A former senior EFF leader in its central command team has accused party president Julius Malema and his deputy Floyd Shivambu of financial mismanagement and accepting a donation from VBS Mutual Bank.
In a social media post released on Facebook, Thembinkosi Rawula accused Malema and Shivambu of abuse and running a dictatorship. Rawula, who has resigned from the organisation, was the party’s national disciplinary chairperson.
He told News24 that, over the past four years, he has not been shown a report of the party’s finances.
“We have offices, but we don’t know how much we pay for these offices. You will not find any books of the EFF. There is no consistency, there is no accountability. All you see is them living a flashy lifestyle. The lives they are leading is beyond their financial means.”
He said Malema and Shivambu had centralised the control of millions in party funding. These funds, which he claimed were under Malema’s control, come from Parliament, members and council levies.
“These (sic) pair have made it clear, this is their organisation and all of you have come to join us not the other way round. In the EFF there is a treasurer general called Leigh-Ann Mathys, unfortunately she only administers petty cash of the EFF.”
Party spokesperson Mbuyiseni Ndlozi welcomed Rawula’s resignation, saying there was no space in the EFF for “position mongers, who, when rejected by democratic processes, join a long queue of [people] spreading disinformation against the EFF.”
He said the list was the decision of the party’s branches and had nothing to do with leaders in the red berets.
“How can Parliament give you money without audited statements? How can a legislature give you money without audited statements? How does the IEC [Electoral Commission of South Africa] do so without audited financial statements,” asked Ndlozi.
The spokesperson added this was the first time Rawula had taken exception with the party’s leadership, saying he had never asked for a financial statement, nor had he stood up before to raise concerns over decisions taken in the EFF.
In the Facebook post, however, Rawula makes damning allegations against Malema, saying that the party leader admitted to taking VBS money to “finance the revolution”.
“In fact he said, ‘Sometimes we are forced to kiss dogs or devil to get funding’,” wrote Rawula.
“When I rose to raise my views, I argued that whilst we appreciate to be taken into confidence about the VBS by the leadership. It would have been better that we were taken into confidence prior to the acquisition of VBS money not after. I further argue that the people of Limpopo had lost hope in the ANC and SACP, and EFF was providing the glimmer of hope, now EFF is mentioned in the same line with these organisations.”
Rawula, who was removed from the party’s national parliamentary list, admitted he was emotional over his removal, adding that he had kept silent to keep his job.
“For the past five years, we had to think with our stomachs rather than objectively engaging the executive and holding it accountable. Now that the EFF has taken a decision to remove me from list, I no longer have any obligations to hide what the EFF claims to stand for while leading another life. I have been victimised,” Rawula told News24.
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Source: news24