EFF NATIONAL SHUTDOWN UPDATES | How the EFF's #NationalShutdown played out

20 March 2023 - 06:00 By TimesLIVE
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EFF party leader Julius Malema and Mbuyiseni Ndlozi outside the presidential residence
EFF party leader Julius Malema and Mbuyiseni Ndlozi outside the presidential residence
Image: Rorisang Kgosana

March 20 2023 -21:20

It's a wrap: how the EFF's #NationalShutdown played out

The much-anticipated national shutdown headed by the EFF began early on Monday with the intention of disrupting the country through protests against the electricity crisis and to call for President Cyril Ramaphosa to step down and the high level of unemployment to be addressed. 

March 20 2023 -22:28

Blame the police for low turnout in Richards Bay, says EFF

The EFF in northern KwaZulu-Natal claim their no-show at Richards Bay port during Monday’s national shutdown was due to assaults and intimidation by law enforcement.

March 20 2023 -21:05

A handshake between cops and Malema concludes EFF's national shutdown march

The EFF's national  shutdown on Monday ended in handshakes outside the Mahlamba Ndlopfu presidential residence in Pretoria as EFF leader Julius Malema and EFF MP Mbuyiseni Ndlozi thanked police officers who marched with them peacefully.

March 20 2023 -20:52

Political parties have downplayed the “success” of the much-anticipated EFF national shutdown, claiming it did not turn out to be the groundbreaking political event it was hyped up to be.

The shutdown ended on Monday, with the government, the ANC and Malema’s party all claiming victory in different ways.

March 20 2023 -20:08

The EFF has threatened legal action against KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi after he allegedly instructed police to stop protesters from marching on Florida Road in Durban.

EFF secretary-general Marshall Dlamini told TimesLIVE they were marching peacefully when police arrived, threatening to use force and redirecting away them from Florida Road.

March 20 2023 -19:28

The National Shutdown was a success! From Cape Town to Musina, Mahikeng to Richards Bay, the mighty EFF presence put the country on hold to call for the resignation of Ramaphosa.

March 20 2023 -18:55

EFF march in pictures

March 20 2023 -18:16

Driver under investigation for negligent driving

An EFF march was delayed on Monday when a police Nyala and a hatchback allegedly driven by an EFF supporter collided in George on the Garden Route.

March 20 2023 -17:58

Police and EFF protestors clash during protest action on Monday. 

 

March 20 2023 -17:43

Malema and supporters camp outside president’s official Pretoria residence

After hours of marching, singing and scores of EFF members arriving in buses at Pretoria’s Church Square on Monday, EFF leader Julius Malema made an appearance.

Surrounded by a sea of red, he told supporters the national shutdown was a success despite the heavy police presence.

March 20 2023 -17:38

Statement issued from the African National Congress (ANC) on the 'so-called' shutdown

A statement from the ANC on the "so-called" shutdown
A statement from the ANC on the "so-called" shutdown
Image: Supplied

March 20 2023 -17:16

Fighters have been detained at Sophiatown police station since the morning

March 20 2023 -17:13

A group of EFF supporters marching across the city of Johannesburg on Monday afternoon vowed to remain on the streets until midnight.

They marched through the streets of Braamfontein towards the CBD and moved to the Metropolitan Civic Centre before proceeding to Luthuli House. 

March 20 2023 -17:00

Protestors march to Presidential home

March 20 2023 -16:22

Shutdown: KZN trains running normally but with fewer passengers

The Passenger Rail Service Agency (Prasa) in KwaZulu-Natal says while there have been no disruptions to train services, passenger numbers have been low during the EFF’s national shutdown.

Zama Nomnganga, Prasa spokesperson in KwaZulu-Natal, told TimesLIVE on Monday that “in the morning all went well, with no incidents reported”.

March 20 2023 -16:03

EFF accuses transport minister of 'sabotaging' plans to ferry supporters to Pretoria for shutdown

The EFF has accused transport minister Sindisiwe Chikunga of sabotaging the party's plans to ferry protesters by bus to Pretoria. .

