‘That’s an obvious autocorrect’: Mbalula explains his #VoteEFF moemish

ANC head of elections Fikile Mbalula has laughed off  a moemish that saw him urge people to vote for the EFF. 

In a tweet on Sunday, Mbalula shared a video of ANC leader Cyril Ramaphosa campaigning in ward 26 in Polokwane with the hashtag #VoteEFF.

As Mbalula scrambled to delete the tweet, it went viral and was shared by EFF deputy leader Floyd Shivambu and MP Mbuyiseni Ndlozi. 

“Fighter Mbalula cannot hide his true intentions now. This is no longer a mistake. It’s a clarion call that all people of SA must #VoteEFF,” said Shivambu.

“The ANC head of elections Fikile Mbalula has called on all South Africans to #VoteEFF,” said Ndlozi. 

Even former president Jacob Zuma’s daughter Duduzile Zuma-Sambundla weighed in, asking if Mbalula had sold his allegiance.

“Could it be that my good friend Mbalula is batting for the wrong team? I think the EFF promised him a position or something,” she wrote.

Responding to the claims, Mbalula said the gaffe was an “autocorrect” moemish.

“Hold it Mr Shivambu, not so fast. That Twitter hashtag [is an] autocorrect. I want you to #VoteANC,” he told Shivambu.

“Nawe ulapha mhlekazi (you are here too). I know the ground is tough, that’s why this Twitter autocorrect would be exciting. Tweet freebie. That’s an obvious Twitter tag autocorrect,” Mbalula told Nldozi.

This is not the first time members of the two parties have mistakenly urged people to vote for their rival.

Earlier this month, Mbalula shared a video in which an EFF member was heard mistakenly shouting “viva ANC” before correcting herself. People in the crowd could be heard laughing at the moemish.

“When you act like you’ve moved on, but you are still in love with your ex,” the video was captioned.

Weighing in on the mistake, Ndlozi reminded Mbalula that Ramaphosa had also been the butt of Mzansi’s jokes with his viral mask mishap.