Johnathan Paoli
A letter from DA Federal leader John Steenhuisen revealing the party’s summary dismissal of shadow minister of Public Enterprises Ghaleb Cachalia after a statement he made on social platform X, regarding the conflict in the Middle-East was leaked on Thursday.
“We cannot, and we will not, emulate the ANC Cabinet’s consistent failure to uphold accountability or implement consequence management. It is the responsibility of all of us, including myself, to act in the best interests of the party in the lead up to the most important election in our history,” Steenhuizen said in the leaked statement.
Cachalia reportedly expressed his solidarity with the Palestinian victims of Israel’s invasion of Gaza, and joined mounting criticism of Israel’s war crimes and human rights violations in the region.
“I will not be silenced. Israel is committing Genocide. Full BLOODY stop,” Cachalia said on Tuesday.
Cachalia said in a post on X that he had been inundated with media requests regarding his axing from the DA, and that he was considering his response to the leaked letter sent by Steenhuisen.
According to Steenhuisen, a national caucus meeting was held on 19 October, in which the party decided, that the Shadow Minister for International Relations and Cooperation Emma Powell would be the party’s spokesperson on the Israel/Gaza matter and that caucus members would refrain from public pronouncements aimed at causing division or further inflaming the volatile issue.
The party leader said in the statement, Cachalia’s conduct amounted to willful and defiant disregard of caucus decision and selfishness.
“Your conduct, in willful violation of a caucus decision, is deeply undermining of my leadership and unbecoming of someone who holds a senior position in my Shadow Cabinet,” Steenhuisen said.
Steenhuisen said that despite the fact that he found the decision regrettable and respected Cachalia as a colleague and friend, the shadow cabinet had a duty not to emulate the ANC’s habit of division and unruly cabinet members.
Cachalia will be replaced as the spokesperson on public enterprises by shadow deputy minister of Public Service and Administration Mimmy Gondwe.
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