* Malema’s home province in dire financial straits
* Treasury intervention team given armed escort
* Political stakes high in Malema appeal
* He has close connections but no direct Limpopo role
By Ed Stoddard
JOHANNESBURG, Jan 22 (Reuters) – Armed police guards
are protecting a South African treasury team sent to fix the
finances of a bankrupt province that is a base for firebrand ANC
youth leader Julius Malema, a sign of political tensions ahead
of an appeal that will decide his fate.
Malema, the leader of the ruling African National Congress’
Youth League, is fighting for his political life with an appeal
that starts on Monday against his 5-year suspension handed down
in November by the party for bringing it into disrepute.
If the 30-year-old party rebel succeeds in his appeal and
remains in the movement, he could be an obstacle to the
re-election of President Jacob Zuma as ANC leader at the end of
this year. Malema has been a fierce, uninhibited critic of Zuma.
The northern province of Limpopo which is Malema’s powerbase
is undergoing a national treasury intervention to clean up its
dire financial state, an action which has increased resentment
among Malema allies already angry over his suspension.
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