Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Tony Leon met South African President Thabo Mbeki on Thursday ahead of bowing out as official opposition leader on Sunday.
In a statement, Leon’s office said: ”This morning DA leader Tony Leon met President Thabo Mbeki at the Union Buildings in Pretoria.”
Leon’s spokesperson, Martin Slabbert, said it was a chance to ”say goodbye” but it had been a private meeting.
The election of Leon’s successor takes place on Sunday morning at Gallagher Estate in Midrand. The candidates are Cape Town Mayor Helen Zille — considered the frontrunner — Eastern Cape leader Athol Trollip and federal chairperson Joe Seremane.
Seremane, a former land claims commissioner and Pan-Africanist Congress of Azania activist, has already been elected unopposed as federal chairperson.
Should Seremane — the only black person to stand as a candidate for the liberal opposition in its history — surprise pundits and win the election, a special election for chairperson will be held.
Voting will also take place over the weekend for three federal vice-chairpersons. There are eight candidates.
Meanwhile, Leon’s office said he had been received ”with both warmth and cordiality” by President Mbeki.
Slabbert said: ”While Mr Leon will obviously not discuss in public the contents of a private meeting [as he has been requested by the media], he believes that government and opposition relations can, and in the future should, be continued in an atmosphere characterised by both candour and mutual respect.”
Leon has been leader of the opposition since 1999 when his party replaced the New National Party as official opposition. He was elected to parliament in 1989 to replace veteran liberal leader Helen Suzman in Houghton, and shortly after the 1994 election — the first non-racial election — he became leader of the then-Democratic Party (DP).
Leon led the DP from holding just seven seats — and about 1,7% of the vote — in the new democratic Parliament to 50 seats — and about 12% of the vote — in the 1999 election.
For a spell the New National Party formed part of the new DA, which was formed in 2000.
Leon, who will be hosted at a dinner on Friday night by the Friends of Tony Leon in Johannesburg, will remain an MP until 2009. Insiders say he will be forging business interests.
The DA conference starts on Saturday morning and much of the first day of the two-day conference will be devoted to constitutional matters and resolutions.
Should Zille be elected, a parliamentary leader will be elected to head the party in Parliament to allow her to remain on as Cape Town Mayor. And should Trollip be elected, he will need to replace an Eastern Cape MP in Parliament to assume the role of official opposition leader. — I-Net Bridge