Man and the machine
GARETH VAN ONSELEN: Mmusi Maimane’s two-year report card
In May 2015 Mmusi Maimane was elected leader of the DA, which at the time was already an efficient, effective political organisation. After two years in charge, what impact has he had on the way the party campaigns
When Democratic Alliance leader Tony Leon appointed Ryan Coetzee to the position of CEO of the party in 2005, he inherited an antiquated organisation, plagued by financial difficulty and run piecemeal. Coetzee says it "behaved like a teenager with a bottle of vodka and the car keys." Despite the DA being formed in 2000, it was only with the advent of the 2004 national elections that the bulk of the Democratic Party was wholly and finally incorporated into it. It was that same election where a disgruntled New National Party faction — one that had caused the DA much grief — irrevocably merged with the ANC and it allowed, for the first time, some institutional introspection.What remained was a party that had made great strides publicly in consolidating the opposition vote but, privately, was built on the outdated and rickety infrastructure of its forebear. It was simply not geared to meet the demands on it. If it was to grow, it had to change. With a mandate from Leon and together with...
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