The EFF is not going to Senekal for war but if the trip to the Free State town results in one then “so be it”, party leader Julius Malema has said.

Malema was speaking on Thursday during an interview with Newzroom Afrika's Xoli Mngambi on the EFF's planned gathering outside court in Senekal on Friday.

Responding to a comment made by former president Kgalema Motlanthe who warned that more friction in the town of Senekal could lead to a civil war, Malema said: “So be it.”

“So we really are not going to Senekal to sympathise with a thug, we are going to Senekal to protect our democracy, our constitution which is under threat by racist terrorist farmers who go and attack a court of law, storm a court of law and a police station and chase police around. That’s a declaration of war against the state,” Malema said.

The EFF is planning to gather in the town marred by racial tensions after the killing of a farm manager. In protest, farmers in the area stormed the court where the suspects were appearing, overturning and setting alight a police vehicle.

Clashes are expected in the town after both farmers and some EFF leaders and members posted on social media their preparations for tomorrow which included the polishing of guns. Malema said the farmers had directly threatened the judiciary and that the EFF would be exercising their constitutional rights by using their bodies to defend the court.

“The judiciary as an independent arm of the state cannot be put under threat with guns directed at [the] judiciary. Once you do that you are threatening the constitution.

“People fight in court, people beat each other in court, it is two individuals of different factions confronting one another, it’s a heated space, we understand that, but you cannot discharge a firearm in the corridors of judiciary and threaten directly the judiciary and say to the judiciary 'bring this person to us, we want to finish off this person' and when the judiciary says 'he must go back to the cells', you follow him to the cells against the wishes of the judiciary,” he said.

Malema said he would be leading from the front tomorrow and that they would defend themselves against the farmers in a similar way black people defended themselves against apartheid.

“Why should we be scared of retired soldiers when we were not scared of them when they were soldiers when they legitimately carried guns to kill black people. We confronted them with stones. Let history repeat itself. Let us confront the same people our parents confronted, if that is going to be the case, let it be,” Malema said.

“We are not going to live in fear because we think white farmers are former generals. They can go to hell. Murderous generals.”

Meanwhile, a large group of congregants and residents gathered at the Senekal showgrounds on Wednesday afternoon for a prayer meeting.

Those in attendance were asked to pray for 10 minutes.