DA guilty of excluding the very people it claims to serve
THE comments by DA provincial chairperson Haniff Hoosen that we deliberately avoided the reasons Jayraj Bachu was not chosen as our ward candidate deserve a response.
Hoosen is being frugal with the truth. He did not have the decency to inform our branch that Bachu was no longer the candidate for Ward 23 in last year’s local government elections, nor did he have the courtesy to tell us why Bachu was not selected.
If Hoosen had the courage of his convictions – and knowing that the aspirant candidate was going to be disqualified – why didn’t he follow elementary procedure and inform our branch of the DA’s intention?
The DA held a public meeting on June 9, 2016, at Resmount Primary School in Reservoir Hills to introduce Xolani Nala to the public and, at that meeting we tried to raise our concerns about not being informed about the new candidate and to elicit the reasons why Bachu had resigned, but we were not given the opportunity to speak. We were simply ignored.
This is how the DA treats its branch members. This is the kind of respect and recognition the DA has.
Since Bachu resigned from the DA, the party had over a month to choose another suitable candidate to represent the party in Ward 23.
The large majority of residents in Reservoir Hills and Clare Estate are Indians. Despite capable candidates living in the ward being available for selection, Nala, a political novice with no track record of community involvement and who was virtually unknown to the ratepayers of Reservoir Hills and Clare Estate, was parachuted in as a candidate.
Political expediency trumped merit to parade a black candidate so as to enamour the electorate under false pretences. So much for consultation, transparency and accountability.
It is becoming patently clear that loyalty, service and track record are not taken into account when members and officials are spat out like chewing gum at the slightest seeming transgressions. The case of Helen Zille is an example.
There was a time when throngs of DA supporters with stretched hands wanted to embrace and glorify Zille to gain some form of recognition. Where are they now? RAYMOND NAIDOO
Clare Estate