Exciting times for Maimane

COME tomorrow, Mmusi Maimane will, in all likelihood, be elected the first black leader of the Democratic Alliance. He ran an impressive campaign and has clearly charmed scores of DA members and, more importantly, delegates who will vote at this weekend’s federal congress.

For Maimane this must be an exciting time, a grand opportunity – at only 35 – to lead South Africa’s most prominent and growing opposition party.

It goes without saying that for the DA this is also a significant moment in history.

The DA has come a long way from the days of Tony Leon’s “Fight Back” campaign.

Helen Zille did a phenomenal job in growing the DA at the polls and positioning it as a party able to govern.

In having a black leader, the DA hopes to be seen as a truly non-racial organisation which carries the hopes and aspirations of all South Africans.

Maimane’s campaign – and that of fellow competitor Wilmot James – has been centred around an elaborate narrative of non-racialism and creating an equal society for all South Africans.

In fact, during a television debate against James on Monday, Maimane won the hearts of many when he re- sponded to a question about whether he had the back of coloured voters in the Western Cape: “I have the back of all South Africans,” he said.

This is commendable, but Maimane’s challenges are far more complex than this.

Part of the DA’s difficulty in luring black voters from the ANC in the large numbers it hopes to – apart of course from voters’ sentimental attachment to the ruling party – is the perception that the DA caters only for white, middle-class interests.

We believe that this is because, whether the DA admits it or not, punting equal access to opportunities fails to take into account the South African reality of vast social inequality where black citizens are by default, economically on the backfoot.

This effectively means while giving equal access to opportunities is noble, it does not drastically transform our society and does not adequately address the deeply-rooted consequences of our past.

Instead, we believe it perpetuates the historical imbalances.

Maimane’s true test of leadership will not be to win the race over James.

It will be whether or not he is able to steer this ship to face the ugly realities created by our past and whether he can champion policies that can adequately address such inequalities.