PODCAST | TAKING THE RAMS BY THE HORNS: Could the EFF be turning into Education Freedom Fighters?

In this episode of #TakingTheRamsByTheHorns, podcaster Rams Mabote discusses the topic after EFF leader Julius Malema recently told party members they needed to finish high school if they want to hold leadership positions in public service.

Malema had disqualified a party member from holding a leadership position in the public sector because he did not have a matric certificate.

Speaking to supporters in Bloemfontein, Free State, on Sunday, Malema encouraged his party members who failed matric to make an effort to finish it. 

"Rewrite of matric is closing on February 8, and all of them [those who failed matric] must go and register to rewrite matric and complete it by the end of this year," Malema told EFF members.

In studio was Sowetan political editor Fikile-Ntsikelelo Moya, who said it was a good thing that currently there were no minimum academic requirement for people to occupy political office.

Moya said an "obsession with an academic qualification as a be-all and end-all is false". He said not requiring academic qualifications in politics has helped to "open up the democratic space to everyone".

He, however, added there is no doubt that people without education would have been better with it.

Moya bemoaned that there were varsity students who hired ghost writers to produce their research.

Rams said he smelt a little bit of dictatorship when Malema gave his party leadership reasons on why one of his diligent party members did not qualify to be a member of mayoral committee as they didn't have matric.