Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema has likened the incident in which Deputy President Paul Mashatile’s security detail assaulted motorists on the N1 highway in Johannesburg to the actions of parliamentary police officers who have unleashed violence on opposition members in the past.

Malema was speaking during a media briefing held at Uncle Tom’s Hall in Soweto earlier today.

He was speaking in reference to the assault that took place on the N1 over the weekend, where motorists who have been confirmed to be trainees of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) were brutally assaulted by members of the VIP protection.

The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) has confirmed that charges have been laid against the members of the South African Police Service (SAPS).

“The EFF condemns the vicious attack on motorists in Johannesburg, Gauteng, by what has now been confirmed to be the VIP protection unit of the Deputy President of South Africa, Paul Mashatile.

“The abuse of power by these VIP protectors on a public road reveals a deep-seated abuse of power by members of the South African Police Service (SAPS), which the EFF has always warned against. It is this type of behaviour that has been normalised in the South African Parliament, where members of the elite detail of SAPS think they are above the law and can assault citizens and even public representatives with impunity,” Malema said.

He added: “We call for the immediate dismissal of all members of the VIP protection unit who committed this violent act and for their certificates as police officers to be revoked by the SAPS Academy. We further call on the firearms control unit of the SAPS to revoke their firearms certificates. South Africa must never be allowed to degenerate into a mafia state where public sector policing is characterised by violence and abuse of citizens.”

Malema also expressed his party’s view on the final report that acting Public Protector Kholeka Gcaleka released on the Phala Phala farmgate saga. The saga involved President Cyril Ramaphosa and foreign currency that was stolen from his property in Waterberg, Bela Bela, Limpopo, in 2020.

“The EFF rejects the nonsensical report into the crimes committed by Cyril Ramaphosa at and in relation to the Phala Phala farm, which was released by the imposter in the office of the Public Protector, Kholeka Gcaleka. The report is a laughable attempt to exonerate the sole director of Ntabanyoni Trust, Cyril Ramaphosa, from generating profits from the same business he controls.

“It is an illogical document… that undermines the office of the Public Protector. The soundest report, which was produced by former Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo, remains unchallenged, objective, and true. It is this report that found that there is a basis to establish an impeachment committee in accordance with the Constitution of South Africa,” he said.

Malema said the report defied logic.

“The claim by Gcaleka that there is no conflict of interest in a president engaging in the exchange of millions of foreign currencies without any declaration to the South African Reserve Bank or consideration of the Executive Members Ethics Act is a sign that a lowly puppet is occupying the office of the Public Protector.

“The report rather seeks to place the blame of the exchange of undeclared currency, the storage of this currency in sofas and mattresses, and the rogue investigation which resulted in abduction, torture, and bribery, on the employees of Ramaphosa, as if these employees would act with the complete ignorance of their principal. It is a report that is not worth the paper that it is written on,” he said.

He added that the EFF would explore legal methods to revisit the Section 89 report.

“The report compiled by former Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo was rejected in parliament under the pretence that the report was being reviewed in the judiciary. After the ANC abused its majority in parliament to hide corruption, Ramaphosa then proceeded to withdraw his court challenge of the Phala Phala report on the basis that parliament had rejected the report, revealing a rotten collusion within the ruling party to bury the Phala Phala saga by lying to the nation and parliament.

“Even their former president, Thabo Mbeki, condemned them for misusing their parliamentary majority to avoid accountability. The tactics to bury the Phala Phala saga, most recently through a nonsensical report by an ambitious acting Public Protector, who seeks to piggy-bag her way to a permanent post in the office of the Public Protector, will not work. The EFF will never allow careerism to undermine the fight against corruption, despite Ramaphosa’s attempts to undermine the sacred Chapter 9 institutions and the judiciary,” Malema said.