EFF leader Julius Malema told protesters on Monday the party had spent over R1m to hire buses to ferry its supporters but the bus contractors had withdrawn their services at the eleventh hour.

March 20 2023 - 16:00

Police have threatened to use the water canon to disperse EFF members who want to march on Durban's Florida Road. Police have currently blocked them from proceeding. The EFF secretary-general Marshall Dlamini is furious and says the police must name the person that issued that directive. Dlamini is having a heated exchanges with the police.

Sakhiseni Nxumalo

March 20 2023 -15:55

'Zero disturbances' at KZN state hospitals, mortuaries and clinics

The KwaZulu-Natal health department says there have been "zero disturbances" at its hospitals, clinics and mortuaries amid national shutdown protests by the EFF on Monday.

The department said as at midday "all employees of the department reported to work accordingly, with entrances and roads leading to facilities being clear". 

March 20 2023 -15:24

Tshwane bus service suspends operations due to national shutdown

March 20 2023 - 14:57

'Minor incidents' reported for shutdown in Western Cape

Only minor incidents related to the shutdown have been reported in the Western Cape as of noon on Monday, says provincial police commissioner Lt-Gen Thembisile Patekile. 

He was speaking ahead of a planned march in the Cape Town CBD by EFF supporters to demand the resignation of President Cyril Ramaphosa and an end to load-shedding.

March 20 2023 - 14:32

We were told we can only go to black-dominated areas, not areas where white people stay: Marshall Dlamini

Marching EFF members claim they were told not to venture into white and Indian areas such as Umhlanga and Phoenix. 

EFF secretary-general Marshall Dlamini told TimesLIVE on the side of their march in central Durban on Monday that they were told by police they could only march in black-dominated areas. 

March 20 2023 - 14:20

EFF leader Juliys Malema and his members are giving the police the run around. The members keep taking different turns, blindsiding the police who are head of them. The marchers are now in Sunnyside.

Rorisang Kgosana

March 20 2023 - 14:04

Members of SAFTU, ATM, F4SD and PAC are addressing the crowd at the intersection of Jeff Masemola and Thabo Sehume streets in Pretoria CBD.

Outcasted media house eNCA are instead hovering in a helicopter to try and capture the protest. Those in their flats are watching and listening from their windows while others decided to leave their homes to join the national shutdown.

Rorisang Kgosana

March 20 2023 - 13:44

EFF members and supporters along with Carl Niehaus and other leaders are now painting Pretoria CBD red as they have started moving from Church square to the union buildings as they demonstrate.

At the union building some members of the public are sitting under tree shades at the parks ground. Police, TMPD and SANDF are on site. A few supporters who drove are also standing by for those marching.

Shonisani Tshikalange 

March 20 2023 - 13:19

WATCH | National shutdown protest takes off in East London

The EFF's national shutdown has got under way in East London.

Students from Walter Sisulu University (WSU), Fort Hare and Buffalo City College have descended upon the East London CBD, moving to Belgravia, before proceeding to Southernwood.

March 20 2023 - 13:12

No action for sjambok-carrying security guards in Joburg CBD

Seated outside a closed shop in central Johannesburg, Gudda Ngubane waves his sjambok and says he is ready for action in case EFF supporters arrive and attempt to loot.

A group of Ethiopian nationals stand and chat outside the shops, while the streets in and around Newtown remain largely empty, with few people walking around.

Want to see if you’ll be disrupted by shutdown protests? This handy map can help

A useful map showing potential protest hotspots and disruptions during the national shutdown has been shared, with hundreds providing real-time information in their area.

The EFF declared a national shutdown on Monday. The red berets are calling for the resignation of President Cyril Ramaphosa and an end to load-shedding, among other issues.

March 20 2023 - 13:03

Three EFF councillors among dozens arrested in clampdown on shutdown

Three EFF councillors were among dozens of people arrested in connection with acts surrounding the national shutdown.

Police spokesperson Brig Athlenda Mathe confirmed the party’s ward councillors were arrested in Gauteng, Free State and Mpumalanga. 

