By Enyichukwu Enemanna
The deputy leader of South African opposition party – the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) said on Thursday that he is resigning to join the party led by Jacob Zuma.
The newly formed opposition party, the uMkhonto we Sizwe (MK) led by former President of South Africa, Zuma has received a fresh boost with this latest development.
Floyd Shivambu says he is joining the fold of MK that made a surprise performance in the May 29 election.
His exit is seen as a heavy setback to the Marxist EFF headed by the very vocal Julius Malema.
The EFF saw its share of the vote fall to below 10% in the poll, as the MK party surged ahead to become the third-biggest in parliament.
EFF and MK are both part of a leftist opposition alliance formed after the election to counter the coalition government led by the long-ruling African National Congress (ANC) and the white-dominated Democratic Alliance.
Shivambu’s defection may indicate a wider acceptance of MK, which largely draws on Zuma’s popularity in his home province of KwaZulu-Natal.
“This is a testing moment, … the EFF will have to pass this test or it will have to die,” Malema told reporters at a news conference.
Zuma was suspended and later expelled from the ANC he once led over anti-party activities.
He openly declared that he would vote against ANC and its leader, President Cyril Ramaphosa in the May election.
This year, he took the reins of MK, which played a key role in bringing the ANC’s share of the vote below 50%, leaving it with option of alliance to produce the President.
The EFF and MK have similar policies, including the nationalisation of banks and mines, and the expropriation of land for the benefit of Black farmers.
They both rallied against “white monopoly capital”, which they say still controls South Africa’s wealth three decades after the end of apartheid.
