The Democratic Alliance (DA) notes the announcement by Patricia de Lille that she has formed a new political party.
The DA is only party that has managed to unite all South Africans behind its vision of building One South Africa for all. We are the only organisation that has not given up on a diverse South Africa – in terms of race, gender, age and religious background.
We are the only organisation that has effectively challenged the ANC and held them to account. We now govern for over 15 million South Africans, a responsibility we do not take for granted. We have grown consistently in every election because we have demonstrated how well we govern across the country and will continue to grow even in this current election cycle.
Our brand in government has always been about clean and corrupt-free delivery. That is why we out-perform every single indicator there is even in the metro governments we inherited from the ANC.
The DA’s only priority is the people that we serve. Our focus in the Western Cape will be on fighting crime, gangsterism and drug abuse. We have undertaken to speeding up the provision of service delivery including integrated social housing and creating jobs for the people of this province.
Nationally, the party is ready to roll out our vision for South Africa- one that will improve access to jobs, fight crime and corruption, secure our borders and speed up the provision of basic services.
There are over 500 political parties in South Africa, Ms De Lille’s one will form part of that group. The real test for any organisation will be at the polls on election day. Ms De Lille’s latest political move is consistent with her brand over the years. She has, whenever it has been politically expedient, moved from one political movement to another. Ms De Lille was at odds with the DA because she refused to be held accountable when revelations of her covering up corruption came to the fore. She must now account for the criminal and corruption charges she faces.
In the meantime, the DA will focus on our own campaign which we are engaging South Africans across the country about. We are committed to building One South Africa for all and we will not be distracted.