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Johannesburg – EFF leader Julius Malema is being spied on by the government as well as by the Guptas, the party alleged on Sunday.

“Beyond the Guptas it is the state that is actually spying on the CIC [Commander-in-Chief],” EFF spokesperson Mbuyiseni Quintin Ndlozi said in a statement.

“We know that they also illegally monitor his calls and have been doing so for some time,” he claimed.

News24, amaBhungane and Scorpio reported that recently leaked emails from the Guptas and their business associates showed that Malema was one of a number of prominent South Africans apparently being spied on by the family.

– Read more: #GuptaLeaks: Guptas spied on Manuel, Malema and bank bosses

An excel spreadsheet was discovered amongst the emails which contains Malema’s travel itinerary and ID number in connection with six trips in and out of South Africa in 2015.

Malema has confirmed the information on the spreadsheet is accurate.

Ndlozi said the travel details which the family had, contained information that was never publically released.

“It is impossible for the Guptas, on their own, to attain this information without the help of both Home Affairs and State Security,” he suggested.

Spying equipment

Ndlozi also raised another allegation in his statement on Sunday, saying that the party was “aware that the Guptas possess spying equipment from Russia which they brought illegally into the country”.

The EFF said it was concerned about the safety of Malema.

“Not so long ago, we have had to track a car that was following him around.”

Ndlozi said the party was puzzled as to why the family would apparently be spying on Malema.

“We cannot think of any other reason why they would spy on him, except with the hope to find him isolated and take his life.”

Confrontation

The EFF will approach the Inspector General of Intelligence over the apparent evidence of spying in the leaked emails, said Ndlozi.

“We are not scared of them [the Guptas]. If they want our leader, we shall meet them toe to toe right at their doorstep and give them whatever it is they are looking for,” said Ndlozi.

He said going forward it seemed “clear that confrontation is inevitable” and that the party would “ready ourselves for anything…”

“If authorities will not act with decisiveness, they will leave us with no option but to defend ourselves with whatever revolutionary means possible,” said Ndlozi.

– Read more about the #GuptaLeaks

PRETORIA – President Jacob Zuma on Sunday congratulated Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) President Joseph Kabila on the relative stability and progress made in the vast central African nation.

“We gather here at a time when your country is going through a political transition following the December 2016 political agreement. This agreement charted a process that should lead to the next elections,” Zuma said in his opening remarks at the 10th session of the South Africa-DRC Bi-national Commission (BNC) in Pretoria.

“We congratulate you, Mr President, on the progress achieved thus far and the manner with which you have handled the process. The people of the DRC need to determine and decide their internal political future. The best way to do so is through negotiations and dialogue. The people of the DRC have proven in the past their ability to dialogue.”

Zuma said given the close and strong collaboration between Kinshasa and Pretoria, the South African authorities were pleased to welcome Kabila on his official visit on Sunday.

“We have used the BNC mechanism to identify critical areas of co-operation. The first decade of our BNC was largely consumed by efforts in assisting the DRC in areas of institutional capacity building,” Zuma said.

This included training the DRC national army, police, and diplomats; providing technical electoral support; and conducting the public service census.

“It is clear to us that we have made substantial progress over the years. The DRC of 2017 is different from that of 2004 when we started our collaboration within the context of the BNC. The DRC is now politically stable and the security situation has improved.

READ: Congolese threaten to upset Kabila’s visit to SA

“Where there are still challenges, the government of the DRC, with the assistance of the region, continent, and international community, is addressing those. In this regard, we encourage you, Mr President, and your government to continue on this path,” he said.

Zuma urged parties in the DRC to commit to dialogue, even when they differed sharply. “We wish to reiterate that dialogue and not conflict is the best way to resolve problems. In this regard we wish to assure you of our continued solidarity and support,” he said.

Kabila’s official visit to South Africa was, however, marked by protests as scores of DRC nationals gathered at the main entrance of the Sefako Makgatho presidential guesthouse denouncing Kabila.

The protesters said the meeting between Zuma and Kabila was a non-event. “Our Constitution dictates that at the end of his second term Kabila must have vacated from power. An election must have happened, but he hasn’t made that election happen. He has no legitimacy to be called a president because we need free and fair elections to elect a leader of the DRC,” a protest leader Jean Bwasa said.

