Seale confirms ANC won't win the Western Cape

Mr Wesley Seale, who co-ordinates ANC research and policy development for the Western Cape, responded to my article, "Why the ANC won't win the Western Cape' by ignoring every argument I advanced and launching a personal attack on me and the DA. In so doing, he actually confirmed my view about the dismal prospects of the ANC there.

In his important position in the ANC, Mr Seale no doubt writes the speeches for his leaders, Marius Fransman and Tony Ehrenreich. One can only sympathise: anyone who has to deal with the peculiar views of those two gentlemen on a daily basis must end up a little confused.

In his response to me, entitled "And this is why the DA won't win South Africa," there is not even one sentence that pretends to show that the ANC can succeed in its declared aim of "liberating" the Western Cape. All he does is to explain his view of why the DA won the Western Cape, its municipalities all over the province and the City of Cape Town.

He is stuck in a propagandist version of the past - surprising in such a young and intelligent person.

Mr Seale cannot understand someone like me calling myself an African. He falls back on semantics and outdated definitions. Is he an African? I am. Whether he likes it or not there are many South Africans of all colours, religions, languages, opinions, political loyalties, who do not see ourselves or other citizens primarily in terms of race.

This no longer suits the ANC. As it starts the long descent from power, as inevitably happens to governing parties in democracies, the ANC's main claim is a black nationalist one: "We deserve to rule; we are black and you are not black enough or black at all."

By a mental contortion, Mr Seale confuses history by implying that the "Fight Back" campaign of 1999 led "progressives" such as Mr Marthinus van Schalkwyk to join the ANC. The truth is somewhat more tawdry. "Fight Back" destroyed the National Party and it amalgamated with the DP to form the DA.

Some of Mr van Schalkwyk's friends tried to white-ant the DA from within by signing up thousands of questionable and fraudulent membership application forms so that they could take over the new party.

Fortunately, some of us had experience of dealing with rogues and when a stop was put to that effort, it was not long before the so-called "progressives" joined the ANC in return for jobs and other rewards, with the dregs of the Apartheid party and the then non-racial ANC falling in love and getting married.

Mr Seale signally fails to deal with the crux of my argument. That is that the ANC has forgotten about the wonderful provisions of our constitution where we all undertook to:

Recognise the injustices of our past;

Honour those who suffered for justice and freedom in our land;

Respect those who have worked to build and develop our country; and

Believe that South Africa belongs to all who live in it, united in our diversity.

A simple question needs to be answered. Does the ANC of today still share those sentiments? Another question is: Does the ANC of today accept that government is based on the will of the people who have the right to elect the ANC and to unelect it; just as they have the right to elect the DA and unelect it in due course?

President Jacob Zuma stated that the ANC has the "right to rule" because of its liberation credentials. He and others talked about "liberating" the Western Cape, totally forgetting that the people of that province and many of the municipalities experienced ANC "liberation" some time ago and rejected it in favour of better government by the DA.

Mr Ehrenreich, the leader of the opposition in Cape Town, a big figure therefore in the ANC, consistently makes inflammatory and mean statements of a racist nature, bringing his party into disrepute. One wonders if Mr Seale writes those press releases for him. He was recently in effect repudiated by people of the stature of former President Kgalema Motlanthe and that Grand Old Man, Mr Ahmed Kathrada.

One notes, however, that he has never been repudiated either by his immediate leader, Mr Fransman, or by President Zuma, or even by Mr Gwede Mantashe. To be fair, though, Mr Ehrenreich (and his spin doctors) might be regarded by the latter two as being too junior to merit being taken seriously by big men like themselves. Unfortunately for the ANC and its prospects in the Western Cape, the voters have no option but to take Mr Ehrenreich seriously - after all, he is an important leader.

Mr Seale has forgotten the Ehrenreich promise that if the ANC came into power in the Western Cape, fifty per cent of the white government officials would be fired and replaced by affirmative action appointees. No mention of the law; of fairness; of merit; or of good government. A racist approach, without a doubt.

Those politicians and parties that seek to unite and not divide will in due time reap the reward. It is surely time for us to forget the divisive tactics and focus on good things like the glory of our diversity. Time also to unite in the belief that we are all equal and all entitled to live here and flourish here as unique individuals with a contribution to make to South Africa in return for the advantages we enjoy as citizens of this wonderful land.

Douglas Gibson is a former chief whip of the Opposition and a former ambassador to Thailand

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