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At their 2017 elective conference, the African National Congress (ANC) they will choose a successor to Jacob Zuma and whoever wins will, more than likely, go on to become the President of South Africa in two years’ time.

The race has two front-runners: Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, a former unionist and multi-millionaire businessman, and Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, a qualified medical doctor and Jacob Zuma's ex-wife. But the contest has become the most acrimonious the ANC has seen in its history. And it is happening at a bad time for Africa's most developed economy, with allegations of undue influence on government institutions - better known as state capture - abound; debt is rising, growth is slowing and the ratings agencies could downgrade the country to full junk status at the end of November.

Watching the ANC's internal battle from the sidelines is the leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), Julius Malema. The far-left EFF gained 25 parliamentary seats in the 2014 elections - just a year after the party was formed. Once a supporter of President Zuma, Malema is now a ferocious critic, and his party frequently walk out of parliament whenever Jacob Zuma addresses the assembly.

The ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳'s Lerato Mbele sat down with him and asked him in which direction South Africa and the ANC was heading.