We have come to know dear Julius for ridiculous public outbursts and saying outrageous things, but in recent times he has been uncharacteristically patient and calm. He insists this is the real him, and that he has never had anger issues.

Ok, Juju, we may buy that you are a changed man and that leadership of your own party has brought out a sense of clarity and thinking before you act, but it would be pushing the bounds of the truth a little bit to say you have never lost your temper.

“I’ve never lost my temper,” he says flatly in an interview with the Mail & Guardian this week. “I dealt with a white BBC journalist. That was not a reflection of a person who loses a temper. It was one incident. Why? He was displaying the mentality of a white supremacist.”

Reports at the time described Malema as remorseful, and well aware he had gone too far.

His then elders in the ANC also thought he had issues when he criticised party president Jacob Zuma. He was ordered by the ANC, in the person of secretary general Gwede Mantashe, to apologise and go for anger management classes.

He apologised at the time, but now his narrative appears to have changed. “I’ve never had a temper problem. I’ve never gone to those things Gwede wanted to take me to anger management what what.”[…]

Has he managed to get his anger under control?

“If you sit with me at a personal level, you are going to kiss me on my forehead. You will say: ‘This is not the person we are always told about, [that] he is a monster, and he is going to be Hitler’. I’m the sweetest guy. I’m the coolest guy.”

Again, kissing on the forehead is perhaps a bit of a push, but good on you for finding your inner zen. Juju’s party, however, seems to have inherited his hot-headed nature with recent riotous behaviour seeing them facing potential lawsuits for damage to property. Only time will really tell what has happened to Juju’s temper but for now, he seems a transformed, patient and thoughtful leader.

Check out more on the EFF and Julius’ new-found calm at Mail & Guardian.