Lost and revised history of the DA, coming soon to a soapbox near you

For the next three months, the Democratic Alliance will be on a campaign to tell its "untold story". Despite attempts to sex it up, there is no hidden link between South Africa's official opposition and the Inca Empire, Steve Jobs or Muammar Gaddafi. It appears to be merely a pre-election refresher course on who the DA's leaders are and a bid to dispel perceptions that they were Apartheid enforcers. It also appears to be an endeavour to rustle up some struggle credentials and airbrush its history

At the launch of the "Our DA Campaign" in the Alexandra township in Gauteng on Saturday, Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille said her party "was and remains part of South Africa's struggle for freedom". "We are here to tell the untold story of the DA. It is a story about who we are, where we come from and where we are going. We want every South African to know this story.

"Like any political party, there are many strands to our history. But in recent years, the DA's strongest strand, the golden thread around which the party's tapestry has been woven for more than half a century, has somehow become obscured, even invisible," Zille said. She went on to say that the DA has allowed "our political opponents to define us"."When I travel around South Africa, it shocks me to hear that many people think the DA would bring back Apartheid if we won an election. There are a significant number of people who think the DA was responsible for Apartheid, and that Helen Suzman was a member of the ANC. I ask myself how we allowed these false perceptions to take root," Zille said.

Editor's Comment
Routine child vaccination imperative

The recent Vaccination Day in Motokwe, orchestrated through collaborative efforts between UNICEF, USAID, BRCS, and the Ministry of Health, underscores a commendable stride towards fortifying child health services.The painful reality as reflected by the Ministry of Health's data regarding the decline in routine immunisation coverage since the onset of the pandemic, is a cause for concern.It underscores the urgent need to address the...

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