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“Remove” Mugabe and “reclaim” your country Julius Malema tells Zimbabweans

South African opposition Economic Freedom Fighter (EFF) Leader Julius Malema has once again criticised Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe for clinging on to power again stating that, “A good leader should have produced 2nd &; 3rd layer leadership to continue the good fight against imperialism.” “Zimbabweans should remove him & reclaim their country,” Malema said.

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South African opposition Economic Freedom Fighter (EFF) leader Julius Malema has again reiterated his call for Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe to step down. In one breathe he both extolled the Leader for “his contribution towards African revolution” and called for Zimbabweans to “remove him and reclaim their country.”

Despite his call to action Malema is not saying anything new or anything he has not said before. Earlier in the year the EFF leader called on the Zimbabwean president to step down and allow young leaders to lead the country. He even went on to call “comrades in the Zanu-PF” cowards for failing to remove the 93 year old, who has been in power since 1980, first as an Executive Prime Minister and then as Executive President from 1987.

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“Zimbabwe’s situation is bad. President Mugabe can’t even control a spade. That’s how old he is. He’s no longer capable of discharging his responsibilities. We don’t hate the man. They can respond and insult us.

“They are a group of cowards, those comrades in Zanu-PF. To be scared to say to an old man like President Mugabe, ‘Please, with due respect, let go!’

“President Mugabe must let go! The legacy of the land question … we will carry it. We are following in his footsteps. We are proud of the actions he has taken. But his overstay is not doing justice on the African revolution project. He is destroying his own legacy. It’s bad,” Malema previously said.

Avoiding bright lights, snoozing, musing or nodding? Photo: Screenshot

To this President Mugabe soundly responded that he intends to stand for re-election in 2018, as Zimbabweans still want him to run for elections, and he will do so until his party decides otherwise.

“Do you listen to anything from Malema? Who is Malema? The call to step down must come from my party; my party at congress; my party at central committee. [In such circumstances] I will step down,” the Zimbabwean president said during an interview with The Sunday News.

Read: Robert Mugabe turns 93

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He added that he’d resign if he felt he was no longer physically fit to do his job.

“But then what do you see? It’s the opposite. They want me to stand for elections, they want me to stand for elections everywhere in the party … Of course if I feel that I can’t do it any more, I will say so to my party so that they relieve me. But for now I think I can’t say so … The majority of the people feel that there is no replacement; [a] successor who to them is acceptable, as acceptable as I am.”

Malema himself is ‘ready’ to lead by example. The EFF currently has no limit on how long a president can lead, but Malema says he’s willing to go when the time comes. “There’s no limit for the president of the EFF in the constitution; once people say we’re tired of Malema, I’m willing to step down,” he said.

We will jut have to wait and see if the outspoken leader keeps to his word and actually steps aside when the time does come. In the meantime he remains passionate about leaders leaving their posts once they have overstayed or are no longer an asset.

Read: South Africa’s parliament: the house of boors

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After South Africa’s highly criticized Cabinet reshuffle that saw then finance minister Pravin Gordhan and his then deputy Mcebisi Jonas sacked, Malema called for President Zuma to resign.

“No wonder this untenable situation has seen calls from across the land to the president to step down. We urge Zuma to listen to the voices of the people … and should he do that, it would be the second time he heeds the people’s call. The first call was when he gave himself to the struggle against apartheid.

He added that if Zuma was of “a good conscience” he would stay put after resigning and “not flee the country”.

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