Malema demands apology from Zille over Joburg tender claims

EFF leader Julius Malema has demanded a public apology from Helen Zille, the DA’s Johannesburg mayoral candidate, and has warned of further legal action if she refuses, The Citizen reported.

What Zille said

The dispute stems from an interview Zille gave to eNCA. She spoke about the time Herman Mashaba, now leader of ActionSA, served as Johannesburg mayor under the DA, and about his relationship with parties such as the EFF.

Zille said Mashaba “became the EFF’s mayor”. She claimed he allowed Malema to influence major decisions, including at City Power and on the city’s fleet tender. She also claimed he appointed Shadrack Sibiya to head the anti-corruption unit on Malema’s instruction. According to Zille, Mashaba told her this was the price of staying in power.

The legal letter

In a letter sent to the media, Malema’s lawyer, Angelike Charalambous, demanded that Zille retract her comments and apologise publicly. The letter says the statement must be posted on all her social media accounts, including Facebook, X and Instagram. It must also be issued as a press statement in her name and sent to the media houses she deals with. The EFF says it will also send the statement to the media houses it has contact details for.

Charalambous added that the wording of the statement must be given to the EFF for approval before it is published.

The letter describes Zille’s remarks as defamatory. It says they were made deliberately to damage Malema’s name and to exact political revenge on him and the EFF. Charalambous said Zille’s conduct was mala fide and that she was “disgruntled”. These are the claims of Malema’s legal representative, and Zille has not yet responded to them in the source report.

If Zille does not comply, the letter says Malema’s legal team has instructions to take further legal action without further notice. That would include a claim for damages and an interdict to stop her from repeating the statements.

What happens next

The Citizen said it had asked Zille’s communication team and Mashaba for comment. It said it would add their responses to its report once received. At this stage, the claims about Mashaba’s time as mayor and the claims in the legal letter are both unproven allegations, and neither has been tested in court.

For residents, the key thing to watch is whether Zille retracts her comments or the matter goes to court. Johannesburg’s City Power and fleet tenders, which Zille mentioned, remain part of the wider debate about how the city is run.

This story is based on reporting by The Citizen.