The Democratic Alliance (DA) in the Western Cape is marred with allegations of intimidation tactics in the run up to the Federal Congress taking place next week.
One of the candidates, Masizole Mnqasela, says he has laid a complaint with the party against the Western Cape Deputy Chairperson, Theuns Botha, who is allegedly using DA letterheads and attempting to force candidates to vote for and re-elect currently federal Chairperson Wilmot James.
DA leader, Helen Zille, has dismissed allegations of intimidation, saying there is nothing wrong with lobbying support via e-mails. Mnqasela will be Challenging Wilmot James for the position of federal chairperson in the upcoming Federal Council elections.
“My complaint is that delegates are now forced to vote for candidates that they would otherwise not have voted for, because of some people in senior positions in my party,” says Mnqasela .
When asked about the alleged intimidating behaviour in her party, during a media briefing, Helen Zille described it as an open contest and not intimidation.
“No one ever in the DA instructs anybody as to how to vote,” said Zille. “We have very tough lobbying we have very hard canvassing to vote in a particular way, which is part of an electoral process, but not one instructs anyone. You are allowed to go there you are allowed to make your cases.
While allegations of intimidation are making the rounds in the DA, the IS is in its final stage of political extinction. ID MP Joe Mcgluwa is currently the only ID member who is contesting the elections. He is one of the nine candidates who is contesting for one of the three Deputy Federal Chairperson positions.
McGluwa says there is no guarantee that ID MPs will return to Parliament as DA MPs after the 2014 general election. He says he has learnt that there is no free ride in the DA.
“No member is actually guaranteed to go back specifically when you are an ID Member of parliament. We will have an intense look at the track record of each member, they will go through all the similar processes of any DA MP.”
– By Mercedes Besent
