Cape Town – Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema has said that his party would be visiting the hospitality industry across the country, assessing how many foreign nationals are employed in the sector.
Malema said this while addressing the EFF Siyabonga rally in Durban on Saturday.
The event was held to thank voters in the province for voting the EFF in last year’s local government polls.
“We are poor, we are unemployed, we want jobs. When you go to restaurants foreigners are working in restaurants. Do not hate the foreigners, hate the owner of the restaurant because those foreigners did not hire themselves.
[WATCH] “We want locals to be prioritized for employment. We must visit hospitality venues and ask them how many South Africans they are hiring,” says EFF Julius Malema.
Tune into #Newzroom405 for more details. #EFFSiyabongaRally pic.twitter.com/9pcBfk5x6g
— Newzroom Afrika (@Newzroom405) January 8, 2022
“Ethekwini, Joburg, Tshwane, PE, all metros… from next week, we are visiting – not violently, leadership only – we are visiting the hospitality industry… we want the owner of Hilton Hotel in Durban to tell us how many South Africans are working here…
“We are not fighting with our brothers, but if I get a tender in Umlazi, the law says I must hire people from Umlazi. Why is that law not applying in the hospitality industry?,” said Malema.
According to EWN, Malema has always been advocating for an open border policy, saying that Africans must move freely on the continent.
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But when it comes to jobs, the leader of the red berets said that the hospitality sector should put South Africans first.
Last year he said that foreign nationals should find “creative” ways to enter into the country and that the EFF would rather lose votes than join the bandwagon of blaming the unemployment crisis in South Africa on foreign nationals, IOL reported.
“If the gates are not going to be open for SADC. Fellow SADC people, please, find a creative way. This is your home. Your families are here. There is no way anyone is going to close you out here,” the report quoted Malema as saying at the time.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
