RACIST DA IS TRYING TO DIVIDE BLACKS AND COLOUREDS IN BITOU
I always shake my head in disbelief when Blacks appear on TV next to Helen Zille, nodding in approval, when she claims that the DA is the most non-racial party in the country. I always regard those people as either less informed or willing participants in the DA lies. Anyway, here is my story and the DA is challenged to prove it wrong.
The outcomes of the 2011 Local Government elections left the DA and the ANC with equal seats in the Bitou Local Council. And COPE, with one seat, became the kingmaker. The national leadership of COPE decided to form a coalition with DA. So, Bitou fell under the DA/COPE coalition.
Their relationship became rocky from early days as the DA started with its bullying tactics. Cope remained in the coalition notwithstanding bad treatment from the DA. But then the DA changed tactic. They wanted outright majority in the council to render COPE an insignificant partner.
The DA approached then ANC councillor of Ward 4 with an offer of a job in the municipality if he resigned his position to cause a by-election. That former ANC councillor obliged and was employed within weeks of his resignation. I assumed that the DA chose that Ward because the ANC won it marginally in 2011.
Ward 4, with a split Voting District (VD), is predominantly a New Horizon ward. New Horizon is a historically Coloured township. There is a compound (or hostel) on the North Eastern part of New Horizon. As with all hostels in South Africa, this one is mostly populated by Blacks. But thanks to the ANC, the hostel was modernised into family units. Abutting on the Eastern side is Gaaitjie, which had until recently been a shanty area, courtesy of apartheid settlement policies. As usual, only Blacks live in it. All these form one VD.
The split VD is a small portion of Kwanokuthula, a township of Black people. New Horizon and Kwanokuthula is less than a kilometre from each other even though the two are divided by the national road, (N2).
The DA summoned big guns, including Helen Zille to garner votes for the DA and she reiterated their intention to have outright majority in the council, and get rid of the COPE yoke. The by-election was held on August 7, 2013, and the day did not go without some interesting developments. There are no White people ordinarily residing in that Ward but a number of Whites arrived, went to the DA table to record their presence and voted.
Despite this and fierce campaigning that took place towards the by-elections, the ANC retained the Ward. The use of chequebook politics by the DA backfired because they could not wrestle the Ward from the ANC. The ANC's good showing made the DA to activate Plan B, viz. divide the races and rule.
The DA, led by the town's mayor, Mr Memory Booysen organised an open meeting in New Horizon on Monday, August 19, 2013 to seek a mandate to approach the Demarcation Board with a request that the boundaries of Ward 4 be redrawn in order to do away with a split VD. They also wanted that the hostel and Gaaitje areas be removed from New Horizon. In effect they wanted the Ward to remain Coloured area because they believe that in doing so, they will win the Ward. Booysen told the Coloured community of New Horizon that they would be better served as Coloureds and not mixed with Blacks.
The DA says because Kwanokuthula is on the other side of N2, people of New Horizon must demand that the road be a boundary. They also say Saringa Road in New Horizon be the boundary on the north eastern side of New Horizon thereby pushing the hostel and Gaaitje out.
It is however of interest to note the following - a) there is a Valley dividing hostel and Gaaitje from Ward 3, under which the two would fall. Ward 3 is Qolweni, a Black shack area currently going through development which development was initiated by the ANC despite the DA fighting that those people be removed to Kwanokuthula; b) Ward 4 would be reduced by almost 40%, thereby making is uneven with the rest of the Wards in the municipality; c) Ward 1 has six pockets of residential areas divided by three rivers, N2, mountains and natural forests, and stretches for about 20km. The only area within that ward that with a sizable number of Blacks has always been voting for the DA, even when the ANC won the overall votes in it. So, the presence of Blacks in that ward doesn't threaten the White/Coloured complexion the DA is keen to protect. There are no proposal to redraw the boundaries of this ward.
The question therefore is, why is DA so determined to push for new boundaries of Ward 4 despite being aware that such proposal if submitted to the Demarcation Board will not make sense and it would be fiercely challenged? Other than the DA has already made clear that they want Ward 4 to be the ward for Coloureds, maybe the part of the answer lies in what Booysen said after the 2011 elections.
Booysen contested a ward in Kwanokuthula which he had comfortably retained during a violence filled by-election of 2007 after he was dismissed from the ANC. It was his showing at that by-election that made the DA to believe that Booysen would deliver Black voters to the party. However, the local government elections of 2011 were free from violence and intimidation fuelled and funded by DA in 2007. The people voted with their hearts and minds, and not through fear. Booysen lost dismally. He however made it to the council because he was place top of the DA party list.
Because of his anger, he then told the people of Kwanokuthula that his obligations were with the White community because they are the ones that voted for the DA. It was therefore not surprising that millions that were budgeted for development in Kwanokuthula were not used for the past two years since the DA came into power. Kwanokuthula is being punished for not voting for the Black face in the DA. The DA has gone for a broke. They want to teach Blacks in this town that it is wrong not to vote for the DA. But above all, it is a cardinal sin not to be Coloured or White unless you are prepared to dance to the tune of the White master.
But the community of Ward 4 rejected the narrow racist interests of the DA. They voted for their hopes. The community in Ward 4 know that the DA provincial government was vehemently opposed to the main library of the town being built in New Horizon. The DA insisted that the children of New Horizon must take taxis and go to the CBD if they need books that are not in the small library that was in that township. The ANC council faced threats by the DA provincial government to stop the project, but was never intimidated and the library was built and the DA claims that as its delivery record.
The people in New Horizon know that substantive and life changing projects were undertaken every year when the ANC was in power. The people of New Horizon never had problems with the split VD as they are committed to integration of our community. And they showed this in their vote for the ANC.
The DA is a racist party that promotes the interests of Whites and Whites only; and uses other races as its political step ladder. It's unfortunate that some people allow themselves to be used for the racist policies of the DA.
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