March 20 2023 - 13:00

Julius Malema addresses supporters at  Church Square

March 20 2023 - 12:23

Taxis are operating but they are empty, says EFF’s Ndlozi

EFF leaders have arrived in Pretoria and urged members demonstrating to remain within the Church Square boundary as they await more supporters.

EFF MP Mbuyiseni Ndlozi said more members were expected to arrive.

March 20 2023 - 12:19

EFF supporters claim ‘shutdown success’ in Honeydew protest

About 40 EFF protesters gathered at the Honeydew police station in Roodepoort this morning to take part in the party's national shutdown.

“They were supposed to be picked up by transport to continue their protest in Tshwane but no transport arrived at the two appointed locations,” a uniformed police officer told TimesLIVE.

March 20 2023 - 12:07

March 20 2023 - 12:01

Over R30m and counting to keep KZN safe for national shutdown

KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Lt-Gen Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi has attributed a fairly quiet start to the EFF’s national shutdown protests in Durban on Monday to the party experiencing challenges in transporting protesters to the city.

Mkhwanazi addressed media at Hoy Park in central Durban before embarking on an aerial inspection of what police regard as hotspots, including Phoenix, Inanda and KwaMashu.

March 20 2023 - 11:58

Getting to work during a national shutdown

Domestic worker Abigail Zungu breathed a sign of relief at the Warwick Junction taxi rank in Durban on Monday. 

“I thought I would struggle to get to work because of what is being said in townships, but things are normal,” said Zungu, 62 who works in Glenwood.

March 20 2023 - 11:57

LISTEN | EFF ‘proud of the youth’ participating in national shutdown

EFF spokesperson Sinawo Tambo says they are proud of young people’s participation in the national shutdown. He says the youth have always been at the forefront of change in South Africa. 

“We are proud of the youth. We are saying to them, be fearless. We are saying to the parents of the youth in South Africa, don’t watch your children get murdered and abused and sit on the sidelines,” said Tambo. 

March 20 2023 - 11:56

Thousands of confiscated tyres sent to police storage

Thousands of tyres, confiscated throughout South Africa ahead of Monday’s national shutdown, have been sent to storage facilities at police stations.  

National police spokesperson Brig Athlenda Mathe said at least 24,300 tyres were confiscated by law enforcement agencies.  

March 20 2023 - 11:47

Malema thanks party members for participating in national shutdown, but where is he?

March 20 2021 - 11:36

EFF'S Mbuyiseni Ndlozi interacting with SAPS members

March 20 2023 - 11:30

A hive of activity at Church Square in Pretoria

March 20 2023 - 11:17

Ramaphosa calls on citizens to defend hard-won freedom ahead of Human Rights Day

President Cyril Ramaphosa has called on hard-won freedoms to be protected ahead of Human Rights Day on Tuesday.

The president said the freedoms were achieved after many decades of bitter struggle.

“One hundred years ago, in May 1923, the first Bill of Rights in South Africa’s history was adopted by the African National Congress. It had no legal standing at the time, but it clearly expressed the desire for the equal rights of all people to be recognised and guaranteed,” he said.

March 20 2023 - 10:57

WATCH | Niehaus warns army might turn on Ramaphosa as Union Buildings are fortified by troops

As members of SAPS, Tshwane metro police department and SANDF patrolled the outskirts of the Union Buildings in Pretoria on Monday , Carl Niehaus, the expelled ANC member and now founding member of the African Radical Economic Transformation Alliance, sent President Cyril Ramaphosa a warning.

“Those very security services that you may want to use against the people may turn against you — and be careful, because they may very well be the ones who will come into the Union Buildings, pull you out of your chair, take you down the road to Kgosi Mampuru prison and put you where you belong,” he said.

March 20 2023 - 10:53

EFF Secretary General Marshall Dlamini rallied a 400-strong group of supporters in Durban’s Glenwood with a rousing “Ayihlome fighter ayihlome” on Monday.

Dlamini, together with KwaZulu-Natal provincial leader Mongezi Twala addressed members and urged them to be ready for “war” but “disciplined as we take over the street” as part of the national shutdown campaign.

