Maimane hits out at DA’s race card electioneering

‘Failure to see past race will be ANC’s saving grace’

The DA’s failure to see past race will be the ANC’s saving grace, Build One SA (Bosa) leader Mmusi Maimane says.

Maimane, a former leader of the DA, hit out at the official opposition party yesterday for using identity politics – in particular race – instead of providing a vision based on the shared interests of the country.

Numerous polls, including one by the ANC itself, show that the governing party will struggle to attain the 50% plus one it requires to govern.

But the party has gone all out, enlisting the services of its former leaders such as Thabo Mbeki, David Mabuza, Kgalema Motlanthe and Baleka Mbete, among others.

The DA, together with new political parties like Good and the Patriotic Alliance, are in a serious competition for the coloured vote in the Western Cape ahead of the national and provincial elections on May 29.

“Parties are interested in consolidating constituencies on biological issues. Identity politics is not ideal. It is in the interest of SA that there be shared interests,” Maimane said in an interview with Sowetan’s sister publication Business Day.

The DA is campaigning on a “rescue South Africa platform’ in a bid to get the party’s traditional white voters out on election day. It recently published a controversial election advertisement on national television of a burning SA flag, a move widely castigated by other political parties and analysts.

President Cyril Ramaphosa referred to the advert as treasonous.

“Some are burning flags in their adverts and others are telling falsehoods about their 30-year tenure in government.

“It is more of the same predictable behaviour from the old parties, without a single new idea or credible vision for SA,” Maimane said.

“This is further evidenced by the fact that ethno-nationalist parties are all on the rise.”

Maimane, who unseated the ANC in the Joburg and Tshwane metros through DA-led opposition party coalitions after the 2016 local government elections, was shown the door by SA’s official opposition in 2021 after the party lost some of its traditional support to smaller opposition parties.

He is now contesting the May 29 general election as leader of Bosa.

While critical of opposition political parties for not providing an alternative vision for South Africa, Maimane acknowledged that should the ANC fail to win a majority in the national and provincial polls, his party would lend its support to a DA-led coalition.

“2024 is not 1994. It could be a second transition. We cannot coalesce on corruption or colour. We need a grand coalition of the opposition,” he said.

On possible coalition talks post elections, he said political parties are going to try to win “in the boardroom” what they have not won on the streets.