Cape Town mayor Patricia de Lille was embraced by EFF leader Julius Malema when she arrived at the red berets’ memorial service for Madikizela-Mandela in Brandfort.

“I have come to Brandfort to pay tribute to a mother‚ a sister‚ a fearless leader and a true daughter of the soil. #RestInPowerMamaWinnie‚” De Lille tweeted.

Malema told this publication earlier‚ “She is coming as a speaker because she worked very close with uMama but she is not joining the EFF.”

De Lille thanked the EFF for inviting her to pay tribute to “our mother”.

She said Madikizela-Mandela “always spoke truth to power” to the previous and current regime.

“She spoke truth to power to the previous regime and she spoke truth to power to the current regime because the truth never changes,” she said.

De Lille lashed out at critics of the late struggle icon‚ saying: “They are the same critics who did not say anything during the struggle against apartheid … who are they to criticise our mother?”

Madikizela-Mandela‚ she said‚ “believed that the problems of our people knows no political affiliation … she was there for every one of the poor people”.

Sharing one of many memories of their time together‚ she described how under the leadership of former President Thabo Mbeki they had marched to demand anti-retroviral drugs.

The DA leader also spoke of the lessons she learned from the late struggle stalwart.

“You know what I learned from mam Winnie? That politics is not for sissies, that when you are in politics there’s no rules for men, there’s no rules for women. She played by the rules and she played the game better than most of them.”

“She wasn’t the kind of politician that when you hit on the one cheek, she gives the other cheek. She klapped you back,” De Lille added.

“I’ve lost a dear friend‚” she said. “She was not only the mother of the nation‚ she was the flower of the nation.”

“Hamba kahle our sister. Hamba kahle our mother …. May your soul rest in peace‚” she said.