EFF leader Julius Malema has taken a swipe at the official opposition saying they were funded by a family involved in the mining sector.
Malema made the remarks in Kraaifontein this weekend during the last leg of his visit to the Western Cape.
He first conducted a walkabout at the Liberty Promenade Mall in Mitchells Plain before addressing hundreds of Kraaifontein residents.
Malema told the crowd white privilege continued to be a challenge, but the EFF was the party which was determined to change that.
“White privilege is alive and we need to deal with it.
“We need to deal with that white privilege of people getting positions because they are white, not because they are qualified.
“The EFF is the only organisation that is not scared of white people.
“We are liberated mentally… we know who we are,” Malema said.
He emphasised that white people weren’t owed anything because “they owe us their lives because they stole from us for a very long time and killed our people”.
Malema said the party was not captured by the likes of business tycoon Johann Rupert and the wealthy Oppenheimer family.
“We are not captured by the Stellenbosch mafia.
“We are not captured by Johann Rupert and all his friends.
“We are the only organisation that is not in the pockets of Johann Rupert and the Oppenheimers.
“The Oppenheimer family needs to be exposed and when the time is right we need to go after them.
“They are the ones who formed the DA.
“They are the ones who give the DA money and they do it openly.
“They want to control the politics of South Africa and we must never allow them to control or capture the EFF,” Malema said.
Malema said he visited Kraaifontein not to tell the public to vote for the EFF, but to liberate the community mentally.
People need to be reminded of who they are and not believe they are less than, said Malema.
“I came here for you to be liberated mentally and to know who you are.
“If you fail to liberate yourself from the chains of poverty, you have yourself to blame and no one else,” he said.
Malema said the EFF is the organisation that loves black people and demands the unity of black people.
“The unity of black people starts with self-love.”
Residents of Mitchells Plain said they were neglected by the ANC and DA government.
Daphne van Buuren said under the EFF government, the party should look at increasing the Sassa grants as some are unable to make it through the month.
She said the conditions of Mitchells Plain is proof of the failure of the DA led government.
“We need change in our communities.
“We are poor and struggling.
“As a pensioner I cannot afford my grand children's school fees.
“We struggle every month," Van Buuren said.
Natasha Small, EFF ward 49 candidate, said the community was plagued by unemployment, crime and drug and alcohol abuse.
“There is so much poverty in our area.
“Every time before the elections, the DA makes all these promises to us but never delivers.
“Our people are tired and the EFF will be the party to meet the needs of our community," Small said.
“They promise to feed our people but our people are still hungry.
“We as EFF work on the ground so we know the plight of the community" she said.
tarryn-leigh@[email protected]
Political Bureau