The first politician to publicly announce he was crossing the floor did so on Saturday with a blistering attack on his former leader, president of the African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP) Kenneth Meshoe.
”He thinks he is president for life, anointed and appointed, and that the only one who can unappoint him is God,” a disillusioned Johan Kriel, who was chairperson of the ACDP’s Western Cape provincial executive committee, told the South African Press Association (Sapa) on Saturday morning.
He also said Meshoe’s leadership style had ”effectively ripped the heart out of the people who have done all the hard work on the ground”.
Kriel sent off an email to Meshoe announcing his decision to cross to the Democratic Alliance (DA) early on Saturday morning, just after the midnight opening of the floor-crossing window.
Kriel, who is a councillor on the Southern Cape’s Overstrand municipality, told Meshoe in the email he was leaving the party because of the lack of visionary and inspirational leadership.
”I joined the ACDP because I was under the impression that it would be a Christian party, both in essence and in spirit. My expectations have been progressively dismantled.
‘Embarrassed, disillusioned
”I am uncomfortable with the ethos of the ACDP. The party is being run more like a church than a political party.
”Also, I have been embarrassed and disillusioned by the harsh manner in which you have dealt with members of the party over the years … Quite frankly, I am relieved that I no longer stand under your harsh and erratic leadership.”
Kriel said he would continue to ”serve the Lord” under the DA, many of whose members were Christians.
”Unlike the ACDP they are competent enough to take over the government right now and do a very good job of it. I am convinced that the DA offers me a far better vehicle through which to serve the people. As it is, most of my constituents have already walked over.”
Kriel told Sapa that floor-crossers were made out to be ”dogs” — opportunists and traitors.
”But people forget that leaders can become unfaithful to parties and what they stand for, and then people under them are made out to be the villains … when they walk over.”
Other parties are expected to start trumpeting their gains on Saturday following the opening of the window period.
The 15-day period allows politicians on all three tiers of government to transfer their allegiance to another party and retain their seat in Parliament, provincial legislature or municipal council.
The Independent Democrats has indicated it will make known on Saturday morning a list of those across the country who have already promised to join it.
The party has been involved in a series of court battles over the past few days against dissidents it expelled in the run-up to the window, and who were desperately seeking to hang onto their seats until midnight.
Among them was the party’s former general secretary and party president Patricia de Lille’s right-hand man Avril Harding.
The African National Congress (ANC) said on Friday it welcomed members of any party as long as they supported the ANC’s policies.
The ANC is unlikely to be seriously affected by floor-crossing because of a stipulation that a minimum 10% of the members of a party caucus have to cross for the crossings to be valid.
The threshold makes smaller parties much more vulnerable. – Sapa