They may be the third largest party, not even the official opposition. But the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) are adamant that they are South Africa's government in waiting.
As weeks go by, and political parties want to make sure they are foremost in people's minds ahead of the general elections, Drum chats to the party's Naledi Chirwa, who is also a member of parliament. She speaks for the party on all elections related matters.
It's not a sit-down interview, it's a walk and talk because "the revolution needs all hands on deck".
What many people in the political space have been very vocal about this elections season is that the youth vote is extremely important.
"They have a very important responsibility, and that is to choose a government. There are 14 million young people who are eligible to vote. This responsibility that rests on their shoulders means that they need to show up.
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"Their decision will carry us for the next five years. They suffer the most from the injustices in our country in terms of crime and economic freedom."
She criticizes President Cyril Ramaphosa for having the “audacity” to stand before the nation and talk about Tinstwalo.
“Ramaphosa was really opportunistic with that Tintswalo analogy. The reality is that the Tintswalo he is describing represents a very small faction of the youth. Even if she is in university, she still goes to bed hungry.
“She lives in a subpar RDP house in a community that is struggling to get services delivery to her community, she goes to bed hungry. Looking at the unemployment numbers, she is a 30-year-old unemployed graduate. She is living with no electricity and no water.
“Ramaphosa spoke from a place of stroking his ego. The things he was going on about are basic human rights. These are the promises the governing party made to our parents in 1994. Now to present that as a badge of honour, is something that should be brought into question. The reality is that things have gotten worse under Ramaphosa’s presidency. He is busy fan-girling himself, and it is troubling. We cannot isolate the failures of government from the leader.”
Naledi says the EFF is very aware of the treat women, specifically black women, get and they want to rid society of the wayward way of doing things.
“Even bylaws are being used to strip black women on their dignity. Unemployment is high and people are trying to provide for their families, so they decide to sell fruit and vegetables and there are bylaws that do not allow them to be street vendors.
“Black women and children should be the measure of how well a government is doing.”
Naledi was recently the subject of how people questioned how women are treated in the EFF and she says they are deliberated about women empowerment.
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“Even if you look at the representation of women in the EFF leadership, you will see that our agenda is different from other parties. The EFF is all for gender education and training and the ensuring of economic benefit.
“I did not understand why people were so upset. The EFF has always been clear about taking accountability seriously. We need to get accustomed to leaders being held accountable for their actions. Look at how many millions of people are in our country and look at the parliamentary office bearers. It tells you that we should be held to a higher standard. This is not corporate.
“We are in the middle of a revolution; we are not just a party. This is not just an election season; we are at war. We are at war with unemployed, black people not having land, and inequality in our country.
She says an EFF led government will address bread and butter issues.
“South Africans are concerned about not having water and electricity, they are concerned about the lack of jobs, they are concerned about politicians who do as they please without accountability. These are just some of the things we seek to address.”
