When British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan warned the South African parliament in February 1960 that the “wind of change” was sweeping across Africa, it signalled that the past was over and independence for the colonies was coming.

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There was a wind of change blowing through the DA’s federal congress in Midrand over the weekend – but how forceful you view it depends on your political sympathies.

DA insiders will point to the fact that Helen Zille has come to the end of her party leadership road and will be focusing on her campaign to be mayor of Joburg.

The “new guard” chosen to sit in the party’s top leadership positions is – DA supporters will tell you – all, bar one person, under the age of 45. And that truly is something to be appreciated in our South African gerontocracy, where ANC Youth League leaders, for example, will seldom see 40 again…

However, the reality is that youth won’t matter if it does not mobilise to help your party throw off the albatross around its neck – the fact that it is seen, rightly, or wrongly, by many black people, as a party run by whites, for whites.

DA leaders have, for many years, expended much energy trying to counter that perception, but they need to acknowledge that it is still very real.

It will help having the affable Solly Msimanga as federal chair, but the fact remains the party hasn’t had a black leader since Mmusi Maimane, who was blamed by the white hierarchy for losing voters.

Also, the DA will gain little support from those worried that it is loathe to criticise Israel, or Zionism, the same way it lays into the ANC.

Zille, though, believes the “Blue Machine” is raring to go. We’ll see if that’s the case later this year in the local government polls.

Read full story at source

Read full story at source