Zille elected DA Federal Chair
The DA’s newly appointed federal chair, Helen Zille believes that “Race” is a red herring on many issues. She has elaborated that for her, “the most important policy is that we (DA) shouldn't get bogged down in race. For as long as we only ever talk about race for so long, we won't talk about things that are really critical and how we get people into jobs.”
Those comments reveal the long held view that the DA is a party that panders to white supremacy and white privilege. Although the party, and in particular its Leader, Musi Maimane, was steering the party towards attracting more black supporters, its indecision on the direction of the party ,where some leaders were yearning for it to return to its pure liberal values, while others preferred a more progressive liberal approach, was a conflicted one. Zille has courted much controversy over her comments which became progressively more conservative and earned her the support from those who favoured liberalism based “not on race, but on individual rights and competence’.
Under her watch, the party will most likely focus on protecting white privilege and slowly abandon its need to attract more black South Africans.
