DA supporters at a party rally.
Image: Jonisayi Maromo / IOL
A culture of fear of speaking out against any wrongdoing by Democratic Alliance (DA) members is fuelling growing dissent within the party.
That's according to several party insiders who have come forward with allegations of cover ups, nepotism and failure of the party's top leadership to act against individuals alleged to have acted against party policies.
"I'm not [KZN Police Commissioner Nhlanhla] Mkhwanazi, I'm not brave enough to go public with what I know," one senior DA insider told IOL. "But the party fails to act when we do approach them and we end up being shut down or removed. One must only take the recent raid on a property in Phoenix in Durban owned by the Department of Public Works headed by a DA minister.
"It was allegedly used as a drug den with allegations of involvement of a DA councillor. The party promised to investigate these allegations but to date nothing is done. Many of us are too scared to ask questions because of the culture of favouritism within the party," they said.
The sentiments were backed by several others who said they too were "scared" to speak out against the party.
In a statement seen by IOL, several community activists in Phoneix hit out at the DA, accusing the party of failing to act following a raid on a public works property in the area earlier this year. The raid found illicit drugs and stolen goods on the premises, with the DA promising to investigate the allegations of its members being involved.
But, say local activists, nothing was done.
"The silence is being seen as a cover up to protect DA linked individuals, especially given Dean Macpherson's dual role as national minister of Public Works and provincial party chair," said one activist.
While the DA failed to respond to queries on the matter as raised, it has previously rejected the allegations calling them a "smear campaign by opponents of the party". The criticisms given to IOL, however, came from DA members themselves, along with community activists.
Former Phoenix councillor Bradley Singh, who was accused of using the property without any lease contract, hit out at the allegations, calling them "baseless".
"My name is publicly associated with my actions, and if anyone believes I have done something wrong, they should file a formal complaint with law enforcement. The local police station is open 24/7 for this purpose. We will not engage in or entertain a smear campaign, all formal complaints should be directed to the appropriate legal channels," Singh said.