‘I am going nowhere’, says EFF MP Carl Niehaus amid wave of departures

EFF MP Carl Niehaus has reaffirmed his commitment to stay in the party as some members leave the red berets.

After the sudden departure of former EFF deputy president Floyd Shivambu in August, Busisiwe Mkhwebane and Fana Mokwena  resigned as EFF MPs, fuelling speculation about who might be next to leave.

Speaking to party members during a voter registration campaign in Thabazimbi at the weekend, Niehaus reassured them he was going nowhere.

“Fighters, I don't even want to hear the question 'are you leaving?' because it's a stupid and useless question. I am going nowhere. I know we will succeed in the EFF. I know our ideology is sound. There are no better leaders in any political party in South Africa than in the EFF,” Niehaus said.

“If they want to go, they can go. I am here. I'm 100% plus here. My loyalty to the EFF is 100%. My commitment to economic freedom in our lives is 100%. I've been in politics for 45 years, and I've never been happier than I am now.”

Niehaus, known as an ally of MK Party (MKP) leader Jacob Zuma, joined the EFF days before the announcement of Zuma's MKP in December 2023.

Niehaus was expelled from the ANC in December 2022 after its national disciplinary committee found him guilty of six charges of misconduct and bringing the party into disrepute for his comments defending Zuma when he was arrested for contempt of court after failing to appear at the state capture inquiry.

Due to his support of Zuma at that time, many assumed Niehaus would join the former president's new party. However, he said he was totally against the formation of the MKP.

“I supported Zuma because he was treated unfairly, not because I agreed with everything he did or stood for. I am not a sycophant. Zuma is a fallible human being like all of us, not an ideology or an infallible demigod.

“Right from the beginning, I told Zuma I do not agree with him forming the MKP. I did not talk behind his back. I went to him directly and told him that I strongly disagree and I will certainly not join the MKP. My reasons for having taken that principled position are clear and sound, and I unequivocally stand by them. My previous proximity to [former] president Zuma is totally irrelevant and will have no impact whatsoever on my 100% commitment to the EFF and my EFF membership. It is straightforward: I am going nowhere.”

He said he advised Zuma to join the EFF instead of forming the MKP.

“I did not tell Zuma to remain in the ANC. I advised him to join forces with the EFF and to tell his supporters to support and join the EFF. I told him not to create new and more parties that will further divide the progressive left. I still firmly believe he was wrong to have formed the MKP.”

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