The deputy leader of the Democratic Alliance (DA) in the Western Cape, Hennie Bester, has quit active politics.
He announced his decision on Wednesday afternoon, after the latest round of damaging revelations at the Desai Commission.
Outlining the reasons for his decision, he said he entered politics because he wanted to make a difference in people’s lives and to serve in an accountable manner.
”Events in Western Cape politics over the past 12 months have made it near impossible for me to live up to this goal. Politics in the Western Cape is now being conducted in a manner that I’m no longer willing to participate in,” he said.
Bester said he had the greatest admiration for DA leader Tony Leon and would remain a member of the party.
He said he would continue to give the Desai Commission his full co-operation and hoped that it would bring out an independent and unbiased report.
Bester is leader of the official opposition in the provincial legislature. He said his resignation from the legislature would take effect at the end of June.
The commission was told by fugitive German businessman Jurgen Harksen that he (Harksen) donated more than a million rand to the DA.
On Wednesday morning a senior Absa official, Erik Marais, told the commission that he (Marais) laundered 90 000 Deutschmarks, given to the DA by an unnamed donor, for the party.
Bester told the commission last week that he once discussed with provincial DA leader Gerald Morkel and then-finance MEC Leon Markovitz whether the party should take money from Harksen.
Bester, who is a lawyer by training and served as provincial community safety MEC until the end of last year, said he had strongly opposed the idea.
He has consistently said he was unaware of any donations by Harksen to the party.
DA leader Tony Leon called Bester’s decision to quit active politics at this time a tragedy.
”It is with deep regret that I was advised by Hennie Bester of his retirement from active politics,” Leon said.
”Hennie is a friend and a committed South African. It is a tragedy that someone of his enormous ability and youthful patriotism and great decency should feel it necessary to withdraw from public life at this time.
”His decision is perhaps a reflection on how politics is practised, particularly in the Western Cape,” Leon said.
Meanwhile, the ANC in the Western Cape released a statement welcoming Bester’s resignation, saying the announcement ”is indeed the first indication of an admission that the DA is in deep trouble”.
”It is also a vote of confidence in the work of the Desai Commission which was attacked by the national leadership of the DA,” read the statement.
New National Party (NNP) executive director Renier Schoeman said Bester’s resignation could be seen as ”an admission of guilt… Mr Bester is intelligent enough to realise that the DA is a fast sinking ship, and the time has come to jump”.
”Mr Bester was the DA’s crown prince, and was groomed to take over from Mr Leon.”
Schoeman said Bester’s resignation illustrated a leadership vacuum in the DA in dealing with the Harksen/DA scandal, instead of DA leader Leon taking decisive action and ”coming clean”. -Sapa