ANC Youth League president Julius Malema's racial outburst at a
student rally will be taken up with him by the ANC, the party said
on Wednesday.
Spokesperson Ishmael Mnisi said the party would "engage" with
Malema on the statements he made on Tuesday, during its regular
contact with the league.
"We are always in contact with the youth league, we will
continue talking to them... even in this instance we would engage
with them," he said,
Malema, according to the Sowetan, led students at the University
of Johannesburg in a song saying: "Shoot the boere [farmers], they
are rapists."
He told students that former president Nelson Mandela had
convinced blacks to forgive, but they should never forget what was
done to them.
Mnisi said the African National Congress did not promote racist
utterances.
'Whites... are also South Africans'
"We wouldn't appreciate any statements against any member of our
society, including whites... they are also South Africans," he
said, adding that the Freedom Charter said South Africa belonged to
all who live in it.
Malema also lashed Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille for
demolishing churches in the Western Cape.
"Helen Zille, who is suffering from Satanism, has gone all out
to demolish the churches in the Western Cape. She is exposing
herself... people there will know they voted for a monster."
Independent Democrats leader Patricia De Lille was not spared
either.
"This Patricia who goes around saying I owe SARS [SA Revenue
Service], she must get her facts properly.
"She must go and build her own family and be concerned about the
taxes of her husband.
"If she has got a husband. Patricia doesn't look like a married
woman. There's no normal man who can marry Patricia. If Patricia
has got a husband, that husband must divorce Patricia and come and
look for well mannered and beautiful women in the ANC."
ANC 'disapproves'
Mnisi said opposition parties should not be on the receiving end
of derogatory statements.
"All that we are saying is that any derogatory, undermining
statement whether to opposition parties or our own people, we
disapprove of them," he said.
Malema targeted mining tycoon Nicky Oppenheimer who supported
government's stance which opposed the ANCYL's desire to see the
country's mines nationalised.
He said Oppenheimer was only looking after the interests of his
family, adding: "... We must take from Nicky Oppenheimer's family
and give to the people of South Africa."
Malema pronounced on the ANC's 2012 succession race, saying
President Jacob Zuma was guaranteed to return in his position when
the party elects new leadership.
Last year, at a Congress of SA Trade Unions conference, Zuma
urged ANC and alliance members to refrain from pronouncing on the
2012 elective conference.
Mnisi echoed this. He said it was "premature" for any ANC leader
to discuss succession now.
"... We reiterate what we said before, we will encourage
succession debate at the appropriate time... we continue to remind
and plead with comrades that it's not yet time to talk about the
succession debate."