/ 9 May 2008

DA: Erasmus probe intended to stop political realignment

One of the key motives behind the Erasmus commission was to stop the realignment of South African politics, Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Helen Zille said on Friday.

The commission was set up by Western Cape Premier Ebrahim Rasool in December 2007 to investigate the City of Cape Town’s probe into controversial councillor Badih Chaaban.

Writing in her weekly newsletter on the DA website, Zille said the process of realignment was long overdue and needed to take place as soon as possible.

It would happen from the bottom up, starting with local government, and was already under way in Cape Town.

”In Cape Town, we are beginning to build a platform of shared values that are slowly transcending our traditional differences of race, ethnicity, religion and class, while recognising the potency of these forces and defending each other’s rights and freedoms to be ourselves.

”We are forging policies that will address our city’s enormous challenges. And we are using it as a test-tube for what we want to achieve across the country. It is a project of national significance,” Zille said.

Many analysts did not understand this, but the African National Congress (DA) certainly did.

”That is why they are so desperately determined to derail us, using whatever strategy it takes.

”They recognise the danger to their power base if we achieve ‘lift-off] from our launch pad at local government,” Zille said.

She was amazed at how many people still believed the Erasmus commission was a side-issue that did not warrant her attention.

They argued she should be fully focused on the national project of realignment.

”Few realise that one of the key motives behind the Erasmus commission is to stop the realignment process dead in its tracks.”

The methodology from the start had been to try to divide the multiparty government through the false claim that the DA had spied on members of other parties, and other unfounded smears.

”To achieve this, the premier [Rasool] has even been prepared to lie under oath,” Zille said.

Fortunately, the DA’s coalition partners believed the irrefutable evidence to the contrary.

”In addition, the Erasmus commission breaches key constitutional principles [through political abuse of the police and judiciary, for example],” she said.

”We cannot simply allow it to continue in order to demonstrate that ‘we have nothing to hide’, as the populist mantra goes.

”Precisely because we have nothing to hide, we have handed over all the evidence and encouraged the police and prosecutorial authorities to charge us in court if they have any evidence against the DA, the city or myself. The truth is, there is none.”

Zille said there were very few politicians able to look beyond short-term expedience.

”I once thought Rasool might be one of them. The events of the past months have demonstrated, conclusively, that he is not.

”But I do believe such politicians exist, and that they are prepared to face the risks inherent in political realignment.

”It will be easier for them to take these risks at local and provincial, rather than at national level.

”Much work is currently under way behind the scenes where the preparatory work for realignment must inevitably take place,” Zille said. — Sapa