The party is undertaking a shutdown of the country, calling for President Cyril Ramaphosa to resign and an end to the crippling electricity crisis. Police and other law enforcement officials are monitoring the situation.

The group is expected to march to Pixley KaSeme street in the Durban CBD.  

Mfundo Mkhize

EFF Secretary General Marshall Dlamini rallied a 400-strong group of supporters in Durban’s Glenwood with a rousing “Ayihlome fighter ayihlome” on Monday.
EFF Secretary General Marshall Dlamini rallied a 400-strong group of supporters in Durban’s Glenwood with a rousing “Ayihlome fighter ayihlome” on Monday.
Image: Mfundo Mkhize

March 20 2023 - 10:35

Carl Niehaus says deployment of law enforcers reminiscent of 1976 Soweto uprising

Among those leading the national shutdown action at Church Square in Pretoria is former ANC member Carl Neihaus. 

Niehaus was there representing his civil movement African Radical Economic Transformation Alliance (Areta), which he said intends to register as a political party. 

He said the strong law enforcement contingent was reminiscent of the 1976 Soweto uprising.

He claimed some soldiers and police members told him they were unhappy about being deployed as they share the protesters’ sentiments.

March 20 2023 - 10:25

Union Buildings under heavy guard as EFF members gather in Church Square

Members of the military, police and Tshwane metro police department are out in full force at the Union Buildings in Pretoria, as protesters taking part in the national shutdown are expected to descend on the area. 

Officers armed with shields stood near the fence separating the national key point from a public park. 

March 20 2023 - 10:24

March 20 2023 - 10:22

LISTEN | Shutdown: Nhlanhla ‘Lux’ Dlamini ‘won’t take Julius Malema’s nonsense'

Leader of the Soweto Parliament Nhlanhla “Lux” Dlamini says he won’t tolerate “nonsense” as he counteracts the EFF’s national shutdown.

March 20 2023 - 10:07

'Ankole must go!" -these are the words on a banner attached in front of Paul Kruger statue at PTA church square as EFF supporters demonstrate #NationalShutdown #EFFNationalShutdown

March 20 2023 - 09:58

All routes are clear in Durban, eThekwini Municipality said on Monday morning. "All routes in and out of the City are clear according to the Metro Police and are safe for motorists to use."

"Traffic congestion on the M25, from Dube Village to Bester, has cleared. Crowds in that vicinity are being supervised by law enforcement."

Nivashni Nair

March 20 2023 - 09:50

‘Lux’ Dlamini’s neighbours speak of terror as blast damages their houses

A Soweto woman whose house windows were shattered by the alleged explosion of a bomb early on Monday told TimesLIVE she has been awake since the incident at around 4am.

Julia Motlhamme said she heard a blast and her frightened children, who were sleeping in their room, ran to her bedroom. This came after the window in the bedroom in which the children were sleeping was shattered. 

March 20 2023 - 09:35

Dozens of Economic Freedom Fighter supporters gathered outside the party offices in Glenwood on Monday.

The party's secretary general Marshall Dlamini is also present and is expected to address the crowd. Armed with placards denouncing the state of affairs currently besetting the country, the members are also chanting struggle songs.

Police and other law enforcement officials are monitoring the situation. 

Mfundo Mkhize

March 20 2023 - 09:32

SANDF members, police and TMPD are stationed at the union buildings.

While on a normal day members of the public would be lurking around, exercising taking pictures and some playing soccer, today its quiet. Pretoria CBD is quiet except for the sounds of hooting empty taxis as they go on their usual business. While most of the shops are closed, some big corporations like Macdonals and Picknpay are open and operating.

Waste management, municipal services, Areyeng bus services are still operating.

In Pretoria Church Square, police, TMPD members,the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) and members of private security observe from a few meters away as some EFF supporters demonstrate, singing struggle songs.

"Ankole must Go"- these are the words written on a banner hanging in front of Paul Kruger statue in Pretoria. Supporters are downed in Red Eff shirts, some in black shirts while someone are in camouflaged regalia.

