He had been out of the news for a while but now he is back and maybe even louder than ever. ANC Youth League President, Julius Malema is making the headlines again. In the beginning it was all about “Kill for Zuma”, then after that there was the whole saga about his matric results and now he has come out and started ‘taking shots’ at a lot of people. Malema has recently had a dig at Congress of the People (COPE) co-leader and former Gauteng premier Mbhazima Shilowa by referring to him as a security guard and claimed he was delinquent over child-support payments. Are these the kind of things one has to say especially in the build up to a major election next year? Is Malema going to cost ANC votes?
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The Congress of the People (COPE) unveiled its logo this weekend. The party’s deputy chairman Mbhazima Shilowa said the logo — a circle with a green cross through and comprising of the other colours of the national flag — was a collective work deriving from a number of suggestions submitted to the party. The logo also represents a fusion of the symbols of liberation and the flag of the nation as a symbol of unity and multiplicity. COPE expects there to be objects with regards to the logo and the party’s name from the ANC. It will be interesting to see what will happen if the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) rejects COPE’s name and logo as I am sure COPE has already invested millions in branding for the new party.

The Democratic Alliance unveiled a new DA logo saying the party is launching a new vision for South Africa to make the country’s dream a living reality. The logo was unveiled at Constitution Hill hall in Braamfontein, Johannesburg at a gathering which was attended by about 1000 party followers. DA leader, Helen Zille spoke at the relaunch and said “From today, we offer the people of South Africa the choice of government that really can deliver a better future.”
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Arts and Culture Minister Pallo Jordan has come out and said that the formation of the Congress of the People (COPE) party was due to the “lack of assertiveness and visionary leadership within the ANC over a period of time”, this in reference to the leadership during the Thabo Mbeki era. So this means that, if Mbeki were a ’stronger’ leader then the divisions in the ANC would not have taken place and thus there would be no need for the formation of the breakaway party?

Jordan went on to say that the lack of leadership “weakened the ruling party’s moral authority and undermined its integrity”. What are your thoughts about these claims?

The exodus of members from the ANC to the COPE (Congress of People) continued today with a big name move. Struggle stalwart Lulama “Smuts” Ngonyama has left the ANC today after 30 years of service to the party and has joined the newly formed COPE headed by Terror Lekota. Smuts was the former spokesperson of the ANC. He said he could no longer recognise the liberation movement to which he belonged. “This is not the ANC I knew,” he said.
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The new political party in South Africa which wants to be called the Congress of the People is under pressure as the ruling ANC party are planning to block the new party from adopting this name. The ANC is taking legal advice on the use of the name Congress of the People because it says that the name, the Congress of the People, is an event in the calendar of the ANC. It’s the function, where in 1955, the Freedom Charter was adopted.
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The new breakaway ANC party finally has a name. Former Gauteng premier Mbhazima Shilowa, said yesterday (Thursday) that the new party would be called the Congress of the People. The name will be registered on Monday with the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC). It is said that the name came about by several people sending SMSs with their opinions. It is a name that does not stand out to me the first time I heard it. What do you think of this name?

Yesterday (Saturday 1 November), marked yet another historic day in the politics of South Africa. As many had anticipated, a new political party will be born in South Africa in the Free State on December 16. Mbhazima Shilowa, former Gauteng premier, said the new party “which has yet to be named” will not only “take on” the dominant ANC, but “is going to win the next election”. The new party, to be formed as a break away from the ruling ANC will have a name and logo different from the ANC as the leaders want to build a brand new identity.
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Is it right or fair to judge someone’s actions based on their matric results? Last week, reports surfaced about ANC Youth League President, Julius Malema’s matric results. Apparently an email containing Malema’s results showed that the outspoken leader scraped through matric with an H in maths and a G in woodwork, both on the Standard Grade (SG). The email reveals that Malema, passed matric with Es in Sepedi HG and second language Afrikaans HG, an F in geography HG, D in history SG and a C in second language English HG, the latter being his highest mark. The ANC Youth League was quick to come out and say that this information was not true and that the email was fake and compiled by a person with an agenda.
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The possibility of a new political party in South Africa is gathering momentum. Former Minister of Defence, Mosiuoa Lekota and former Gauteng premier Mbhazima Shilowa are at the forefront of this new party which is set to be formed as a rival to the ruling ANC with members of this new party set to break away from the ANC. What is worrying for the ruling ANC is that about 50 of their MP’s are set to join this new political party. Who exactly these 50 MP’s are still awaits to be seen.

The first true test is going to come when Parliament has to vote on the controversial legislation that will disband the Scorpions and set up a new unit in its place. Observers think that the 50 MP’s set to leave the ANC and join Lekota and Shilowa will vote against the bill and side with the opposition and thus disbanding the Scorpions will not go as easily and smoothly as had been initially thought. So all eyes will be on Parliament this Thursday to see what happens when the votes for the bill come into play.