Cape Town - The Economic Freedom Fighters on Tuesday threw its support behind the call by UCT students for the removal of the statue of Cecil John Rhodes from the university's campus.
“Rhodes can never be a symbol worth celebrating in a post-1994
South Africa,” national spokesman Mbuyiseni Ndlozi said in a statement.
“The EFF is not opportunistically raising the issue of Rhodes due to the momentum of students' and academics' demand.”
Ndlozi said the EFF had consistently called for the removal of symbols of colonialism and white supremacy.
“On various occasions, the EFF has demanded the complete removal and demolition of apartheid symbols, including the ones next to the Parliament of South Africa.”
During a seminar on transformation at the University of Cape Town on Monday, the president of the students' representative council, senior staff and half the audience walked out, TimesLive reported on its website.
The seminar was held following protests last week that began when a student reportedly emptied a toilet on the Rhodes statue.
On Sunday, the statue was covered with black rubbish bags.
A “UCT: Rhodes Must Fall” Facebook group has been created.
It had 3285 likes by 5pm on Tuesday. The group described itself as “a collective student, staff and worker movement mobilising for direct action against the institutional racism of UCT”.
Rhodes, 1853-1902, was a British colonialist, businessman, mining magnate, and politician in South Africa.
He founded Rhodesia (now known as Zimbabwe) which was named after him in 1895.
Rhodes University is also named after him. Provisions of the Rhodes Scholarship are funded by his estate.
Sapa