Politics.za: Gauteng DA Leadership Back 'Helen of Hope'

Gauteng DA Leadership Back 'Helen of Hope'

Farrel — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 15:29:00 -0400

It seems despite being all the way up north Gauteng DA leader John Moody is putting his vote next to Helen Zille’s name as new leader of the DA.

“To me, Helen is the most appropriate person to head the party. She has a personality that draws people to herself… Helen has become for Cape Town and the DA, our own Helen Of Hope,” said Moody, the party’s first black provincial leader.

‘Helen of Hope’? I guess it’s better than ‘Kortbroek’, but only just.

It seems the DA leadership race is going to be a three horse race between Zille, DA Federal Chairman Joe Seremane and DA Eastern Cape leader Athol Trollip.

"Gauteng DA Leadership Back 'Helen of Hope'" by Farrel

Thu, 12 Apr 2007 15:54:14 -0400

I feel whoever gets elected the DA is going to lose. Seremane will be brushed aside as a ‘token black’ by the ANC, Zille will have the running of Cape Town to worry about and as you say Trollip is a bit of a non-entity.

I see whoever takes over now as a caretaker of sorts there to keep things going while the DA (desperately) try and find the South African equivalent of Barack Obama (someone who is young, black and electable) and put him on the extremely fast track to the top.

"Gauteng DA Leadership Back 'Helen of Hope'" by Wayne

Thu, 12 Apr 2007 15:45:35 -0400

In reality the DA can ill afford to have another pale male in charge of it. Further still, and with all due respect to Athol Trollip, he is mostly an unknown outside of the DA. Seremane and Zille at least are known publicly one way or another.