Shonisani Tshikalange 

March 20 2023 - 09:26

Inanda residents cleared burning debris and swept Zabalaza road after it was closed on Monday morning by protesters.

One of the community members, who asked not to be named due to fear of being victimised said they were against the closing of the road, especially because it was a small road that the community use to move around.

“If they want to close the road, they must go to the big main road, not this one. If they close here, that means we can’t move around and they are making us, as a community, to suffer. Now we are the ones that can’t move around. To us, it didn’t make sense why the this small road should be closed,” said a community member.

Another resident said the protesters started closing off the road around 7:30am.

He said after burning the tyres and closing the road, the group moved to another road and did the same thing.

“Soon after they left, we decided to open the road. This is our road and we use it on daily basis, if it’s closed, that’s means we can’t do anything also,” he said.

Sakhiseni Nxumalo

Inanda residents cleared burning debris and swept Zabalaza road after it was closed on Monday morning by protesters.
Inanda residents cleared burning debris and swept Zabalaza road after it was closed on Monday morning by protesters.
Image: Sandile Ndlovu

March 20 2023 - 09:20

SANDF members, private security and police are stationed at the Transnet port entrance as well as the Harbour Arterial gate.

The EFF said the port was a possible site at which they would protest as part of their national shutdown on Monday.

The area as well as the nearby Boardwalk mall was quiet on Monday morning. The party’s provincial leadership said in KZN the plan was to disrupt the economic centres that contained key harbours and industry.

Lwazi Hlangu  

SANDF members, private security and police are stationed at the Transnet port entrance as well as the Harbour Arterial gate.
SANDF members, private security and police are stationed at the Transnet port entrance as well as the Harbour Arterial gate.
Image: Nqubeko Mbhele
The area nearby Boardwalk mall was quiet on Monday morning.
The area nearby Boardwalk mall was quiet on Monday morning.
Image: Nqubeko Mbhele

March 20 2023 - 08:58

‘It will do more harm than good’ — What you said about the EFF’s national shutdown

As the EFF threatened to shut down the country on Monday, TimesLIVE readers have claimed it will do more harm than good.

The shutdown is calling for the resignation of President Cyril Ramaphosa and an end to load-shedding, among other issues. 

March 20 2023 - 08:30

Taxis travelling in and out of Thembisa as national shutdown unfolds

The effects of the national shutdown appeared to be minimal in Thembisa, Ekurhuleni, on Monday. 

Main roads leading in and out of the township, including Andrew Mapheto Drive, were cleared after they were earlier blocked by burning tyres and rocks.

March 20 2023 - 08:02

Blasts at the Soweto home of Nhlanhla ‘Lux’ Dlamini

Dlamini claimed at least two petrol bombs were thrown at his home, with one hitting the roof.  

“Just after 4am I received calls from the entire neighbourhood saying there were bombs and gunshots going off. ‘We think it is at your house’. I received calls from people inside my house saying ‘We don’t know what to do. A bomb hit the roof and there was a second explosion in the yard’,” said Dlamini.

March 20 2023 - 07:56

Gayton McKenzie: ‘The fear of the EFF protest has brought the country to a standstill’

Patriotic Alliance (PA) leader Gayton McKenzie has weighed in on the EFF’s national shutdown on Monday, claiming “the fear of the EFF protest has already brought the country to a standstill”.

March 20 2023 - 07:17

Durban central and Phoenix quiet with sporadic protests reported

Durban central was quiet with taxis operating as usual on Monday ahead of the EEFF national shutdown. 

A team travelling through the city said it seemed to be business as usual with people going to work under the watchful eyes of a strong police and private security presence. 

March 20 2023 - 07:08

Butchery petrol bombed in Soweto, 57 arrested in national shutdown unrest by 6am

Police minister Bheki Cele on Monday said 57 people had been arrested across the country. 

Speaking to the media in Mayfair, Johannesburg, Cele said most of those arrested were nabbed in Gauteng. 

