Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema has dispelled suggestions that the red berets were not being forthcoming regarding the party’s donors when it failed to disclose to the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) if the party had received donations of more than R100 000 between 1 April and 30 June.

He said the party survives on levies and there was nothing to declare.

"There is nothing to declare, we are only supposed to declare if we received donations beyond R100 000 and we did not," said Malema, who embarked on a voter registration and manifesto consultation programme in Alexandra on Friday morning.

He added that the red berets only managed to stay afloat thanks in part to money received by the party "from parliament, from its share from the IEC as a party represented in the National Assembly and most of all through party levies".

"We survive from party levies. Party levies are what our public representatives contribute every month and that’s what makes the EFF survive.

"There is nothing that came into the EFF coffers that is more than R100 000," he reiterated.

The EFF leader also revealed that his party was being audited and would willingly send a copy of the audit outcomes to the IEC "for the electoral commission to satisfy itself" that the red berets have indeed not misled it.

Malema’s sentiments come after the IEC on Thursday revealed that it has been over two months since the passing of the 30 June deadline for political parties to disclose any funders that have donated more than R100 000 to their coffers and 502 parties have yet to declare funding to the IEC. 

The IEC said only three parties, the African National Congress (ANC), Democratic Alliance (DA) and newcomers ActionSA, had made declarations regarding their donors leaving questions around other big political parties such as the EFF, the Freedom Front Plus, United Democratic Movement, and Congress of the People.

Among the reasons advanced by just over 300 "smaller parties" was that they could not afford to hire auditors as mandated by the Political Party Funding Act hence the reasons they had failed to comply, according to the IEC.

Malema said there was nothing untoward regarding the EFF’s lack of disclosure and the party had simply not received any donations beyond the R100 00.

"The ANC you know it has got its own companies, it has its own corrupt related individuals so they will always have contributions. The DA is controlled and owned by white monopoly capital, the daughter of Oppenheimer donated R15-million, it comes from white monopoly capital and you have Herman Mashaba getting money from Black like me, him basically donating to himself, that is his own company," said Malema.  

He added that unlike Mashaba, "the EFF’s leadership doesn’t have money and doesn’t have companies to donate to it" leaving it reliant on party levies.

"If anyone seeks to suggest that there is any crooked arrangement by the EFF then that person must also suspect the IEC itself because just like the EFF the IEC did not get money in its party democracy fund. They only got R2 000."

"If the IEC, the most neutral organisation, can't get funds, what more a radical left political organisation like the EFF," asked Malema.