Durban - The fall of Advocate Dali Mpofu from the top six of the EFF may have happened because he was too independent and his independence may have irked party leader, Julius Malema.
On Saturday evening, Mpofu fell out of the top six when he failed to muster enough nomination votes in order to be a nominee to contest the deputy president’s position against Floyd Shivambu.
Shivambu was elected unopposed.
Political analyst Ralph Mathekga, who had predicted that Malema and Shivambu were going to retain their top six positions, said Mpofu may have been too independent for Malema’s liking.
According to Mathekga, Mpofu miscalculated as he should have agreed to be retained as national chairperson or refused to be nominated for the position of deputy president.
However, he said beyond that, Mpofu was too independent.
Mathekga said other EFF leaders fiercely defended the VBS scandal which left the EFF tainted, there was nowhere where Mpofu jumped in and defended either the party or Malema.
“That on its own is not so good, you can’t be allowed to prosper and have the respect outside the party while you are next to Mr Malema. That’s not his style of leadership,” Mathekga said.
Mathekga said Mpofu would not be heavily affected by the failure to clinch a top six position as he has a career outside politics.
“Dali is not a poor guy, Dali went to the EFF with a much bigger political capital in my mind than what the EFF deserves. I call it a much bigger political capital, he played a bigger role within the ANC, he was an activist of note,” he said.
Another political analyst, Xolani Dube of Xubera Institute in Durban, also echoed Mathekga and said Mpofu was too independent for Malema’s liking. Dube said Malema, since in his early days in the ANC youth league, like to be with people who are beholden to him and he doesn't take kindly to be challenged.
“As I am saying, he (Mpofu) is independent, he has a flourishing career as an advocate, two, Dali could not accept to be dictated to by Malema because even in terms of political seniority. Dali is senior… Malema was not having any hold over Dali Mpofu,” Dube said.
It remains to be seen whether Mpofu, former secretary general, Godrich Gardee and his former deputy, Hlengiwe Mkhaliphi, would make it to the list of additional commissars who would be elected either later on Sunday.