PARTY CONGRESS
CAROL PATON: Transformation of the DA will happen from the bottom up
The pressure from below was evident at the party’s national congress
What should one make of the DA’s national congress held at the weekend? What was the upshot of what was billed as a divisive "race debate"? Can the party be a real alternative to the ANC at the polls? Why does it feel the need to perpetually redefine its values? Where is the DA going? For delegates, the congress was a rousing event that will have the effect of sending them back to their branches with newfound commitment and enthusiasm. The DA is excellent at putting on a show with all the trappings of a US political party congress, with entertainment, lighting, balloons and confetti, dispersed with freedom songs and shouts of amandla! It was also though an intriguing political moment: the DA is a party that is being changed from the bottom, despite the best efforts of those at the top to control its direction. In sum, it was a fascinating congress. First there was the "diversity" or race debate. At a high philosophical level this was about the individual versus the group and which i...
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