From red berets to MK spears: Manyi’s move seen as return to Zuma's ANC roots
Mzwanele Manyi’s political zigzag over the last five years, from ANC to ATM, then EFF, and now Jacob Zuma’s MK party, has sparked criticism from fellow politicians, while a political analyst calls his MK party move a return to his Zuma’s roots.
The EFF endured a massive hit on August 15, when deputy president Floyd Shivambu and Mzwanele Manyi swapped their red berets for the spears of the uMkhonto weSizwe party.
Manyi, who has been swapping political parties over the past five years like they’re fashion trends, has faced criticism for his constant political shifts.
In an interview with IOL News, renowned political analyst Professor Sipho Seepe said Manyi’s move to the MK party hits all the same notes he once loved about the ANC under Jacob Zuma.
Seepe said Manyi joining Zuma’s eight-month-old MK party was like “going home,” as it mirrors the ANC under Zuma in all its aspects.
“When Zuma was still the president, Manyi was still at the ANC and when Msholozi left, for Manyi it was that the ANC also changed and became a party by a prepaid president (Ramaphosa).”
He said Manyi felt that with Ramaphosa’s takeover, the ANC no longer resembled the party he had joined.
“Manyi’s decision for leaving was that the ANC of Ramaphosa, for him, had abandoned what the party stood for, in the same way that people like Dali Mpofu had left the party. It was not because they were expelled, but it had become another animal that is different from the ANC that they formed part of in the last 33 years.”
He said that when Zuma launched the MK party, it branded itself as a return to the roots of the original ANC, which is why Manyi left the red berets to join it.
“He felt that now, he was parking at the EFF, but found that MK party satisfied everything he used to like in the ANC, which had been abandoned by Ramaphosa.”
In addition, Seepe said Manyi ditched the red berets for the spears of the MK party, and this should be seen as a political move.
“It might also be possible that he left the EFF because he has outgrown the politics of that party. Same with Floyd Shivambu, he has also outgrown the politics of the party.”
Asked if Manyi might dump the MK party to another, Seepe said: “I don’t think there is any other party that he can go to because the space is already crowded. I think the MK party has taken a space of people who were disgruntled with the ANC and they did not want to join the EFF.”
In an interview on Power Breakfast, Manyi said he makes no apologies for dumping the red berets, citing that his political moves are driven by a political agenda.
“I make no apologies for leaving. What is important for me is the agenda. If you check my moves, they will always be on progressive agenda - on the left agenda. The more left you are, the more I get attracted to you,” he told the radio station.
Last week, EFF MP Carl Niehaus lashed out at Manyi on social media for dumping the party and stated that during Manyi’s difficult times, EFF leader Julius Malema extended a hand and welcomed him into the party.
However, Manyi rubbished that and said he never endured difficulties when he joined the party.
IOL Politics