CAPE TOWN, July 27 (ANA) – A motion of no confidence in Western Cape Premier Helen Zille that was tabled by the ANC, failed to carry on Thursday.
Instead, the legislature supported an amendment to the motion, put forward by Democratic Alliance chief whip Mark Wiley, which expressed full confidence in the embattled former DA leader.
DA provincial leader Bonginkosi Madikizela said the ANC was “running scared from their own debate”.
“The ANC Western Cape is in such a mess that they need President Zuma of all people to fix it… no wonder they have been out of power in Cape Town for 11 years.”
The ANC called for Zille’s resignation as premier after she triggered a storm with a fraught series of tweets asking whether the legacy of colonialism was purely negative.
The comments, as well as her subsequent attempts to explain them, prompted DA leader Mmusi Maimane to bring disciplinary charges against his former mentor and later announce her suspension.
The standoff was resolved and the charges dropped when Zille issued an unreserved apology and agreed that she would no longer comment on party policy.
But the ANC has maintained that her apology was not sincere and accused her of racism. The ANC leader of the opposition in the Khaya Magaxa argued that there was a risk that the province would become a weapon of a tug of war in the DA and therefore Zille had to be removed as premier.
On Thursday, the ANC’s Cameron Dugmore said Zille remained a conservative at heart and the colonialist divide continued to be felt in the Western Cape.
– African News Agency (ANA)
