DM168 REFLECTION
Jabbing at the judiciary: DA’s Helen Zille goes into an imaginary battle all guns blazing
Whatever it is that is broken in our country, the judiciary is still standing. To try to drag it into the political terrain is a cheap political stunt. Shame on you, Helen.
First published in the Daily Maverick 168 weekly newspaper.
The courts have been thrust into the spotlight lately – and not for their recent rulings but, rather, because of disparaging and silly comments by DA federal chairperson Helen Zille.
Zille has suggested – without providing a shred of evidence – that the Constitutional Court judges may have leaked information to the ANC, hence the latter’s decision to withdraw its application to the Electoral Court.
Fortunately, the Constitutional Court has ruled that the local government elections should go ahead between 27 October and 1 November 2021. Thus, they have proved Zille’s dangerous theory to be false. It is also worth noting that the application was brought by the IEC and not the ANC.
Zille had tweeted that: “The ANC’s withdrawal from the Electoral Court indicates that they have been tipped off that the IEC’s application to postpone the election was successful. If information is leaking from the ConCourt to the ANC, it is nothing short of a constitutional crisis.”
The ANC had gone to the Electoral Court – asking the court to compel the IEC to reopen its election timetable – after they missed the deadline to submit some of their candidates in more than 90 municipalities. The governing party later withdrew the application, saying it will await the outcome of the ConCourt’s decision before deciding on a course of action.
For Zille to make such comments is not only reckless but dangerous too.
She joins a band of political intolerants and populists who make dangerous utterances without backing up their claims with facts.
Her comments are no different from the disparaging “counter-revolutionary” label that some ANC leaders have apportioned to the judiciary.
The courts are the only arm of the state that still functions properly. Even when we saw the rule of law collapse after the government failed to quell the July unrest, and despite the way that, over time, Parliament has been shown to be a weak institution, we are left with the judiciary.
This is not to say that judges are above criticism, but such criticism has to be backed by facts.
So far there is nothing to show that the esteemed justices of the Constitutional Court are doing the ANC’s bidding.
We should be intolerant of such abuse of our judiciary, whether it is by a Helen Zille or a Gwede Mantashe. It is disingenuous of Zille to accuse the court of leaking to the ANC when the case before the court was not even brought by the ANC.
It is the IEC that seeks to postpone the elections based on the recommendations by the former deputy chief justice Dikgang Moseneke.
If you follow Zille’s absurd argument then I’m sure she believes that Moseneke must also be part of this grand scheme to benefit the ANC.
Anyone who knows Moseneke and his integrity as a jurist would find that laughable.
Unfortunately, Zille is unstoppable and no one in the DA has the courage to confront her. She does as she pleases. When Mmusi Maimane dared to try to discipline the powerful Zille, he ended up being the one to leave the party.
John Steenhuisen is not about to start a fight with Zille. But, as was the case with Maimane, her antics continue to overshadow whatever it is that Steenhuisen is doing.
Few readers may be aware that the DA leader was on a charm offensive in North West this week, even visiting former DA MP Joe Seremane at his home.
The visit to Seremane – a long-standing member of the DA and one of its first black leaders – and a visit to struggling black farmers in Ramatlabama, near the Botswana border, were not without political meaning.
The DA has become an uncomfortable political home for younger black leaders – the latest to leave being former MP Phumzile Van Damme. Other prominent departures are well documented.
Surely, Steenhuisen was making a political statement, which unfortunately did not get traction because Zille had other plans – attracting all the attention to herself.
Attention-seeking has become her brand of politics, after all.
Whatever it is that is broken in our country, the judiciary is still standing. To try to drag it into the political terrain is a cheap political stunt.
Shame on you, Helen. DM168
Sibusiso Ngalwa is the politics editor of Newzroom Afrika and chair of the South African National Editors’ Forum.
This story first appeared in our weekly Daily Maverick 168 newspaper which is available for R25 at Pick n Pay, Exclusive Books and airport bookstores. For your nearest stockist, please click here.
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O calm down.
This article seems like a political stunt.
I agree. Another ‘slow to see the light” reporter
Though I agree with you, I do also think it’s time for Helen to step aside. She has done more harm than good for the DA in recent years.
