Patricia De Lille's resignation today a tipping point of a party in crisis

30 January 2017

The resignation of De Lille today as the DA's provincial leader is the tipping point of DA's contradictions that have played out since Helen Zille took over as the Leader of the Party and Premier of the Province.

For any woman leader, the expectation is always that they will appreciate that putting more woman in positions of power is the quickest way to empower women and its something all of us (women leaders especially) are expected to appreciate and work toward.

After the 2009 elections, Zille told us in no uncertain terms, with an all male provincial cabinet, that she is not aware of any great woman capable of leading (except herself of course). After a backlash, in her second term, she found two woman and began selling an idea of a 20% increase in gender representation in her cabinet. Deep down however, the actions had been forced on her. She still had a bone to pick with all the men who for too long did not think she had what it takes, and bringing another woman in the inner circle of leadership would dilute her crusade.

The pressure however to empower other woman, by a woman in power was a constant imperative she could not escape especially after the Cabinet blunder. The option was to find the so called non-threatening woman, capable just enough not to embarrassment her empowerment programme, but incapable of overshadowing her. Lindiwe Mazibuko was her first project. Lindiwe was your quintessential non-threatening woman, catapulted to positions of power both because she is a woman, and she is black, but she had not shown any signs of ambition or brilliance up to that point.

Here Zille miscalculated the fire that was burning inside Lindiwe. Lindiwe rose to prominence, confident, articulate, black, excellent, and Zille suddenly realized that Lindiwe was capable of reaching the kinds of heights only #BlackWomanExcellency could afford her in a black majority country and after a while, Zille would just be a has been, running a Province no body really cared about. Zille started to pull the robes, 'I made you, don't you ever forget it, she would say'. Zille continued to blame what she called Lindiwe's seemingly unquenchable thirst for power.

Today, we are back to where we were. By DA standards, De Lille has been a good Mayor and she has increased the DA's majority in the Cape Metro and Province, Provincial Leadership of the DA is literally begging her to come and expand her work. Again this is the road Zille herself took but De Lille is doing it in a manner that renders Zille's journey almost amateurish. De Lille is colored, in a 50% plus majority province, the heights she can reach are unimaginable.

The ultimate fear of the DA establishment however is that Western Cape is the DA's stronghold and base. Ideally it must remain in white hands otherwise success of colored will mean there will never be another white leader in the heart of the DA. Even more scary is that, this will leave only Trollip as a white Leader of any significant space of power and Nelson Mandela Bay is unlikely to stay in the DA hands too long. Without Zille, this will be an end of history.

The DA may think they are taking power from ANC, but they are giving it to black people and their sponsors cant stand it.

Issued by Khaya Magaxa, Acting Chairperson, ANC Western Cape, 30 January 2017