Former minister of International Relations and Co-operation, Dr Naledi Pandor, has slammed EFF president Julius Malema over an allegation that she too benefited from the VBS looting.
Malema, during his interview on SABC on Tuesday, said the retired MP received a bond for her house from VBS.
In a statement, she said upon returning from an overseas trip, she was greeted by this allegation, which she has strongly refuted.
“Upon returning from an overseas trip this morning, I was informed of a baseless claim made by Mr Julius Malema on SABC last night, alleging that I received a bond for my house from VBS.
“I unequivocally deny ever receiving such a bond and challenge Mr Malema to publicly present the evidence supporting this falsehood. Should he fail to do so, I demand a public apology for not only lying about me but also tarnishing my reputation,” she said.
Pandor, who has been an MP for over two decades, indicated that she would have never participated in anything that was going to compromise her leadership and her good standing in society.
“As a leader of a political party represented in Parliament, I am deeply disappointed by Mr Malema’s dishonesty. It is appalling that he would resort to such low tactics in an attempt to damage my good name,” she said.
Malema, who has not responded to the statement by Pandor, also told Clement Manyathela during the interview that EFF remained intact in spite of losing its deputy president, Floyd Shivambu.
Malema revealed that he was now doing better since the departure of Shivambu following his announcement that he had decided not to renew his membership and would be joining Jacob Zuma’s uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP) as his new political home.
Last month, this mammoth decision raised eyebrows, leaving many to question Malema’s role in this.
Malema admitted that he was shaken by the departure of his brother and even went as far as saying the door will always remain open should he later change his mind. Many saw Malema’s distraught face and concluded that he had taken this as a personal blow because the two, as young men had jointly launched the EFF after their departure from the ANC Youth League after being expelled by Zuma’s leadership.
He said even though at first he was shocked by Shivambu’s unexpected departure, he was doing better.
“Well, I am doing very well. The leadership of the EFF remains intact although his departure was painful, but I got some sense of relief. I do not know why. It was as if I had put down some heavy load,” he said.
Malema indicated that having achieved some sort of perspective following the shocking revelations, he was convinced that not every negative thing has negative results.
“It is not always the case that bad things produce bad results. Perhaps at times bad things do produce good results. So, we are fine and we are rocking,” he said.
On a personal note, Malema said his friendship with Shivambu which was borne out of a similar struggle and ideology can never be repaired.
“There is no friendship anymore. What brought us together was a common purpose. We met in the trenches. We did not meet in a club. We did not meet at church. We did not fall in love with each other at university or in the same class.
“What brought us together was sharing the common agenda of the revolution. Once we started seeing things differently, what brought us together no longer exists, so there is no need for me to be having any kind of friendship,” he said.
The Star