DA infighting is not about race, analysts say

The infighting among Democratic Alliance (DA) senior leaders has more to do with the party’s dismal electoral performance and failure to satisfy the aspirations of its black constituency than race, analysts say.

Political analyst Daniel Silke said the DA was dealing with the consequences of its poor electoral showing, which had heightened tensions among factions of the party.

Some DA members have blamed party leader Mmusi Maimane for the poor results, but others have defended him and said they believed he was being pushed out because he was black.

Silke said: “The infighting has nothing to do with [race].

“It is the leadership and/or the party’s policies that are seen as a problem.”

According to Silke, the May election results and by-elections outcomes had exposed the factionalism under the surface in the party. He said leaders become scapegoats when a party loses.

“The DA’s poor performance in the elections disappointed many because it has never happened before,” Silke added.

Political economy analyst Zamikhaya Maseti said the DA’s top brass did not like the May electoral outcome, so they wanted to ditch Maimane.

“It must be pointed out, though, that the DA’s current political and ideological crisis did not start with Maimane and will not end with his removal as its leader.

“It originates from the DA’s disarticulation of black people’s hopes and aspirations, failure to retain them and the DA’s inability to readapt its strategy. Therefore, whoever the DA chooses to replace Maimane will still be confronted by the same strategic and tactical dilemmas.”

Silke said the DA’s Joburg mayor, Herman Mashaba, had given the impression race was behind the ongoing spat among party leaders.

Mashaba suggested the DA had been captured by the Institute of Race Relations (IRR), a research institute with historic links to the opposition party.

Recently, IRR campaigns coordinator Hermann Pretorius said Western Cape premier Alan Winde should replace Maimane as DA leader, which did not go down well with Mashaba.

Observers said the DA could not afford to annoy Mashaba as he led a crucial metro.

Silke added that as the DA had become a broad church party, it was bound to encounter problems.

“The DA does not have a proper mechanism to manage the dynamics caused by being a broad church,” he said.

– ericn@citizen.co.za

For more news your way, download The Citizen’s app for iOS and Android.