Luyolo Mphithi
The Democratic Alliance lost another black leader when Luyolo Mpithi resigned as the leader of DA Youth last week, but he will continue to be an MP.
This comes after another former youth leader and ally, Mbali Ntuli, resigned from the party in March after a tumultuous relationship with the party’s national leaders.
Mpithi was elected federal leader of the DA Youth in 2018, succeeding Yusuf Cassim.
During the party’s 2020 elections — after DA leader Mmusi Maimane resigned — Mpithi supported Ntuli against John Steenhuisen.
But Steenhuisen retained Mpithi in his cabinet after he was elected as DA Youth leader. Mpithi became the shadow minister of women, youth and persons with disabilities in the presidency.
Mpithi came under fire in the party when trade union Solidarity accused him of sowing racial divisions after he made comments on social media declaring that a photograph in 2019 showing black pupils sitting separately from their white classmates at Laerskool Schweizer-Reneke was a clear-cut case of racism.
News24 reported that Solidarity chief executive Dirk Hermann wrote to Maimane accusing Mphithi of having tweeted a photo of the grade R classroom, which later went viral, that implied the school segregated the children based on race, using nothing other than a photo of a single moment in the classroom to prove this. The photograph garnered outrage on social media with the Economic Freedom Fighters calling for the government to act.
Hermann demanded that Maimane reprimand Mphithi for defaming the teacher, Elana Barkhuizen, who had been suspended for taking the photographs.
Mpithi’s comments were later considered by some in the DA to have influenced the party’s loss in the 2019 elections.
In his resignation letter, seen by the Mail & Guardian, Mpithi said his term had come to an end and he believed it was the right time to focus on working in areas that will strengthen the DA in the run-up to the 2024 general elections.
“I believe my focus in areas like Soweto will be vitally important in growing the DA’s voter base. I am confident that the leaders and members who will come after us will continue to widen that space,” he said.
(John McCann/M&G)Mpithi said that during his term, DA Youth successfully partnered with the Programme for Young Politicians of Africa, where many youth leaders on various programmes were able to enhance their knowledge and skills. Mpithi said his term ensured that the DA Youth returned as a member organisation of the International Federation of Liberal Youth.
“It has been so important to work closely with the mother body structures to ensure that young people are at the front lines of party campaigns whether it was election 2019 or 2021. In [my] term of office, we have seen many young people enter these spaces. I wish all these young people tremendous success in their roles as they will be benchmarks for the next generation,” he said.
Mpithi also urged the party to think deeply about the future, adding that adequate support for youth leaders in provinces was needed to ensure that they successfully fulfill their duties according to the rules and guidelines of the DA youth.
“This is fundamentally important as many youth leaders are either students or unemployed and do not have the resources to perform their duties to the best of their abilities. This in turn will assist the structure with the retention of elected youth leaders. More attention needs to be placed on the synergy between DA Youth and DASO [Democratic Alliance Students Organisation] and we hope in the future this area will be prioritised.”
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