‘I was a mere naïve slave’: Former ‘fighter’ fired as EFF member and councillor

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'I was a mere naïve slave': Former 'fighter' fired as EFF member and councillor
'I was a mere naïve slave': Former 'fighter' fired as EFF member and councillor

Africa-Press – South-Africa. A former EFF member has lashed out at the party, accusing it of having no regard for its workers and exploiting them.

Former EFF Makana Local Municipality councillor Anelisa Bentele was booted out of council by the party and recently replaced – after being on suspension since 31 March for failing to resign as a councillor when ordered to do so.

The party’s general secretary Marshall Dlamini had, in a letter on 16 March, instructed Bentele to step down as the party’s Proportional Representative councillor in the Eastern Cape local municipality because she could not secure EFF a minimum of 100 votes in her ward in the local government elections in November 2021.

Noluthando Marmola Buwa is now the PR councillor in place of Bentele, whose EFF membership was also terminated.

Bentele, who had been at loggerheads with the party fighting her suspension in March, was finally sacked in September.

She was suspended after telling Dlamini that her campaign failed because it was crippled by EFF administration work, as she served in the party’s interim structure at regional level.

On 20 September, the Makana Local Municipality announced to the media that Bentele had been replaced after the IEC informed municipal manager Moppo Mene to do so.

Buwa was sworn in a few days earlier in a short ceremony presided over by council speaker Mabhuti Matyumza and Mene.

Bentele said Mene told her that he was briefed by EFF Eastern Cape secretary Mlamli Makhetha that she was no longer a member of the party.

Bentele ripped into the EFF in a scathing open letter.

“EFF [is] purporting to be championing the interests of the poor working class in Africa and yet they treat their workers as garbage. EFF failed a simple test of audi alteram rule. I was never called to a hearing, to present my story,” Bentele wrote.

She added that she suffered in silence for years in the party, hoping things would get better.

“If you are a woman and not prepared to sleep with high profile politicians in EFF, you will not rise through its ranks… [you will not rise] through hard work, honesty and being ethical,” charged Bentele.

“EFF has no regard for its workers, it’s exploitative and abusive. I worked in [the] constituent office of EFF since 2019 and I was never paid a cent. I was expected to report to the office every day. I was a mere naïve slave, that was just committed to the EFF,” she said in her letter.

Bentele said she had long realised that she did not need the EFF to fight injustices and be an agent of change in her community.

EFF Eastern Cape chairperson Yazini Tetyana declined to comment on the matter and referred questions to the national office. Dlamini and EFF national spokesperson Sinawo Tambo failed to respond to questions.

Makhetha could not be reached for comment.

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