Publications
Partners
ANC election campaign leader in the Western Cape Ebrahim Rasool has accused outgoing Western Cape Premier Helen Zille of using her husband to salvage her state of the Province Address (SOPA).
"I think this is sad that Helen Zille has to turn her husband into a victim to salvage her speech. That is the epitaph for Helen Zille’s premiership and public life," he said.
Rasool was speaking at a media briefing on Sunday, where he also said Zille’s “staunch defence of colonialism has forever obliterated her claims around her association with the murdered black consciousness leader Steve Biko”.
During her speech on Friday, Zille - who in May will become the only Western Cape premier to have completed two terms – focused on the legacy of her two administrations and contrasted it with the national government.
ANC members, who had stormed out of the legislature during the address allegedly accosted Zille’s husband Johann Maree while they were on their way out.
Rasool said the ANC welcomed an investigation threatened by Western Cape Legislature Speaker Sharna Fernandez into the incident.
READ: Standing ovation from DA, empty ANC benches for Premier Zille's SOPA swansong
"As I said this is sad that Helen Zille has to turn her husband into a victim to salvage her speech. They can go through the motions of investigating it. We welcome it because the impression that they gave was that the man was assaulted. There was no assault," Rasool said.
He added: "Like all her investigations, it will get nowhere".
Rasool on Sunday also welcomed Patricia de Lille’s Good party which launched its election manifesto at the weekend.
“Patricia de Lille is not a threat to the ANC. She’s a threat to the DA, whatever she does subtracts from the DA for us. That is good news. She’s a significant player in the Western Cape but she’s not a threat to the ANC,” he said.
In response, Zille described Rasool's remarks as "pathetic and not worthy of comment".
She said "my state of the province address speaks for itself".
ALSO READ:'Goodbye and good riddance, Zille' - Western Cape ANC protest, walk out of SOPA
"If that's a story, you can imagine if it were the other way around, if DA members had turned on the spouse of an ANC premier. I mean, it's pathetic, it's not even worthy of comment.
She added that the incident involving her husband and ANC members was "typical" and ANC must apologise.
"They should just apologise, but instead they try to turn themselves into the wronged party," Zille said.
