WATCH | We were told we can’t go to Phoenix or Umhlanga, says EFF

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. 

He said they would raise the issue with police minister Bheki Cele.

Hundreds of EFF members brought the city to a standstill in their efforts to call for President Cyril Ramaphosa to resign and end the crippling electricity crisis. The protesters are marching, peacefully, through Durban’s city centre.

“The police just briefed me that we can only do black-dominated areas, not areas where white people stay. We wanted to go to Umhlanga and Phoenix but they say they can’t allow us to go there. They say we can be here until midnight, as long as our protest is in the black areas. We can go and occupy any street as long as it is in the black community,” said Dlamini.

Dlamini said this shows that the country is racially divided and the minority are still being protected.

“That is wrong, and it is taking this country back to where we were under apartheid,” said Dlamini.

Dlamini, however, told supporters they would go to Gateway and Phoenix. 

“We are going to Phoenix comrades, that Phoenix belongs to us,” he said, to the approval of members.

Speaking about membership turnout, Dlamini said he was not happy as a lot of their members are “locked” in their places and can’t participate in the protest.

He said these include people who own vehicles and those who own public transport and were keen on transporting members for free to join the protest.

Dlamini said members were allegedly threatened by the police and department of transport officials.

“Some of them do scholar transport and were threatened that if they joined us, they would terminate their contract. So instead of them kissing the little they have to feed their families goodbye, they decided not to come. But we are happy that we are here and we do have members who have travelled to join us,” said Dlamini.

The protesters were en route to the Moses Mabhida Stadium.

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