I'M NO HILLARY'
Natalie Maimane on life with the DA leader
NATALIE Maimane likes to joke that her husband, Mmusi, does not have a walk-in cupboard but a “walk-on cupboard”, as his quick outfit changes apparently leave little time for tidying his clothes away.
“He’s very often in and out, so wardrobe changes happen in a short amount of time — so he definitely has this walk-on closet going,” she said.
Natalie, whose husband is the newly elected leader of the DA, is becoming accustomed to the whirlwind around Mmusi, whether it is his crazy schedules and the trail of clothes on the floor, or the intense scrutiny of his private life.
Three political campaigns, first for mayor, then for Gauteng premier and finally for DA leader, have left her well prepared.
And while a storm surrounded his most recent leadership battle — with an inside e-mail alleging sexual scandal in the DA and then questions over his beliefs on gay marriage — Natalie said it was not “as bad as it looked from the outside”.
“As campaigns go, it was probably one of the easier ones and I think it wasn’t as bad as what it looked because it was something I’d become used to.”
A former high school history and English teacher, she took the decision to be a stay-athome mother to their children, Kgalaletso, 4, and Daniel, 2.
She does not believe she will go back to teaching as she wants to give her children stability while her husband works.
She has learnt some relationship lessons from earlier campaigns.
“You have to be disciplined about being on the same page. Because there is a lot of insecurity that comes in at campaign time because you are not together all the time and you need that continuous contact,” she said.
It was this approach that stood the couple in good stead when the sexual allegations were made.
Mmusi told her about the e-mail before it was made public.
“Because I know my husband, the characteristics used to describe him are just so far from who he is that I could just look at it and go: ‘It’s not true.’ ”
Despite an interest in politics, especially from a social justice perspective, she has no plans to pull a Hillary Clinton and enter politics.
Acknowledging the deep public interest in her and her marriage, “the public eye is not my happy space”, she said.
But the couple discussed this before Mmusi decided to run for DA leader and she is trying to be more accepting of her role.
“One of the things was the idea of me being more in the public eye but to do that on our own terms — to not be at the mercy of the media but to open yourself up to a bit more engagement with the public, because otherwise you create a kind of converse ‘She’s so mysterious, who is she?’ And suddenly there is this ridiculous interest.”
A high profile in the family church has also given her experience.
“There are some correlations between heading up a church-
The public eye is not my happy space
type organisation, where your family is in the spotlight in the community and a lot of people have a lot to say about the way you do things,” she said.
She said the children had no idea what their father did.
They live in Johannesburg, and Mmusi commutes between Cape Town and home. They usually see him only at weekends.
“When dad walks in the door, the whole world stops. He’s the awesomest,” she said.
For Kgalaletso, this means being close to her dad. For Daniel, his roaring partner is back.
“My son thinks he’s a dinosaur, and he’ll tell my husband: ‘Come and roar with me.’ And they just roar at one another.”