DA ready to govern KZN - Pappas
|Published
Durban — The DA said it was ready to govern KwaZulu-Natal after the May 29 elections. Unveiling its provincial list to the media in Durban on Tuesday, the party’s provincial leader Francois Rodgers said he was proud to present a list of candidates who would represent the people of KZN in the Provincial Legislature and the National Assembly.
The party also presented its National Council of Provinces (NCOP) list with its provincial chairman Dean Macpherson at the top. This list is made of provincial representatives and will be determined by the number of votes the party gets nationally.
Rodgers said the selection process had been exhaustive with more than 100 people applying to be MPs and Members of the Provincial Legislature in KZN.
He said never before have so many people wanted to join the DA’s rescue mission to save the province which he said, had been “incredibly encouraging to witness”.
Explaining the process Macpherson said in the DA members apply to represent the party in provincial legislatures and Parliament and undergo gruelling interview processes, including writing several tests to determine their understanding of government policies and political issues.
“Our candidates have been through an eleven-step process that started in April 2023 and then proceeded to be interviewed by the structures of the party in September 2023 which developed a short list.
“Candidates had to write a number of tests which tested everything from understanding of party policy to general knowledge. Included in this, candidates, were performance assessed on their contribution to the DA and the communities they have worked in,” said Macpherson.
He said candidates were then ranked by the selection panel and the ranking results were reviewed by the Executive Committee of the province as well as the Federal Executive.
“The candidates who have joined us today are fit for purpose and are diverse across a number of fields. In fact, this is the most diverse field of candidates the DA in KZN has ever fielded. There will be no party in Parliament or the Legislature that will be as diverse as the DA,” said Rodgers.
The list was a mixture of old and new with six eThekwini ward councillors some making it to the top 20.
The DA’s premier candidate Chris Pappas said he was pleased with the calibre of people on the list, adding that he is ready to govern the province with his team. The party, which is a leader of the Multi-Party Charter, is hoping to co-govern KZN with the IFP and ActionSA.
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