South African opposition party the Democratic Alliance (DA) has said that it is seeking to join forces with other parties across the continent to fight for democracy and rule of law. The DA has accused the African Union (AU) and Southern African Development Community (Sadc) of turning a blind eye to regimes which trample on the rule of law and democratic principles.
Leader of the DA, Mmusi Maimane, in a statement said:
In this light, I will be making contact with African leaders, including Morgan Tsvangirai and Tendai Biti, in order to establish a plan of action on the way forward in entrenching democratic values and the rule of law in Africa. We must not cease in our efforts to liberate Africa from the stranglehold of “big man” politics.
Indeed, opposition parties have a role in realising this through cooperation
MDC-T secretary general Douglas Mwonzora said:
We identify with all those that are fighting for democracy, however, we have not had any formal discussion with the DA. While we agree with Maimane on the need to democratize our continent, we wish to state it clearly we have not had any formal discussion with them but we agree with his sentiments that right thinking political parties must fight the entrenchment of democracy within the continent. Africa is in need of a second liberation,
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