Malema to DA: Step Aside So EFF Can Govern

EFF president Julius Malema has urged the Democratic Alliance (DA) to leave the Government of National Unity (GNU), and their withdrawal would pave the way for the Economic Freedom Fighters to join the coalition.

This comes after the DA threatened to withdraw from the National Dialogue, accusing President Cyril Ramaphosa of being incapable of making firm decisions against ANC corruption. Matters got worse when DA MP Andrew Whitfield was also fired as deputy minister of Trade and Industry — a move the party condemned as unjust and politically driven.

Malema used the occasion to denounce the DA’s involvement in the GNU, arguing the party was never obligated to enter government in the first place. “If the DA was genuinely against corruption and for the poor, they should have let the ANC govern alone as a minority,” he said in a weekend address.

He added that by choosing to be part of the GNU, the DA cannot turn around and oppose the very government they helped form. “You can’t oppose the government you’re in,” Malema said bluntly. “They must respect government protocols and the president — whether they like it or not. If they can’t do that, they must leave.”

He drew a contrast with Gauteng, where the DA rules outside the coalition in an ANC minority government. This, Malema added, is a good model that the DA must examine.

Positing the EFF as a ready and willing alternative, Malema stated, “We are waiting patiently for the DA to leave the GNU so that we can come in and form part of government.”

Meanwhile, political analyst Dr. John Molepo warned that Malema’s entry could further inflame already tense relations in the GNU. “The DA ultimatum has already upped the pressure, and Malema’s utterances can widen internal divisions,” he said.

As coalition politics hung in the balance, all eyes are now on the DA’s next move — and whether the EFF will finally be in the corridors of executive power.