“Most were found making fires, blocking roads and trying to prevent people from going to work. They were not peaceful,” he said. 

March 20 2023 - 06:54

March 20 2023 - 06:47

SABC news crew attacked in Nyanga

An SABC news crew has come under attack in Cape Town. 

The incident reportedly happened in the early hours on Monday on the N2 near Borcherds Quarry in Nyanga. 

The crew was collecting visuals of the national shutdown when two men allegedly approached their vehicle and hit the car with an object. 

A crew member seated in the front of the vehicle was struck on the head with the object.

March 20 2023 - 06:24

Members in Atteridgeville who were ready to commute to work this morning woke up to blocked streets on Maunde streets which is a way in to the biggest rank in the area transporting commuters to Centurion amoung others #EFFNationalShutdown

March 20 2023 - 06:00

Concerned about the national shutdown? Don't panic — here are tips to stay safe

Protesters taking part in the EFF's planned national shutdown on Monday have been warned not to prohibit the movement of others. 

The  shutdown is calling for the resignation of President Cyril Ramaphosa and an end to load-shedding, among other things. 

The EFF warned businesses countrywide to close their doors or risk possible looting.

The Norwood Community Police Forum (CPF), as are forums in other communities across the country, reassured its residents that law enforcement will put measures in place to ensure their safety and security.

March 20 2023 - 05:31

KZN: Tyres are burning underneath a bridge near the old Durban airport as the EFF embark on a national shutdown.

March 20 2023 

Police presence in Braamfontein as the #NationalShutdown has started. 
Footage from Sunday evening showed police arresting numerous people on the streets of Braamfontein. Law enforcement were seen clearing the roads of bricks and rubble after the arrests. Tear gas was deployed however it is unclear if this disruption was in relation to the planned protest, dubbed the 'national shutdown' by the EFF, on Monday.

Arrests  made in  Braamfontein

Police officers were seen arresting people in Braamfontein on March 19 2023 and law enforcement cleared roads lined with bricks and rubble on the eve of the planned 'national shutdown' protest.

Malema on shutdown: 'No-one can stop the revolution'

A defiant Julius Malema has vowed to push ahead with the EFF's national shutdown on Monday despite two court interdicts preventing violence and warnings from authorities that anyone breaking the law “will be dealt with”.

“Whether they kill or not kill, we will be on the streets of South Africa,” Malema said. “We don’t care what the security cluster says or the judge says. No-one can stop a revolution.”

But the national joint operational and intelligence structure (Natjoints) comprising the defence force, the state security agency and the police laid down the law on Friday. 

“This is our update to the country at large, that there will be no national shutdown. We know of a planned protest. To say there will be a national shutdown is misleading,” said Natjoints chair deputy national police commissioner Lt-Gen Tebello Mosikili.

EFF protest erupts in Chatsworth

March 19 2023 - 20:15

Durban Metro police confirmed an EFF protest was taking place in Chatsworth, south of Durban on Sunday night. 

The party would embark on a national shutdown on Monday.

Durban metro police spokesman Senior Superintendent Boysie Zungu said the EFF protest was in Link Road in Shallcross. 

Ramaphosa deploys more than 3,400 SANDF members at cost of R166m

March 19 2023 - 17:30

President Cyril Ramaphosa has deployed 3,474 South African National Defence Force members until April 17 to assist police under Operation Prosper. 

Parliament spokesperson Moloto Mothapo said on Sunday National Assembly speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula and National Council of Provinces (NCOP) chairperson Amos Masondo were informed of the military deployment, in co-operation with police, for the “prevention and combating of crime as well as maintenance, and preservation of law and order in South Africa”. 

National police commissioner Fanie Masemola says passengers will be safe at OR Tambo Airport on Monday

March 19 2023 - 14:02

National police commissioner Gen Fanie Masemola has assured passengers boarding  and disembarking flights at OR Tambo international airport in Johannesburg of their safety during the national shutdown on Monday.

Masemola, accompanied by Gauteng commissioner Lt-Gen Elias Mawela and deputy national commissioner Lt-Gen Tebello Mosikili, was speaking at the airport on Sunday.


