Julias malema’s party, EFF, has vowed to take on Operation Dudula and The Dudula Movement leader Nlanla Lux Dlamini after the group raided the home of one of its activists and local Secretary in Dobsonville, Soweto, on Sunday and accused him of drug dealing.
Operation Dudula, mainly made up of unemployed township residents, has been protesting since the start of the year and calling for illegal foreigners to be deported back to their countries of origin. The movement is against foreigners who came to look for jobs in South Africa whom they accuse of causing unemployment and high crime rate in South Africa.
Victor Ramerafe, 59, said some of the group had already broken down burglar bars to gain entry. Ramerafe said he came home to a large crowd chanting Struggle songs as they ordered him to open in order for them to search for drugs.
EFF national spokesperson Sinawo Tambo said the party was planning to visit Ramerafe and help him in the legal action he wanted to take against Operation Dudula front man Nhlanhla “Lux†Dlamini who he accused of threatening, poking and roughing him up as he allegedly told him to disclose where he stashed the drugs at his home.
“We will be visiting him and see how we can assist him going forward in ensuring that he receives the justice that he deserves in terms of his house being broken into and being harassed baselessly and victimised,†Tambo said.
He said government and law enforcement organs had to be careful about the impact of their failure to regulate the activities of the Dudula grouping, which have been mainly aimed at rooting out illegal immigrants in townships across Johannesburg.
Tambo said Ramerafe was fondly known as “Bra Razo†within EFF circles and that the party was shocked about what appeared to be cruel harassment.
“This is bad. They harassed this old man like that. This is the general abuse that Operation Dudula is inflicting on innocent people in our community. Vigilantism operates like that. They don’t operate from a basis of evidence. They just go out in a populist way and attack and in this instance they have victimised a 59-year-old and broke into his home,†he said.
EFF members gathered outside the Dobsonville police station on Wednesday to support Victor Ramerafe and assist him to open a criminal case against members of Operation Dudula. The opposition party then gave police a 7-day ultimatum to arrest the Dudula Movement leader, Nhlanhla Lux Dlamini.
EFF national spokesperson Sinawo Tambo on Wednesday called Dlamini a thuggish toy soldier.
“This home invasion was done in the presence of the police because there seems to be an element [white elements in South Africa] sponsoring Nhlanhla Lux that seeks to promote black on black violence,†said Tambo.
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We are at Dobsonville Police Station today to help Ntate Victor Ramerafe open a case against those operation dudula thugs who broke into his home. pic.twitter.com/zkobY4CX7g
— Economic Freedom Fighters (@EFFSouthAfrica) March 23, 2022
The EFF has been publicly condemning activities by the Dudula groups who have been accused of taking the law into their own hands, including on the eviction of allegedly undocumented foreign nationals.
Dlamini however flatly dismissed the allegations made by Ramerafe as “rubbish” and insisted they had waited for him before they got into his house.
“It is fine, he can do whatever he wants, as long as he will be able to live with the consequences because this operation has a live video that plays. We have got a video of that operation. We have watched it a lot of times and there is no-one who broke into his house. The window burglar bar was already broken when we arrived,†Dlamini said.
He said they only began to search Ramerafe’s house when he had arrived and denied claims that he assaulted him.
“His claim that I assaulted him, for whatever political reason, he must continue. He will realise later that he is being used politically by his political people. We have a video but I want them to first lie and put this poor man and his EFF into trouble,†he said.
Dlamini said he would only share the video when it was the “right time”.
