Cape Town - Former ANC member Carl Niehaus who was expelled from the party, said he has been in talks with various stakeholders in the Western Cape to galvanise support for this newly launched Radical Economic Transformation (RCT) Movement, which might soon contest elections.
Niehaus stated that his movement is not yet a political party because it is registered as a non-profit organisation, but he does not rule out the possibility of registering it as one.
"It is not a political party; we want to try and unite all the various political parties on the left and also organisations within civil society that are committed to radical economic transformation. We will then wait and see whether these organisations want the NPO eventually to be transformed into a political party," said Niehaus.
Speaking about the Western Cape, he said the province has very similar issues to the rest of the country, such as the marginalisation of coloured and black people, the lack of economic empowerment of all African people, and the demands on land that are made by the Khoisan people.
“Our intention for this organisation is not just to exist on a national level, but to exist on a provincial, regional, and local level.
“However, I am not at liberty at this stage to tell you all the people that I'm talking to because we will announce them at the official launch, which will take place next week, but I can assure you that we are talking to many people in the Western Cape about participating in this movement and putting programmes into action to work for the ideal of radical economic transformation,” said Niehaus.
He said there are many people who are disappointed by the political parties that are currently in government in the Western Cape. He said these political parties make promises but do not execute on those promises.
"So I have received enquiries and engagements from people throughout the country, including in the Western Cape, which exceeded my expectations. So now we are creating all the necessary infrastructure for people to sign up. We haven't yet launched, we will launch next week," he said.
Despite his impressive struggle credentials, political analyst Kuhle Zwakala believes Niehaus lacks the characteristics of a credible figure.
"Niehaus resonates with blacks, coloured people and poor people in the same way that white people identify with the poor’s struggle, but it's more about his persona with him, and being a politician requires a bit more.
“I don’t know him, but how he presents himself will play a key role in whether he succeeds or not," said Zwakala.