ANC Chief Whip on Zille and Mnqasela's public spat

The contradictions in the DA are very interesting - as always. There is a lot more going on behind the scenes of the DA with Lindiwe Mazibuko's campaign. It is beyond just a mere election of a parliamentary leader in the DA.

The DA has a challenge of managing contradictions within itself. Its leader, Helen Zille, has embarked on a massive recruitment drive, targeting black voters - and one thing she forgot: membership come with diverse views. Hence the DA must be able to come up with a strategy to manage those diverse views.

It's so ridiculous that the DA aims to imitate whatever the ANC does, like their songs, history of the ANC and slogans. Unfortunately, the DA is not the ANC and it will never be the ANC. The shortcoming of Zille is that she is seen (even among her own) to be the biggest manipulator with strong features of a dictator-styled leadership hiding behind the so-called rainbow party.

I am not surprised that at last DA Member of Parliament Masizole Mnqasela (who criticised Zille for running the DA like a spaza [township] shop) has seen the light. He is now able to separate politics of desperation and moral values / principles.

The DA will never transform. Instead it will only change its colours as a party.

Zille is compared amongst her party ranks to a tyrant of sorts who likes to have her fingers everywhere. We have seen that in the City of Cape Town where she was remote controlling everything from Wale Street and poor (former mayor) Dan Plato had to carry those instructions irrespective of Mayco's (mayoral committee) position.

The fact is Mnqasela is the product of the ANC who happened to be hungry and desperate for power. Now he finds himself in the DA, a party he hoped to be an answer to South African politics.

I personally feel sorry for him because politics of desperation do not last and this is what Zille is doing to him because he has worked so hard in Khayelitsha to confuse people by preaching DA policies. And now, this is the reward for him...

I once said in council, the DA is characterised and possessed by a strong evil spirit and satanism. In the DA, there is what is called social democrats and a strong presence of liberals (English libertarians) with another faction that do not subscribe to any of the two.

The DA's existence is coming to an end. Watch the space! We must expect sharp contradictions as we approach 2014's national elections.

In the last council meeting, I have raised an issue about the fallout which is imminent in the DA... And I know that people who are ignorant will dismiss my views, but the reality is that the DA can't manage its contradictions and its leader does not have the capability to do that.

I can only assume that the reason why Zille compares Mnqasela with Verwoerd, she does not want to accept an opposing view and she strongly believes that Mnqasela owes her because she defended him during his recently rape case where he was found innocent.

The DA members must watch out for this lady, she happened to be a media darling and that's how she built her party and perceptions in politics.

The Masizole saga is nothing! In the City of Cape Town the battle lines between (mayor Patricia) De Lille and (her deputy) Ian Nielson are drawn. In fact, Nielson is fighting for his political space and De Lille is advancing a social democratic course.

The second in charge in the City of Cape Town is Brett Heron not Ian Nielson. Nielson happened to be in Zille's liberal faction and it is under siege from the old ID faction in council.

I will also wait with interest on how Zille is going to respond/react to that situation. There are serious tensions in the DA. These two ladies are also always sugar-coating the truth.

My advice to Masizole, come back home - home will always be home. We are not going to remind you about your past wrong doings.  

With all that is happening now in the DA, where is the authority of their so-called federal council? This autocratic lady is running her show in the DA. There is no collective leadership there.

The ANC's Max Ozynsky is right to question on how do you call yourself a leader of the opposition, but you are not in national parliament on the national platform or forum for serious politics?

I bet my last dollar, the majority of those who voted last week in parliament for Zille's anointed candidate Mazibuko did not follow their hearts, but followed instructions of a person who rules highhandedly from an ivory tower. It's all about power against money! There was a lot at stake for them.

A showdown between Zille and De Lille is imminent!!

Statement issued by Xolani Sotashe, ANC Chief Whip in the City of Cape Town, November 1 2011

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