EFF denounces Malema charges as 'reflection of a manipulated captured state'

13 October 2016 - 16:43 By Tmg Digital

The Economic Freedom Fighters has denounced the summons served on the party's leader Julius Malema on Thursday‚ under the Riotous Assembly Act for advocating land grabs. Deputy president Floyd Shivhambu told a news conference after the summons for two cases were served on Malema that: "The director of priority crimes wants to charge the commander-in-chief with a crime which occurred on the 16th of December 2014 in Mangaung.""This is a reflection of a desperate state and a manipulated captured state that is utilising its state institutions to persecute the leader of the Freedom Fighters for something that happened a long time ago‚" said Shivhambu.The first case is related to statements made by Malema at the EFF’s elective conference in Bloemfontein in December 2014 where Malema called for his supporters to invade unoccupied land.“We are going to occupy the unoccupied land because we need the land. For us to eat‚ we must have the land. For us to work‚ we must have the land‚” he said at the time. Malema said: “I come from Seshego. If there is unoccupied land‚ we will go and occupy the land with my branch. You must go and do the same in the branch where you come from.”This is the video used as the basis of the first charge against Malema:The second charge relates to what Malema said at the Madadeni College Stadium‚ Newcastle‚ on June 27 2016 when Malema was on the campaign trail for the local government election. He reportedly told supporters that they must not be apologetic about occupying land illegally and that white people can’t claim ownership of land because it belongs to the country’s black African majority.In May the Sunday Times reported that the Minister of State Security David Mahlobo had now taken charge of government efforts to have Malema arrested for making "violent threats" against the state.Malema is due to appear in Bloemfontein and Newcastle courts on November 14 and 7 respectively.- additional reporting by Nomahlubi Jordaan and Qaanitah Hunter..

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