Durban - The EFF says it is eyeing the wins it achieved during Student Representative Council (SRC) elections this year across tertiary institutions as it seeks to expand its reach beyond campuses ahead of next year’s polls.
Following victories in the SRC elections at Durban University of Technology, uMfolozi TVET College and Unisa, and most recently at the Mangosuthu University of Technology, EFF spokesperson Mazwi Blose said they would embark on an aggressive voter registration drive.
The victories at campuses have caught the attention of the KwaZulu-Natal secretary for the South African National Civics Congress, Sizwe Cele.
Speaking at the ANC’s Manifesto Review rally in Pietermaritzburg on Sunday, Cele voiced concern at what he labelled the “miseducation” at campuses where students were voting against the governing party and the student organisations associated with it.
“The students go to varsities and other institutions, and when there are some problems they blame the government, and as a sign of that, vote for the EFF, which doesn’t even vote for the budget for funding education, because they constantly walk out from sittings,” said Cele.
But Blose said they were encouraged by the recent wins and would build on them and extend their reach outside campuses during voter registration.
“We want to register our own people so that unlike before, when we had people from the ANC voting for us, this time around we will have our own members and supporters registering to vote,” Blose said.
He cited the recent by-election where they had lost narrowly to the ANC in eThekwini in a ward where there was a high student presence, as a sign of their continued growth.
The spokesperson added that their appeal to the students was owed to them being frank about the problems at campuses, and providing what he termed “tangible solutions”.
He expressed optimism at the party being a decisive factor in determining the make-up of government in KZN after the 2024 elections.
University of KwaZulu-Natal political analyst Zakhele Ndlovu said that while the EFF had done well at campuses, this had not translated into similar growth at municipal and provincial levels.
“The question is whether they will be able to do that in 2024.
“What is clear is that people are gatvol about the ANC and blame the governing party for problems varying from unemployment to load shedding,” said the UKZN analyst.
Despite the unhappiness with the ANC, Ndlovu insisted that it would take a massive effort to unseat the governing party next year, but also dismissed talk of a resounding victory at the polls.