Helen Zille will face the DA’s disciplinary committee after she tweeted that there were some positives that emanated from colonialism.
On Thursday, her successor, Mmusi Maimane, said the matter had been referred to the federal legal commission, which dealt with the party’s disciplinary matters.
“I’ve asked that it be investigated. We received a number of complaints and I find [Zille’s tweet] indefensible ….”
This is not the first time the former DA leader has made controversial statements on social media.
Maimane said he had not been able to speak to Zille, who is also the Western Cape premier, because she had been travelling.
Early on Thursday morning, Zille took to Twitter to air her opinion about colonialism, writing: “For those claiming legacy of colonialism was only negative, think of our independent judiciary, transport infrastructure, piped water, etc.”
This had caused an uproar on social media with even some of Zille’s DA colleagues chastising her for the comment.
Zille sent a second tweet after facing the wrath of those on the social networking site, saying: “Getting onto an aeroplane now and won’t get onto the wi-fi so that I can cut off those who think EVERY aspect of colonial legacy was bad.”
An hour after that she decided to apologise: “I apologise unreservedly for a tweet that may have come across as a defence of colonialism. It was not.”
Maimane also took to Twitter to distance himself and the party from her comment.
“Let’s make this clear: colonialism, like apartheid, was a system of oppression and subjugation. It can never be justified,” he wrote.
The ANC in the Western Cape has called on the DA to recall Zille, following the comments.
“While in recent years there has been some self-acknowledgement that ignorance of black history and black people is no excuse to make loose and reckless statements, realising black history and its monumental contribution has been a hard pill to swallow for most white illiberal like Zille,” the party in the province said.
“Helen Zille has continued to defend every racist that has captured the [country] and we call on the DA to act decisively, particularly Mmusi Maimane, who up to this far has not shown an appetite to take on the white establishment.”
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