Johannesburg – The fallout over the controversial DA posters in Phoenix has triggered a succession debate in the official opposition party as the leadership of John Steenhuisen is increasingly coming under fire in a bitter battle that is threatening to tear the party into new factions.
As the local elections loom, the official opposition is reeling from the damage caused by the outrage over the posters, and some leaders have started pushing the name of Western Cape premier Alan Winde as a possible successor to Steenhuisen when the party holds an elective conference next year.
So tense have the issues around Steenhuisen’s leadership become that DA chief whip Natasha Mazzone has threatened legal action against the party’s senior councillor in Limpopo, Johann Abrie.
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This is after Abrie, a speaker of the DA-co-governed Modimolle-Mookgophong local municipality, clickbaited a news article in The Citizen last week that suggested that Mazzone could be part of a plot to oust Steenhuisen.
Mazzone led the charge against the Phoenix posters at the party’s federal executive meeting last week, leading to the organisation taking down the placards and apologising, amid pressure from many quarters.
Abrie had said on Facebook that Mazzone should distance herself from the allegations contained in the article that she was making a play for Steenhuisen’s job. She denied she was after the DA’s top position.
In a letter to Abrie, Mazzone’s lawyers, De Jager Attorneys, demanded that he remove his post or face legal action. “Subsequent to the publication some posts/comments on social media platform Facebook were exchanged. From the information it is certain that you posted and or commented or caused comments to be posted,” the letter reads.
“Our client personally requested that you remove this post/comment; you have failed and or refused to adhere to this request. Our client is being defamed by this action and her Dignitas and Fama are negatively impacted by this action.”
But Abrie has stood his ground, refusing to withdraw the comment. In a letter responding to Mazzone, Abrie’s lawyers, Breytenbach-Keulder Inc, said their client saw no wrongdoing.
“Save for some vague allegation without any substance, no details of any alleged act of defamation are disclosed in your letter.”
Mazzone told Sunday World that she was “extremely” opposed to the Phoenix posters, saying they were “incredibly in bad taste”.
“I’m chief whip but in the campaign, I am the airwar manager. Of course, I was upset, I had no idea the poster was going up. No one did.”
The posters read: “The ANC called you racist” and “The DA calls you heroes”. The posters were criticised for endorsing the killing of black people by vigilantes in Phoenix – a predominantly Indian area – during the unrest in July.
DA insiders said the posters had caused tension in Steenhuisen’s camp. Both Mazzone and Abrie are the DA leader’s supporters.
The party’s leader in KwaZulu Natal, Dean Macpherson, an ally of Steenhuisen, was forced to apologise for the posters and take them down. Both Steenhuisen and the party’s federal council chairperson Helen Zille have not backed down, with the latter saying she would not accept “scapegoating of minorities by the government”.
In yet another blow to the party, long-serving MP Mike Walters on Tuesday resigned as the campaign manager, saying the apology over the posters was “spineless treachery”.
A DA leader said power was slowly slipping away from Steenhuisen, with some of his allies beginning to doubt his ability. “Unless there is something to justify the [poor performance at the polls in November], he will be under siege. Alan Winde is punted to succeed John,” the leader said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
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