Floyd Shivambu said several Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leaders were aware of his plan to join uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MK Party), but that EFF leader Julius Malema was not aware.
Shivambu said he felt there was no need to alert Malema.
“Some of the comrades were saying they were shocked I went to MKP. The majority of leaders in the EFF knew I am going to join MKP,” he said.
“Even the officials, some, obviously came to beg me, asking that I shouldn't tell the president, he did not know and I did not see the need to talk to him about it. They asked me not to tell him that we knew about your decision.”
The MK Party national organiser also revealed that some of the leaders wanted to follow him, but he shot down the idea.
“Joining a political party as a group is not sustainable, it is not disciplined, it's not a proper organisational and political culture.”
Shivambu shared his insights during an interview with Sizwe Mpofu-Welsh on the SMWX podcast, discussing the rationale behind his decision to leave the EFF and why he considers it a positive political move.
“I had to take a very bold and sound, possibly best decision to the EFF… This is the correct path and decision in the history of politics,” he said.
In August, he resigned from the EFF as the deputy president and also as a party member of parliament (MP).
At that time, Shivambu said his decision was a revolutionary one.
In the interview, Shivambu claimed that he conceptualised the EFF.
“I played a central role in founding, in terms of how it got constructed. It’s not a secret that I conceptualised the EFF: the name, references of Commissars, Commander-in-Chief (CIC), seven cardinal pillars, the founding manifesto, and all its key documents, including those that constitute the third National People’s Assembly,” he said.
Shivambu said that it was not up to him to invite people, especially EFF members to join MK Party, saying they will join if they want.
Meanwhile, the red berets suffered a heavy blow when EFF provincial leaders and other officials announced their departure from the party.
This included the former MP and former public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane who recently joined MK Party.
kamogelo.moichela@iol.co.za
IOL Politics