The EFF is convinced that there are "double agents" working for the party.

"They're working for us and they're working for people like Andile Mngxitama and [Mpho] Ramakata," EFF national spokesperson Mbuyiseni Ndlozi told News24 on Tuesday.

"They use... CCMA cases to get money to fund the rival political activities of these people and we will never allow that."

Ndlozi was responding to queries about the suspension of EFF leader Julius Malema's Cape Town PA Yerushka Chetty.

It is understood that Chetty had sent an e-mail with images of Mngxitama's organisation Black First Land First (BFL) which ended up in Malema's hands.

However, Ndlozi would not go into detail about the incident but confirmed that Chetty had been suspended and was facing a disciplinary process for violating the EFF's code of conduct.

"The EFF like any other organisation... has a code of conduct and if you break such a code of conduct we have authority to take you to task," he said.

"Why is it negative for the EFF to act in the best interest of its policies and its code of conduct. We have the right to act."

The Citizen newspaper reported that Chetty would be approaching the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA).

Ndlozi said the EFF would challenge the CCMA process.

"We can't have people who work for rival political parties working within the structures of the EFF because when they do take on the responsibilities [in the EFF] they know they cannot do that. 

"We know for as a matter of fact these applications and CCMA cases, which are not new... are being used to try to fund activites of Ramakatsa and Mngxitama."

Mngxitama, Ramakatsa and Khanyisile Litchfield-Tshabalala were expelled from the EFF in April this year after being found guilty of convening unauthorised media briefings and failing to attend Parliament.

Mngxitama has since launched (BLF), while Ramakatsa started the Save the Soul of Africa organisation.

Litchfield-Tshabalala has joined the United Democratic Movement (UDM).

'Lost their minds'

In response to Ndlozi's claims, Mngxitama said the EFF had "lost their minds".

"It's far-fetched. It's a fantasy that operates within their general paranoia and their own world which they create and ... have successfully sold to the unsuspecting," he told News24.

"If it is true that we are funding our activities through the CCMA processes we would have been broke, as some of us are, because they [EFF] have not paid a cent."

He claimed the leadership of the red berets was notorious for ignoring basic workers rights and fired people left, right and centre.

People who worked for the EFF worked under a "reign of terror", he said.

"The EFF goes to Parliament dressed in workers garb. It is supposed to be pro-workers, it claims to be driven by the Marikana worker but it treats its workers exactly how Lonmin treats its workers... it treats its workers as slaves, it treats its workers like farmers treat their workers."

News24