary-general of the EFF Godrich Gardee, who was elected to the same position last week.
During the May elections, the EFF dipped from 44 seats the party garnered in 2019 to 39 seats in the National Assembly, which has 400 seats. In KZN, the party plummeted from eight seats to two members in the 80-member provincial legislature, where the MKP is the biggest party with 37 seats.
The EFF has suffered an exodus of prominent leaders to the rival MKP.
Among the high-profile EFF leaders who have recently dumped the party were founding former deputy president Shivambu, who is now the secretary-general of the MKP, advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane and former EFF national chairperson Dali Mpofu.
Independent political analyst Thobani Zikalala said: ”It will not be a surprise if Ndlozi leaves the EFF. But maybe if he leaves now and goes to the MK Party, it would confirm what Julius has been saying that many would be following Floyd to the MK Party. It would be a big loss to the party. He is one of the senior leaders in the EFF and the first spokesperson of the party.”
He added: “He has mass appeal, and he is one of the most lovable EFF leaders. He seems to have a relationship with the ground forces of the party. He offers intellectual credence and credibility to the EFF.”
Party spokesperson Leigh-Ann Mathys and Ndlozi could not be reached for comment.
MK Party spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela said: “Unfortunately I’m not aware of this information nor any talks of that nature.”
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