Alliance just a bid for more power

THE collapse of the celebrated and much talked about DA-Agang SA brief political fling lifts the lid off the recent elitist attempt to hoodwink voters into accepting a coalition masquerading as a political partnership while it was just a political tryst between two friends. We know now how Mamphela Ramphele came close to having her face next to the DA logo on the ballot paper was through the individualistic parachuting by Helen Zille and nothing democratic.

It is clear now that none of the very few members of Agang were consulted about this partnership, and yet both Ramphele and Zille punted it as a merger to improve our democracy when in fact both had diametrically opposed ideas about it. Ramphele thought it was a political coalition while Zille saw it as a merger, with Lindiwe Mazibuko boldly saying it would see the DA swallowing Agang SA the way it did the Independent Democrats.

The DA hooked the politically wet behind the ears Ramphele to aid its ailing election campaign.

While trying to clean up her mess, Zille made some clumsy remarks that the political fling with the Agang was an attempt to save our country from being a failed state under the ANC. These are misinformed lamentations of an angry jilted political loser the morning after being dumped by her vacillating kissing partner.

It is false that our country is likely to be a failed state under the ANC leadership because since 1994 we started transforming a fractured, divided society, improved a dull economy, we are delivering impressive services to our people, moving beyond the challenges we experience in governance, created more jobs, delivered more professional graduates through giving bursaries to the youth, delivered more water, sanitation, schools, homes, roads and health care to our people.

South Africa will only become a failed state the day the DA will rule this country.

The DA and Agang SA's brief political fling was induced by Zille's political lust to swallow up opposition political parties and to recruit any person just to get power. These opposition parties have nothing to offer the voters and the only thing they all have in common is to try to discredit the ANC in their bid to win votes.

Their "one night stand" had nothing to offer the electorate, and we call on South Africans never to trust opposition parties and their narrow coalitions formed out of anger and political lust for votes. We trust that this brief fling and how these parties did not consult members of these organisations before their political tryst proves to the voters that in these parties decisions are not taken democratically but by a group of elite friends in boardrooms and tea parties.

The end of this brief political tryst also proves that these parties are led by two incompetent, power-hungry people who go around hunting votes to gain power at all costs, who have no abilities to transform and develop this country. Just before Zille and Ramphele locked lips in the glare of the media, the Agang boss said her decision was inspired by Nelson Mandela's decision to engage the apartheid government to start negotiations for a democratic country.

On the other hand, a glowing Zille spoke highly of her newly found political paramour, her credentials and capabilities but within no time, she tells South Africans she can't be trusted.

The pair is clearly at sixes and sevens about how they want to contest the upcoming elections with no plan to offer. This is caused by the fact that Zille is looking for a black person to win black votes in the elections while Ramphele is looking for a comfortable seat in parliament.

In the DA there is no credible person to stand as a presidential candidate to a point that Zille had to poach a leader of another party to stand for this position. Both organisations have nothing cogent to offer to the electorate to a point that they think of coming together but again, they realise they are not suitable for each other.

This was just a political stunt and nothing else because personal interests and lust for political power were pursued here and were not advancing our democracy.

Mlibo Qoboshiyane, ANC EC head of elections, PEC and PWC member, and the EC local government and traditional affairs MEC