I wholeheartedly agree with the above comment. Ms Zille has cost the DA many votes and, as long as she is part of the top structure, she will cause more vote losses. It is certainly time she steps aside and disappears into the political wilderness.
Sibusiso take a chill pill and stop looking for a story where there is none.
Zille squandered the greatest opportunity the DA ever had for significance. For what? Ego, to be right always ?
Great leaders don’t require that their whole leadership subscribe to one leaders view of the meaning of life or specific theories of policy. The DA had / have great policies, but those policies were made irrelevant other than for debate.
The ANC loses any debate but it wins elections. Unfortunately.
This article hits the nail on the head. Zille’s rant on Newzroom Afrika was one of the nastiest pieces of innuendo one can imagine – for the effective leader of the DA to be making these entirely unfounded allegations would be dangerous if she had any real influence left. The ruling party gives the opposition enough material – why drag the concourt into it?
Maybe the Constitutional Court is beyond reproach but there is no doubt that the JSC has become nonfunctional ?captured.
Agreed. It’s time for Helen to retire. She’s only doing major damage to any hope the DA might have had of growing its support.
So much foaming about nothing. Just another shriek in the ongoing mob attack.
Aunty Helen must realise that retirement means that it’s time to butt out other peoples business. She served her time well but must now rest.
Concourt’s ruling has allowed the potential for parties to register further candidates. Just saying…..
Indeed…
Which portion of the order is that allows/facilitates this? I’ve checked it and can’t work out where that comes from.
Helen please – enough now. Accept it’s over, you are over. But it’s not only her – for over 25 years, the same old faces saying pretty much the same old thing.
This is why the DA is going to take a pounding in the next election.
She is well beyond her sell-by date.
While I also don’t exactly understand what purpose her statement had at this point lets get some perspective here:
It’s not like corruption of the judicial when it comes to the ANC is so ridiculous its impossible. It took the ANC 13 years to react to the antics of a man that can of be called a bully, heading the judicial, influencing the ruling of a highly tainted and corrupt ANC individual. This is pretty much a fact…and we have yet to see any real consequences.
It also seems that while the dates remain, the ANC might just get another chance to register their candidates…which is what this is really about.
Should we question actions such as this accusation by Zille? Absolutely, but let’s keep in mind that just a few weeks ago the head of the country and the ANC lied to all of us with a straight face. If you compare that to a tweet by Zille, I think some perspective here is in order.
Right. Please keep things in perspective. Sibusiso Ngalwa says that “the judiciary is still standing”. It is only just still standing. Write your next article on that subject, Sibusiso. Thanks in advance.
Our judiciary is certainly not “only just still standing”. Our judiciary is very strong and pretty much the lynchpin holding the country together at this point. On what personal experiences/knowledge/expertise is your comment based, of I may ask? Since you seem to speak with such considerable authority on the subject.
Helen didn’t just tweet. She went on radio and ranted how the ANC had inside info, clearly questioning the integrity of the apex court. She is becoming a little like Julias Malema… making blind accusations with no evidence. Time she butted out of politics. She has done the DA more damage than anyone else. She is a loose cannon.
Reading the article by De Vos, this ruling will in all probability not be to the Anc’s benifit.
Zille like Malema? When she starts asking for throats to be cut and is part of robbing a bank you can start spreading this hogwash.
2 items from me:
1. Helen, right or wrong, it isn’t constructive for you to be in the front line of politics any longer – anything you say will be turned sour
2. It is a clear showing of ANC incompetence, and misuse of stretched country legal resources to involve the concourt at all.
Agree. Cry the beloved country again and again! Could we not persuade all reasonable opposition parties to unite. SA really just needs No Corruption, and, No political appointees to run ANYTHING!
The ANC did not approach the court. That was the IEC.
The ANC’s application (subsequently withdrawn) was in the Electoral Court, not the Constitutional Court.
What the judiciary needs, to maintain its independence, is support in doing so, rather than politicians jumping into attack mode, without clear and unequivocal evidence. I was very disappointed to read that Helen Zille has done this.
Is that all you have to talk about, how about Ramaphosa not pursuing our commie minister of Education over R2.5Billion missing?
I agree that Zille should check her facts, and that such an assault on the ConCourt is inexcusable, not matter how frequently and egregiously the ANC leaders do the same thing.