“When somebody is illegitimate and illegal, how do you recognise the deals and the trade bilateral deals that he is signing here? They are irrelevant. They are void and nullified. When we have a new, legitimate government, these deals will not be recognised by the people of Congo. Whatever they are signing today is their private business. It doesn’t concern the DRC,” he said.

READ: Kabila breaks election promise in DRC

“Joseph Kabila is not a legitimate president. He is actually a criminal. Why is South Africa wasting money, rolling for him the red carpet. We won’t allow him to go inside. You will have to arrest us first,” one of the protesters told a police officer manning the main entrance.

As cars drove past into the highly secured venue, the protesters continually shouted via a loudhailer “Kabila you are not welcome here. You are a murderer”. Others chanted “Kabila must fall”, while others shouted “Kabila son of a b***h”.

Several police officers manned the main entrance of the presidential guesthouse, vetting all people driving into the venue. Public order policing vehicles also arrived at the venue.

African News Agency

Tshwane – The fact that some ANC members have confirmed being implicated in a trove of leaked Gupta emails is good for the political party says its secretary general Gwede Mantashe.

He delivered an address on Friday night at the ANC Gauteng’s policy conference taking place throughout the weekend in Irene.

“There is something positive coming out of these emails up, to now four of our comrades have owned up. Four, yes, owned up.” He told delegates.

Mantashe who used the opportunity to deliver a political school style lecture spoke about the state of branches and members of the party. He also praised those who confirmed their involvement with the family said to have close ties to the president.

The Guptas have been accused of having undue influence over President Jacob Zuma and some state owned enterprises. The family is also said to have had a hand in making key decisions such as appointing ministers in the country.

Their role in claims of state capture has been likened by some, such as the academic fraternity, as a soft coup.

‘We used to lie blatantly’

Among those who have confirmed the claims are Communications Minister Ayanda Dlodlo who admitted that she had taken a trip to Dubai courtesy of the Gupta family, North West Premier Supra Mahumapelo who was cited as being one of the many faces in the liberation movement to have pitched at their Saxonwold home and the president’s advisor Lakela Kaunda has admitted that in 2008 she was a non-executive director of a Gupta owned company, but resigned after 6 months.

“It didn’t used to happen, we would deny everything [and say] no I don’t know what’s going on. We used to lie blatantly” said Mantashe in explaining how the posture of the party needed to change when it came to negative developments around the party.

“They all said it, yes I was there, yes it true, yes it’s true, yes it’s true,” said the SG in Xhosa.

He also reiterated the calls for a judicial inquiry, which the president has now said he would establish.

“It must be constitutional and enforceable,” said Mantashe.

Mantashe said the 105 year old liberation movement needed to change its posture on matters in the public domain, not only speak out against wrong doings but show that it was actually taking measures to address the problems.

He praised one of his comrades, former mayor of Ekurhuleni and now Member of Parliament Mondli Gungubele for his role in an adhoc committee on communications and its handling of the troubles at the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC).

“When you started confronting the situation at the SABC then people began to see that the ANC knows the difference between right and wrong,” said Mantashe.

No political ideology

The ANC SG also decried the state of branches saying there was a decline in political ideology in the movement.

“Comrades begin to howl and use common sense that is not so common because they are guided by no ideology,” said Mantashe.

Giving insights on areas where current office bearers and stalwarts disagreed, Mantashe said former leaders of the party who had called for a national consultative conference had wanted to discuss the state of the organisation without the branches.

“We didn’t agree with veterans when they said we don’t want the branches [because] their politics [are] too poor,” he said describing the request as flawed.

When you say that you are blaming the victim, he added.

“You recruit a person say for 23 years, then say a member who has been around for 15 years is of poor quality, that member of the branch is a victim of you not doing what you should do,” he said.

Mantsashe said when he visited different branches across the different regions to deliver political school he found leaders, even in regions, did not know about the national democratic revolution.

“This is not isolated. It’s not rare, you come across it everywhere,” he said.

Mantashe said party members were not busy with discussions but too focused on issues around deployment and tenders.

He also said the party needed to accept that society was correct when it placed high expectations on the party.

“When people complain of state capture and that family [the Guptas] we then say what about white monopoly capital,” he went to define this as flawed.

“You are selecting the lowest common denominator to measure yourself because white monopoly capital is the essence of the revolution.”