Cape Town - EFF leader Julius Malema has promised to keep the “Pay Back the Money” campaign going strong while the party waits for an answer from President Jacob Zuma.
Malema was addressing several hundred Stellenbosch University students.
Since last year, Malema has been demanding Zuma pay back the R246 million used for upgrades to his Nkandla homestead, which has become a major issue during Zuma’s second term as president.
In Parliament on Wednesday night, Zuma told MPs he did not have to repay back the money as per the public protector’s recommendation.
But Malema said:
“Zuma must pay the money back, the next five years is dedicated to him and we will keep the campaign going until he does. He is not above the law, if he steals from the country he is stealing from the poor.”
In 2012, Malema was accused of tax evasion. However, the former ANC Youth League leader dismissed those charges yesterday and then gave some advice to the students.
“I was never charged with tax evasion. What happened was that I did not update my details and I was charged with a 60 percent penalty that had 200 percent interest. That added up to R16 million. We spoke to Sars and I agreed to pay back R4m, which I did.
“When all of you start working you will see that you will always be in trouble with Sars and you must pay back. So how come some people do not have to pay back when all of us have to?”
Malema told the students about the EFF’s “seven cardinal pillars”, which he believed were needed to make South Africa a better place.
The seven pillars are: the expropriation of land without compensation; nationalisation of mines and banks; free quality education, health care, and houses; building state and government capacity; massive protected industrial development; massive investment in the development of the African economy; and an open, accountable, corruption-free government and society.
Malema received a warm welcome from the students and a host of them stayed behind in the hall to take selfies with the EFF leader.
Khadija Bawa, executive member of advertising and marketing for the Stellenbosch Political Science Students Association, said: “Mr Malema relates to a lot of the students here because he speaks about issues that affect us, like student loans. So that is why I think he always gets a good response, especially if he comes here to speak.”
Cape Argus