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Lincoln Machaba. (Lincoln Machaba, Twitter)
- Another DA leader has left the party to join Action SA.
- The president of the DA for Youth in Johannesburg said the party abandoned the principle of diversity and the project to be a serious competitor for the ANC.
- This, after the district attorney voted John Steenhuisen as party leader in his weekend congress.
Following the DA federal congress, a Johannesburg youth leader and councilor has become the latest party leader to leave Herman Mashaba’s Action SA.
In his resignation letter, Lincoln Machaba said it was clear that the party had abandoned the principle of diversity and the project of being a serious contender for the ANC.
Machaba said he made the decision after the election of John Steenhuisen in a landslide victory against Mbali Ntuli.
In a statement similar to that of former Gauteng leader John Moodey, who also left to join Mashaba, the former DA councilor and youth leader said the DA had gone from wanting to be a party that fights for all South Africans to one party. that he sympathized with a particular race.
He said he observed this during the EFF protests against the Clicks ad, where he said the district attorney ignored the fundamental point that the ad was wrong, but chose to focus on the “vandalism” of the EFF.
Machaba said:
But when it came to Senekel’s protests, they didn’t deal with [the] vandalism of protesters who destroyed a state vehicle. The district attorney ignored that and sympathized with the farmers. The DA has gone from being a reasonable center that can attract all people, to becoming a party that wants to change shape. It is no longer a home for [the] most of South Africa.
DA regional president and deputy Tsepo Mhlongo said the party wished Machaba the best. “He joined the party voluntarily and left voluntarily. People must appreciate when leaders are elected; if you did not support them, you must adopt the majority opinion,” he said.
Steenhuisen was elected by 80% of the party’s delegates this weekend.
Machaba told News24 that the district attorney was reverting to a time when Tony Leon was a leader and had no plans to expand his voter base. He added that while the party had strong social media policy, some leaders were not bound by party laws.
READ | John Moodey joins ActionSA from Mashaba
“I have decided to join Action SA as a member and volunteer, with a personal mission to help build the organization and ultimately rally the youth of South Africa behind the vision of Action SA. I am deeply moved by Action’s commitment. SA from being a home for the youth and it is already clear that the youth of South Africa are aligning themselves with Action SA.
“I fully believe that Acción SA is destined to become the political movement that young people have been waiting for, and [an] organization that will reflect the diversity of our country and challenge the ANC for power, rather than simply being in opposition for the good of the opposition, “he said.
Action SA spokesman Lerato Ngobeni said the party appreciated Machaba’s support.
“We have formed our own youth forum to help us think about the direction of our policy and the advancement of young people.”
She denied that the party was a spinoff from the DA, saying the fundamental difference was that Action SA recognized race and compensation.
“Action SA was not formed as part of a detraction by [the] DA, but the need to create an alternative towards a shared future ”, he said.
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