IEC MUST DISMISS GIMMICKS OF A PARTY SEEKING LEGITIMISING WHITE SUPREMACY

The Freedom Front Plus, a right-wing white supremacist and reactionary political formation, represented in South Africa's Parliament and part of the ANC-led government, has lodged a formal objection to the registration of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) as a political party.

The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) will decide on whether its objection is valid or not.

The FF+ is calling for the banning of the EFF due to its policies to realise economic justice and equal distribution of land. But the main area of concern and focus is continued white supremacy, which the ANC and all political parties seem to have accommodated and accepted as natural in South Africa since 1994.

The EFF is confident that a sober IEC will dismiss the ludicrous, attention-seeking gimmicks of the FF+, whose foundation as a political party in 1994 was a racist demand that Boers/Afrikaners should be separated from South Africa into an independent state - a Volkstaat for themselves only. The FF+ still holds those ideals, because it believes that its ideas and identity are sacrosanct and should not be challenged by those they stole land from.

They have now realised that with the ANC in government, white supremacy can continue through unequal access to economic opportunities, particularly land, hence they are in government together. Also the FF+ represents a large section of colonisers and settlers who savagely raped South Africa's land and natural resources, and refused to share the land and wealth with the legitimate owners.

It is not surprising that the FF+ would opt for banning the economic emancipation movement, the EFF, because it demands the reclamation of the land they illegally occupy. It is not a permanent reality that colonisers and settlers continue to occupy the land they stole from the black majority. The EFF as a government in waiting is making a clarion call that the stolen land should be restored to its rightful owners.

The objection by the FF+ confirms that South Africa's political status quo is legitimising and legalising white supremacy, massive inequalities and unequal distribution of wealth. White supremacists do not want to see the legalised inequalities and poverty of the African majority altered because they are major beneficiaries.

The FF+ objection reflects that while components of racist legislation were abolished with the adoption of a new constitution, the essence of an unequal society remains intact, with no immediate possibility that such will change unless those in political office are changed and removed from office for lack of direction and decisiveness.

The fact that a supremacist, segregationist and racist political formation in the form of the FF+ can gain the confidence to object to a political movement that seeks to alter the basis of South Africa's inequalities and accumulation path is evidence that white supremacy has triumphed over the interests of the people.

The fact that the FF+ wants the EFF to be banned illustrates that the murderous ideology of colonial and apartheid conquest continues to characterise those who are benefiting from the political system. South Africa has just replaced political office bearers in 1994, and retained white supremacy and apartheid subjugation of the majority.

The majority of South Africans were promised access to land, wealth and opportunities since 1994, and none of those have happened due to the political authorities' mediocrity, directionlessness and lack of ability to decide.

Instead of a decisive land redistribution mechanism and system, the ANC government, working alongside right-wing political formations in the form of the National Party and now the FF+, have reproduced the massive inequalities and poverty that were created and intensified by the colonial conquest, and apartheid subjugation of the black majority.

None of the political parties in Parliament have advocated radical change in economic policy, as if there were nothing wrong with the status quo. All political formations contest on the basis of who is ideologically further far right than the other, touting same ideological dispositions and now a common neo-liberal programme called the National Development Plan.

So, this confirms the EFF's position that the current political parties and movements are homogeneous, therefore depriving the majority of people space for democratic participation.

There is no difference between the ANC, DA, Inkatha Freedom Party, Cope, FF+ and other parties in Parliament as they do not say anything different to one another.

This is the basis on which the EFF, a radical and militant economic emancipation movement, is called into action as a true liberator and representative of millions of South Africans.

The EFF aims to deconstruct the racist, unequal and imbalanced nature of South Africa's economic conditions and property relations. South Africans cannot wait any longer, as this country is in a deeper crisis with no hope of recovery under the political parties in Parliament.

Since 1994, all political parties have dismally failed to come up with a coherent, workable and responsive legislative framework that should lead to land redistribution. Instead of employing alternate radical means of land redistribution, these political parties have shifted the goal posts to 2030, planning to redistribute only 30 percent of land by 2030.

Floyd Shivambu is commissar for political education, policy and research for the Economic Freedom Fighters.

This article first appeared in the Sunday Independent.

Issued by the Economic Freedom Fighters, August 25 2013

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