Transformation not priority

IS the DA a party to be trusted with the transformation agenda and reversal of the imbalances of the past? From its inception it has never committed itself to the total liberation of the disenfranchised, but to reforms. Reform and liberation are not synonymous. It is precisely the reason that its members were never humiliated by the apartheid forces and suffered atrocities of any kind compared to those that were committed to the liberation struggle. Since the election campaign started the DA has been presenting itself to the electorate as a party that can take South Africa to better heights. In its attempts to gain support from the youth across the racial divide it is riding on the "born free" discourse without unpacking as to what it entails. The born free discourse is referred to those born after 1994 and as a category that has no direct encounter of the apartheid policies. It is a group that is targeted by all political parties to woo their support and it is largely found in institutions of higher learning. But the DA as a proponent of the "born frees" is not telling them conveniently that the reason they reside in ghettos and study under squalid conditions is a reflection of the fact that the wealth of the country is still under the control of the previously advantaged groups. Whites who belong to the "born free" category are fetched by their parents from schools while black pupils have to ride on taxis and buses to attend classes. The ANC has its own share of challenges which we know, but is priding itself on its ability continuously to adapt and survive in different conditions. Some of the challenges facing the organisation are not necessarily its own creation, but it had to perform in a terrain it did not construct. I dare say it is still a relevant and progressive force. The DA has an important role to play in South Africa, but it cannot be trusted with the task of reversing the imbalances of the past. Interestingly in the Western Cape, where it governs, it is carrying on with a strange service delivery practice of providing containers to the poorest to use as toilets. Is that a reform or liberation? Mpumezo Ralo, Port Elizabeth.