Congress of the People (Cope) leader Mosiuoa Lekota has labelled the Black First Land First (BLF) a fascist formation, insisting that its leader, Andile Mngxitama, be imprisoned and rehabilitated for his calls at the weekend for the killing of white people in South Africa.

On Wednesday Lekota accompanied controversial Afrikaans singer Steve Hofmeyr who, in his capacity as a non-executive director of the civil rights organisation Toekomsvonk, laid a number of charges against Mngxitama.

Speaking outside of the Brooklyn police station in Tshwane, Lekota said that Cope had also laid charges against Mngxitama for his utterances in Kimberley on Tuesday.

"As far as we are concerned he ought to be arrested, it is a crime to preach racism. Secondly, he must be sent for rehabilitation within the correctional services to re-educate him so that he can know how to live in society. Thirdly, the BLF is not a political party that can be allowed under our Constitution," said Lekota.

He added that anyone calling for the killing of South Africans is an enemy of the country and that because of calls made by Mngxitama, the BLF should be deregistered as a political party in keeping with the Electoral Act.

"It's not a political party, it's a fascist formation which is against the Constitution."

Comments 'an act of terrorism'

Attorney Marius Coetze and a director at Toekomsvonk agreed with Lekota's sentiments, saying that the organisation had laid charges in terms of the terrorism and intimidation acts.

He explained that Mngxitama's comments threaten the population or a segment of the population and that this constituted an act of terrorism.

Speaking to the media, Hofmeyr, who once tweeted: "Sorry to offend but in my books Blacks were the architects of Apartheid. Go figure," said that he and Lekota disagree on a lot of things.

"But we agree to discuss those over a braai. We will light the fire, we will have a braai and discuss those. When we get things to agree on like less bloodshed rather than more bloodshed," Hofmeyr said.

"We need a living South Africa, not a dead one."

Hofmeyr added that he would fight against the kind of utterances made by Mngxitama.

Comments a defence against Rupert's 'incitement'

"Every time this is stated, my primary concern is more [living] South Africans, more working South Africans, not less."

Lekota said that he would not keep quiet when the lives of South Africans were threatened simply because of the colour of their skin.

"So now when you have people coming with fascist ideas and you kill people because they have a different complexion (sic) to themselves, we cannot allow for that, we must nip it in the bud, because we know what that has done to our country," Lekota said.

On Tuesday during a press briefing Mngxitama said that comments he made over the weekend in Ikageng in the North West encouraging his supporters to kill white people were merely a defence against recent statements made by billionaire Johann Rupert, which he interpreted as an "incitement to violence" against black people.

Mngxitama urged his members to "kill five white people for every one black person that dies because of taxi violence" as a form of retaliation should Rupert's "army" go up against black people.

Mngxitama said that his words had been taken out of context and explained that he had only called for black people to defend themselves.

He told media that he stood by his words and said "white people" who have no intention of killing black people should not be worried. He added that he would be laying charges of inciting violence against Rupert.

BLF 'militia'

News24 previously reported that in a recent interview with Power FM's Given Mkhari at the second annual Chairman's Conversation, Rupert warned that he had "friends in the taxi industry" who he referred to as his "own army".

Mngxitama further threatened an "armed struggle" should the Independent Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) deregister his party over his alleged hate speech.

Trade union Solidarity has already asked the IEC not to allow the BLF to participate in the 2019 elections.

The DA has laid a complaint of "incitement to violence" with the police in Potchefstroom.

Mngxitama also announced that his party had asked Zimbabwe's war veterans to train his party members, seemingly gearing up for war.

He claimed the training would be in response to "militia white camps" aimed at "killing to protect the land".

"We are also willing to kill to get the land back, and if needs be, die for it," Mngxitama said.

He did not indicate where these camps are located.