Sunday Times 

National shutdown: Businesses to defy EFF

Big business plans to defy  the EFF’s  call for a “national shutdown” tomorrow, though retailers, shopping malls and key economic hubs such as airports and ports have beefed up security.

The EFF has called for the shutdown to back its demand that President Cyril Ramaphosa leave office and to  protest against  load-shedding.  

Its  tactics  have included threats to businesses that remain open.

Businesses planning to operate are taking precautions as the 2021 riots that  hit KwaZulu-Natal and, to a lesser extent, Gauteng and Mpumalanga, are still fresh in people’s minds.

EFF shutdown call: a stern test for Ramaphosa

By late Friday afternoon, the army was out on some streets in Gauteng and EFF members were out on some streets in East London and Mdantsane “directing traffic”, as a friend there told me.

By sunset tomorrow we will know who or what has prevailed in our country. The might of the state and the rule of law, or chaos and intimidation. Welcome to the EFF’s ‘national shutdown’,  organised to protest against the economic damage of Eskom’s load-shedding and to call for President Cyril Ramaphosa’s resignation in the wake of revelations of the theft of dollars hidden in a sofa at his game farm in Limpopo.

The protest will not fix Eskom and it won’t move Ramaphosa. But that may not be its real intent. EFF leader Julius Malema needs to test his political muscle before campaigning starts for  next year’s elections. The extent to which he can bring people onto the streets tomorrow may be a good gauge of the electoral support he can expect then.

EFF's Julius Malema overblown by opponents

President Cyril Ramaphosa, security cluster ministers, the country's official opposition, several non-governmental organisations and some political commentators all agreed on one thing this week: defend South Africa against a national shutdown led by EFF leader Julius Malema.

The protest, expected to take place on Monday, is to call for the resignation of the president and an end to load-shedding among other demands. Malema urged businesses to shut their doors on the day.

The only way a DA minion can get noticed

If all Lungile Phenyane wanted was her two minutes of fame, she surely got it. The formerly unknown DA member hogged the headlines when it emerged that she was vying for all the top DA leadership positions ahead of the party’s federal congress next month.

Hogarth hears that she has since withdrawn from the race to be federal leader and has also decided not to contest Dion George for federal finance chair.

But she still insists on taking on Helen Zille for federal chair and will also avail herself to be elected chair of the federal council, deputy chair of the federal council and deputy federal chair. Since Phenyane is unlikely to win anything,

Hogarth proposes that the federal congress establish a new post in honour of Phenyane's tenacity: chair of chairs.

SA’s problems must be solved by the ballot box, not by an uprising

The EFF-led call for a national shutdown on Monday has placed the country on tenterhooks at a time it should be focusing on finding solutions to the many critical problems facing it.

Concerns about possible disruptions, even violence, have moved the government to try to re-assure the public of its readiness to deal with any eventuality.

When we are this divided, is there hope for the future?

President Cyril Ramaphosa has finally confirmed what many of us suspected all along — he had not consulted his colleagues in the ANC and government when he announced he would appoint a minister of electricity. 

Some of his ministers, including minerals and energy minister Gwede Mantashe and then-minister in the presidency Mondli Gungubele, sounded unconvincing in front of TV cameras as they tried to explain the president’s reasoning in appointing an electricity minister just moments after the president finished delivering his state of the nation address last month. 

While the minnows spat, the big fish wins back the pond

The country’s on tenterhooks. Many are gnashing their teeth. Will the EFF push us over the precipice of revolution? Fear and excitement abound.

Fear for those with businesses to lose. An opportunity to loot is always exciting for those without jobs. Whose economy is it anyway, they’d argue.

Will tomorrow be our January 6 moment? Remember the storming of the Capitol in the US, with Donald Trump supporters overpowering security and trashing the seat of power in the biggest economy in the world? Or the storming of the Bastille, as insurgents took control of medieval Paris? Or will it be July 2021 riots 2.0?


READ MORE:


March 20 2023 - 14:59

Tshwane bus services halted due to national shutdown

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