EFF determined to silence Zuma ahead of speech

The EFF has vowed to interdict Thursday’s state of the nation address unless it is confirmed that the ANC asked President Jacob Zuma to step down.

EFF leader Julius Malema was on Monday adamant that the nation would not be subjected to Zuma’s speech if the president’s own party had lost faith in him. “He is a party deployee. We are just waiting for his party to confirm that indeed ‘we went to him and told him to resign and we will take him to court and say he is not wanted even by his party’. How does he address the nation when his party is not interested in his address,” Malema asked.

However, constitutional law expert Prof Pierre de Vos cautioned that this would not be an easy undertaking.

While Malema stated that the case would be based on the fact that Zuma was deployed to the presidency by the ANC, De Vos reiterated that only Parliament could remove Zuma. De Vos said he would be shocked if the courts entertained the matter, which he has described as a “political party tiff”.

“Parliament elects the president and it can remove the president .... It’s important to make a distinction between legal and moral legitimacy.

“If the ANC says it lost confidence in him, he would still have to be removed by Parliament,” said De Vos.

The EFF has another plan though. Malema told reporters that having failed to secure a motion of no confidence against Zuma before the state of the nation address, the party would nevertheless ensure he did not rise to the podium on Thursday.

National Assembly Speaker Baleka Mbete has scheduled the debate as requested by the EFF for February 22.

“Since Baleka has refused, it looks like the motion of no confidence will be debated on Thursday,” Malema said. The state of the nation address “can happen, but the first item, motion of no confidence, that’s what we are going to do there”.

He explained that by applying for the debate on the party’s motion of no confidence in Zuma ahead of the speech, it hoped to maintain order.

The EFF has disrupted numerous addresses by the president on previous occasions, with some of them ending in bloody battles with security officials.

Commenting on allegations that Zuma had rejected the ANC’s request to resign, Malema said the party was getting a taste of its own medicine.

The address “must come but it must be delivered by someone who respects the Constitution .... [We are] happy with how he is treating the ANC.

“When we said the same things they... protected him.

“We warned them about this delinquent. When we said so we were called rascals, reckless…

“When the EFF asked the same thing, you defended him,” said Malema.