Mmusi Maimane calls for unity after Helen Zille’s ‘apartheid’ tweets

“No gogo formed against us shall prosper,” says One SA movement leader, Mmusi Maimane, calling for South Africa to unite after Helen Zille's recent tweets.

The DA's federal chairperson made headlines this week over some of her tweets, which have been labelled as racist by many on social media. In one,  she said that there are more racist laws today than there were under apartheid.

The former DA leader, who made a comeback to the popular app two months after announcing that she was closing her account, also defended former apartheid president FW de Klerk after accusations that he was “the burning issue” in the alleged state looting.

Zille said De Klerk was not guilty of state looting and that he “dismantled apartheid”.

This is not the first time Zille has ruffled feathers with her tweets. Previously, her views on colonialism landed her in hot water and she apologised “unreservedly”.

Weighing in on the tweets, Maimane said things were “really better when certain people” were taking a break from Twitter.

“There are many problems with the way that BBBEE was implemented by the ANC but the idea of comparing it to apartheid laws is one that seeks to spark division and to undermine national unity,” said Maimane.

Maimane was referring to Zille's separate tweet, in which she compared gender and race, saying “gender is merely a 'social construct' but race is a biological absolute”. 

Maimane said the country does not need “room dividers”.

“We need to move past a broken ruling party. We need to move past a broken apartheid and colonial legacy,” he said.

“Apartheid was a war crime. Apartheid was worse than anything post 1994. Those periods are not comparable. Let’s come together with honesty about our past and present.”

Some DA members, including MPs Mbali Ntuli and Phumzile van Damme, distanced themselves from Zille's tweets.