But so should you check your facts Sibusiso – the IEC’s action and the ANC’s action were NOT one and the same thing. Let’s face it, the ANC withdrew its action either:
i) because they had pre-knowledge of the impending IEC ConCourt decision (which included, very importantly, a provision on extending CANDIDATE REGISTRATION – the ANC’s main gripe having failed utterly to comply with the initial IEC deadline); or
ii) they accurately guessed/formed a hunch (which nobody else did) that candidate registration would be extended.
Now, Godzilla is a negative influence on the DA and I would personally like to see her back off entirely. But the rumours around the motivation for the ANC’s withdrawal of its action (not as you try and confusingly draw that it was the IEC’s action) exist because there is no other explanation forthcoming from Luthuli House.
Hmm, a perceptive comment, thank you.
The writer does not have have his facts wrong.
The court allowed an extension of voter registration, NOT registering of candidates.
I believe the ANC got this one wrong all on their own…. As did godzille
I keep seeing comments (not yours) indicating that the Con Court has returned the window for election candidate nominations…I’ve checked the Con Court’s order a few times and can’t see anything along these lines. Am I missing something???
The country burns, the judiciary is only just standing on wobbly legs, while millions get siphoned off by ANC cadres and politicians, and poor Sibusiso gets himself in a frothy.
When Helen goes for it, there’s a fire burning somewhere. Just don’t stop.
This discussion is premature- let us wait and see the outcome of the ANC’s representations to the IEC and whether indeed there is an opportunity for it in the ConstitutionalCourt’s directive
I have been a paying reader of Daily Maverick for more than a year and value the contribution your publication makes to the public debate regarding the unbelievable mess that calls itself gouvernment. Amabhungane and others are doing a great service to the country in helping to shine a spotlight at the criminals mascerading as servants of the people, however they are giving us the facts as they uncover them, no personal judgements or even richly deserved derogatory terms.
While I am not a supporter of any political party, I do not appreciate personal judgements from an editor of a supposedly impartial new”z” agency, these judgements are reserved for me, the reader, all I pay for are verified facts.
“Shame on you, silly, reckless, disengenious, absurd “etc. belongs to political activism not the reporting of facts.
I fully agree. This “article” is not what subscribe to. It is belongs in the comments section where this “reporter” can express his views.
This is not an article but a column, which by its very nature is an opinion piece.
The “DM168 Reflection” articles are opinion pieces. If you don’t want to read opinion pieces, don’t read these or the “Opinionista” pieces.
Time for you to fully step down Helen. I know the feeling of being “out of it”, but had to adjust. I was a DDG in the DoT when it regularly got “A” ratings from the media and even the DA, and had to “hold tight ” to avoid in interfering during the Department’s downward slide during the past 20 or so years, and I could have said much on the errors it was making. So Helen, learn to “smell the roses”- my political hero of all time, Helen Suzman did this, so did Madiba!
Eish, the Madam, she is devious, this one. Her comments puts the ConCourt in the position of not being able to say yes to the ANC. Touché, Madam.
But forgets that the RET is waiting for any chink in the armour of the CC.
It is just what many of us thought, and if ANC get second chance to register more candidates then it should make detractors think again. Usual tack of anything Helen or John says is blown up out of all proportion and deflects from any particular days events where ANC is found wanting.
Unfortunately there is nothing that has been blown out of proportion. Anyone who heard the interview with Helen on the radio and the accusations she was making should have anticipated this. She sounded like the ANC with their “3rd force” theory, or like Malema making baseless accusations.
There was an unfounded article about a leak in one of the Afrikaans papers…. And she ran with it.
Thats the problem with cadre deployment. We dont know where the line is drawn or if a line is drawn. Who has been deployed? We need to know otherwise even political editors are under suspicion
Having admitted that the judiciary is the only arm of the state operating successfully, the article knocks the DA but gives off the smell of another ANC supporter of a failed system.
One must remember that old Helen is a prime example of a career politician. They keep on going till they die. People that do throw stones at the judiciary are usually on the “wrong” side of it.
Zille has always been regarded as the Queen of the Western Cape, a neighbouring country of ours. Something that do let her down though is the inability to do a dance with her fist in the air so she she hardly ever venture across the border. Her subjects do not mind one little bit.
Turns out Zille was wrong about the concourt. However, turns out she wasn’t wrong about end result though, and seems like the IEC may need a name change.