After taking over the leadership of the New National Party, Marthinus van Schalkwyk developed a reputation for pragmatism and common sense. He saved his dying party by taking it into the Democratic Alliance. He also accepted, apparently without complaint, the necessity for Tony Leon who was the strength behind the Democratic Party’s phenomenal increase in support in the 1999 election to remain as leader of the DA when the parties merged.
Recently, however, his good sense deserted him when he staked his political future on a man whose time has passed. His arguments for doing so contain so little substance that I cannot imagine he actually believes them himself. He has argued that Leon’s request to Peter Marais contravened the principles of “fair play” and “due process”. But Marais’s position is a political one. His job is to act in the best interests of the party he represents and to carry out its policies and objectives. If he does not do so, he must go.
There has already been “due process” in the form of the Heath investigation, which found him guilty of misconduct. Under these circumstances the DA leadership has every right to request his resignation. Indeed, had they not done so, I would have considered it to be an insult to the intelligence of their voters. Robert Cage, Simon’s Town