South African opposition leader and President of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), Julius Malema, yesterday called for Africa to unite under a single economy, one currency, and one military command to end what he described as “continued subjugation” by developed nations.
Delivering a fiery keynote speech at the Annual General Conference of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) in Enugu, themed “Stand out, stand tall”, Malema received a standing ovation from thousands of lawyers.
He said Africa must break its cycle of dependency and stop exporting raw minerals only to buy back finished products at exorbitant prices. According to him, unity is the only way for the continent to harness its strengths and claim its rightful place in the global order.
“We demand one Africa, we demand a borderless Africa, we demand an Africa with one president, one currency, one military command, with one parliament,” Malema declared. “We know the currency of Africa will be much stronger against the American currency. We don’t care what Donald Trump or any other leader thinks of us.”
The firebrand politician described xenophobia as a betrayal of African solidarity, insisting Nigerians were not to blame for South Africa’s unemployment woes. He praised Nigeria’s historic role in the anti-apartheid struggle and urged Africans to “refuse to be subjects of others.”
“Africans must love themselves, not kill one another. Black people are not loved in Africa, and not loved abroad either, but we must treat ourselves better,” he said.
Malema also called for visa-free movement across the continent and warned African leaders against plunging future generations into debt traps with reckless foreign loans.
“The land belongs to Africans, and the minerals of Africa must be returned to Africans. We must never allow imperialist forces to divide us in order to take our wealth,” he said.
The conference, chaired by the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar, also heard calls for justice sector reforms. The Sultan warned that justice was increasingly becoming a “purchasable commodity” that allowed the rich to escape accountability while the poor suffered miscarriages of justice.
NBA President, Mazi Afam Osigwe (SAN), urged lawyers to embrace sacrifice and courage in defending the rule of law. Enugu State Governor Peter Mbah, who declared the conference open, stressed that development could only thrive on a justice system that is fair, trusted, and accessible to all.
