The hypocrisy of ibhunu lemnyama, Cyril Ramaphosa

Letter from the Commander in Chief

 Julius Malema

When campaigning for the zuma African National Congress in the township where I was born and bred, Seshego during the Independent Electoral Commission's Registration weekend, President's Zuma Deputy, Cyril Ramaphosa said to some voters that they should vote for the z ANC in order to avoid the rule by "Boers". This remark is what he said, and not quoted out of context as the Spin doctors in Luthuli House would like the people of South Africa to believe. South Africa is now used to President Zuma, and now his Deputy saying and doing things and later statements coming from their offices to claim that they did not say or mean what they in actual sense said and meant.

The "Boers" statement by Ramaphosa clearly undermines the political understanding and intelligence of the people of Seshego, Limpopo and South Africa as a whole, but primarily, it is a sign of hypocrisy and dishonesty. While we agree that during the liberation struggle, the word "Boer" meant the repressive, violent and racist apartheid system, which was the enemy, the context within which Ramaphosa used it was to hoodwink and mislead the people. The people of South Africa are not fools who will be frightened by such sentiments, because they know that today the real enemy for economic freedom, or even all sorts of freedom are people like Cyril Ramaphosa, amabhuna amnyama. 

The characteristics that defined the "Boers" are the same characteristics that define Cyril Ramaphosa today, one who is not afraid to go a bid to buy an animal for R18 million, and one who is possibly complicit in the massacre of Mineworkers in Marikana, but will use State institutions to exonerate himself. The people of South Africa know who the real Murderers of the mineworkers in Marikana are, and they will not be misled now, by the new "Boers" into believing that keeping them in office will prevent the apartheid "Boers" from coming back to office. 

To understand this properly, we need to locate it on the proper understanding on what apartheid was. Apartheid was racial capitalism, which passed laws and regulations to subjugate blacks and Africans in particular to super-exploitation. Capitalism, wherever it exists breeds divisions, exploitation of workers, and in most former colonies, it keeps the colonies under neo-colonial control. In this context of former colonies, the capitalist system establishes a National class of historically oppressed people and places them as curtains for the continued exploitation of capitalism. The National class of few individuals is inherently small, and only concerned on the protection of the interests of the real economic Masters.

While aspects of apartheid have been abolished, the racial capitalism in South Africa is still intact, with few additions to the complex. South African capitalism is like Cappuccino, where the darker version of it is on top, while the white essence and deeper version of it is the majority and core of what Cappuccino is.   South Africa's capitalism uses few blacks to justify its continued existence and exploitation of the people of South Africa.

Cyril Ramaphosa is part of those who are fronted by white monopoly capital to continue exploiting South Africans in the same way they were exploited under apartheid. This explains why the real bosses of Lonmin (London Mine) in Marikana called Cyril Ramaphosa to use his political connections to speak to the Politicians (Ministers of Police and Mineral Resources) to suppress the protest action that had taken place for workers demand of R12500. Workers demanded R12500 and London Mine Marikana sent their ball boy, Ramaphosa to run around trying to suppress the strike from continuing. These are valid, open facts, of what even Ramaphosa admits, but will use political connections to suppress the truth. We all know what ultimately happened to the peaceful workers who were protesting for better salaries.

When they were massacred and killed in a cold-blooded pre-planned murder, Ramaphosa's response was to offer to bury the Mineworkers. What he was basically saying was that ‘we can kill and bury you and nothing will happen'. This is a person who a year later comes back to say that the people should vote for him, instead of the Boers, while his actions and practices are similar to those of the Boers who massacred our people, buried some in unmarked graves, fed some to crocodiles and continued to hunt those who survived. The establishment Ramaphosa represents is the one which killed Mineworkers in Marikana and charged those who survived with murder.

To this day, the workers have not been given R12500, and Cyril Ramaphosa is benefitting from the blood and sweat of these workers as a Director of London Mine. Workers continue to suffer, when the likes of Ramaphosa have so much money to could even buy Buffalos for R18 million. The intention to buy an R18 million buffalo by Ramaphosa was not a mistake, because that is what the super rich Boers do every day in South Africa. They compete on who can buy the most expensive of animals and place them in their Game Reserves for their entertainment. Where is genuine African care in such conduct of a super rich individual who is rich because of the blood of workers to buy a buffalo for R18 million? 

The people of South Africa are not fools, and should appreciate that today we have new Boers like Cyril Ramaphosa who will mislead them during elections so that they can continue making money for themselves. The only alternative to the current nonsense is the Economic Freedom Fighters, which in no way represents Boers, and in no way represents the exploitation of poor South Africans by white monopoly capital and their representatives.

EFF is not the Boer alternative of what is happening in South Africa today. EFF is the radical, militant movement of our people which will emancipate the masses from exploitation and oppression. EFF government will never kill its people. EFF government will not prevent workers who demand R12 500 per month salary; instead, we will make sure that such is the minimum wage for all workers. EFF government will abolish the private game lodges of the rich who buy buffalos for R18 million and turn those into land for our people to produce food.

The people of South Africa should reject the hypocrisy of Cyril Ramaphosa, and tell him that he is the real "Boer" today, one who oppresses, exploits and possibly kills defenceless workers. We should reject all forms of hypocrisy whenever it shows its ugly head, and always tell the truth and claim no easy victories. 

We have always warned that amabhunu  amnyama asenzeli worry and u Cyril Ramaphosa ulibhunu elimnyama. ....  

Julius Malema is Commander in Chief and President of EFF. 

Issued by the EFF, November 13 2013

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