What will an end to the Nehawu strike do to Malema’s Rubicon Moment

[View in browser]( [Mail & Guardian]( M&G Mornings | Thu 16 Mar   There’s something about the National Shutdown called by Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema that has an almost “Rubicon Moment” feel, not for the country, but for him and the party he started just over ten years ago. Just a bit of an explainer: the phrase “crossing the Rubicon” is an idiom that means passing the point of no return. Should 20 March turn into a massive success for the rabble rouser of South African politics since he first emerged onto our national stage with his ascension to the presidency of the ANC Youth League in April 2008, then it will certainly cement him as an influential figure in next year’s general election. In essence, the governing party will have to deal, as its popularity continues to fall as state capacity continues to weaken. If it doesn’t make a significant dent on our consciousness, what are we to think of both Malema and the EFF. The party and its leader are passing the point of no return. Ron Derby | Editor in Chief [@Ronderby]( [Nehawu-led public sector strike at an end, bargaining council says]( Meanwhile, the Public Servants Association has turned down the government’s 7% salary raise proposal, saying it does not account for the soaring cost of living [// Read more]( [Cape Town taxi body backs EFF shutdown call but won’t take part]( The South African National Taxi Council says its members can decide if they want to take part in the national shutdown planned for 20 March [// Read more]( [‘I didn’t steal R13.9 million’– former NPA director Molelle]( Molelle is accused of having received R2 million from the money Mahendren Munsamy allegedly ‘stole’ from former Eskom executive Anoj Singh [// Read more]( Recommended Reads [Phalatse puts race back on the table in DA leadership contestÂ]( The party releases list of candidates vying for leadership positions, with Phenyane nominated for all six posts with Zille expected to be re-elected as matriarch [// Read more]( [Umgeni Water board fired again]( The board’s members are preparing to go back to court to challenge their termination [// Read more]( [Apartheid nostalgia forgets the cruel inhumanity of the past]( When South Africans compare their situation today to that under apartheid, they ignore the distressing stories heard at the Truth and Reconciliation Commission [// Read more]( [African rats are being used to sniff out wildlife crime]( Two nonprofits are training African giant pouched rats to detect smuggled contraband in shipping containers [// Read more]( [My love/hate relationship with Soweto]( This is not a story unique to Joburg — the same happened in District Six in Cape Town — but Soweto is my lived experience so that’s what I’m going to focus on. [// Read more]( Pic of the day The open pit mine at the Oyu Tolgoi copper-gold mine, jointly owned by Rio Tinto Group’s Turquoise Hill Resources Ltd. unit and state-owned Erdenes Oyu Tolgoi LLC, in Khanbogd, the South Gobi desert, Mongolia, on Tuesday, March 14, 2023. Rio has begun digging copper from the underground portion of its giant mine in Mongolia, an expansion that will turn the operation into one of the worlds largest, after years of delays, cost blow-outs and billion-dollar disputes with the countrys government. Photographer: SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg via Getty Images [Share]( [Share]( [Tweet]( [Tweet]( [Forward]( [Forward]( This email was sent to {EMAIL} [why did I get this?]( [unsubscribe from this list]( [update subscription preferences]( Mail & Guardian Media LTD · 25 Owl St · Braamfontein · Johannesburg, Gauteng 2001 · South Africa