S. Africa's far left party pledges jobs, land reclamation at manifesto launch

South Africa’s radical left party has pledged to prioritize employment and reclaim land by the country’s black majority.

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) revealed this in its manifesto launch on Saturday ahead of the May scheduled general elections.

“We cannot postpone the land question, we cannot postpone the job question, it must happen now, we don’t want to be told that we will get land in 2030. We don’t want to be told that we’ll get jobs in 2030. We want jobs now, we are hungry now, we want to eat now, said head of the EFF, Julius Malema.

We don't want to be told that we will get land in 2030. We don't want to be told that we'll get jobs in 2030. We want jobs now.

Julius Malema, who’s been a member of the ruling African National Congress (ANC) since the end of apartheid in 1994, founded the EFF in 2013.

He defends a radical rhetoric that denounces the “compromises” of power with the country’s white minority.

“What pains me is that in South Africa, apartheid murders are still there, in South Africa we are still seeing South Africa national anthem, in South Africa there are schools, streets, buildings, towns and monuments named after apartheid rapists’‘, he claimed.

The ANC is largely in favor of the May election. Analysts think it would maintain its absolute majority in Parliament, despite the country’s poor economic performance and corruption cases bedeviling the party.

AFP