From BBC Africa

A dozen schoolchildren in blue and white uniforms beat their drums earnestly as they escorted Julius Malema’s van down a dirt road and into the impoverished township of Itireleng on a hillside outside Pretoria.

Within seconds, a mood of almost giddy excitement seemed to ripple through the crowd of perhaps 500 people who had gathered on a dusty football pitch in the hot afternoon sun to listen to South Africa’s most divisive, boisterous politician make his election campaign pitch.

An aide in a red beret – the catchy trademark of Mr Malema’s party, the Economic Freedom Fighters – helped to haul the “Commander-In-Chief’s” substantial frame on to the back of a truck, where two loudspeakers were already positioned in front of the crowd.

Mr Malema is 33 and rarely out of the headlines here – a contradictory figure who provokes strong reactions.

Written by Andrew Harding/Read more at BBC Africa