File photo
Helen Zille slams DA under Maimane says party on a ‘slippery slope’ and charged her ‘because I’m not black’
Zille intends to fight the charges as far as she can.
File photo
The Western Cape may be facing a storm but the DA are in the midst of a political storm themselves, a very dangerous one at that. On Wednesday evening, the Democratic Alliance reannounced their decision to suspend Helen Zille after an embarrassing mix-up announcement over the weekend.
The original announcement was made without giving Zille the required (as per the DA’s constitution) 72 hours to present reasons why she should not be suspended. After her suspension was confirmed on Wednesday night, Zille released a page document that she had sent to the DA’s Federal Executive.
The document contains strong words against the DA under Maimane’s leadership and Maimane himself.
Zille says that white people are treated differently in the DA, even insisting that she was charged for her comments in part because she is white.
“Given that so many black South Africans have expressed exactly the same views on the legacy of colonialism as I have (only in more forceful terms) and given that the DA has never raised any concerns about these views, let alone repudiated them, and has no written policy on the matter, I drew the conclusion that a contributing reason to my being charged is the fact that I am not black. Other events of the past few months have led me and others to the conclusion that, in certain instances, DA members are treated differentially on the basis of race.”
Zille also made reference to her broken down relationship with Maimane. Accusing the party of disciplining anyone who has a different opinion to Maimane.
“If a person can be suspended for simply expressing a different view, in confidential conversations, to that of the leader, the DA is on a slippery slope, and no longer represents or upholds the values of freedom, fairness and opportunity. The consequences of this are dire in a political party.”
Zille has also accused the DA’s Federal Executive of using this situation as part of a “personal and vindictive campaign” against her. Zille’s hearing is set to take place this Friday.
