DA Leaders Embroiled in Bitter Spat Following Cabinet Reshuffle
Cape Town – A fierce internal battle has erupted within the Democratic Alliance (DA), with accusations and counter-accusations flying between party leader John Steenhuisen and Dion George, the DA's federal chairperson of finance affairs. The dispute was ignited by George's recent removal as minister of forestry, fisheries, and the environment, a move initiated by the DA who requested that he be replaced by Willem Aucamp.
At the heart of the conflict lies allegations of misuse of the DA's official credit card by Steenhuisen. George claims he was compelled to stop Steenhuisen's DA credit card after discovering unauthorised transactions, including purchases made on the Uber Eats food delivery service for Steenhuisen’s family, as well as other household expenses. According to George, the credit card's intended use was strictly for "business expenses as [party] leader," such as meals with donors and ride-hailing services for party affairs.
George subsequently lodged a formal complaint with the party’s legal commission via Helen Zille, chairperson of the party’s federal council.
Steenhuisen, who now serves as minister of agriculture in the government of national unity, has dismissed George's allegations as a "revenge attempt" stemming from his removal as minister. "He will, however, have to explain why he has never done so before his removal, which clearly exposes this as a revenge attempt," Steenhuisen stated in response to media enquiries. He has challenged George to provide evidence of any misuse of his credit card to the party.
George, however, insists that he lodged the complaint before his removal as environment minister two weeks ago. He claims that Steenhuisen and the DA’s FedEx (federal executive) removed him after he refused to comply with a request to be demoted to deputy minister of trade, industry, and competition. DA MP Alexandra Abrahams has since been appointed to the post.
When asked if he believed his removal was linked to the credit card complaint against Steenhuisen, George responded that he "doesn’t know." Steenhuisen maintains that his sole motivation for wanting to remove George was his refusal to accept the demotion to deputy minister.
Adding another layer of complexity to the situation, Steenhuisen himself faced scrutiny over his personal finances this past week. He was summoned to court over an outstanding debt of R150,000 on his personal credit card. Regarding the court order against him over his private credit card debt, Steenhuisen told Netwerk24 his private financial affairs have nothing to do with anyone unless it can be proven that he did something illegal.
The fallout from George's removal has triggered a wave of accusations and counter-accusations within the DA. George has been accused of bullying his staff at the department of forestry, fisheries, and the environment. Furthermore, allegations have surfaced regarding sexual misconduct, an alleged unauthorised trip to Antarctica, and dissatisfaction from ANC colleagues who felt that George contradicted government policy on the commercial trade in elephant tusks and rhino horns. George denies these allegations and told Daily Maverick on Friday that he wanted to take certain publications to the press ombudsman over these allegations.
According to sources within George's camp, a counter-proposal was tabled at the DA’s FedEx meeting where George was removed, suggesting that Steenhuisen be removed as agriculture minister and focus solely on his role as party leader. The proposal suggested that Ivan Meyer, Western Cape MEC for agriculture, economic development, and tourism, should take over from Steenhuisen.
Steenhuisen has declined to comment on the specifics of internal FedEx meetings, citing the DA’s constitution, which stipulates that the party leader is automatically the leader of any caucus, including the party’s national executive caucus of ministers and deputy ministers. "The decision by FedEx was based on trying to place the best configuration to achieve our objectives within the government of national unity," says Steenhuisen.
Beyond the credit card dispute, George's camp alleges that he also terminated a consulting contract with Ryan Coetzee, a former DA MP and strategist, due to concerns about Coetzee's excessive influence. Steenhuisen refutes this claim, stating that Coetzee’s contract had expired and that Coetzee himself did not wish to renew it.
Another point of contention between Steenhuisen and George revolves around a proposal by George to list abalone as a protected species under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. Steenhuisen reportedly asked George to postpone this proposal, fearing that it could have serious repercussions for South Africa’s legally farmed abalone sector, which generates approximately R1 billion in export revenue annually.
George, however, remained steadfast, arguing that postponing the proposal would be detrimental to South Africa’s dwindling abalone stocks. In correspondence between George and Steenhuisen, George indicated that while he “valued collaboration” with Steenhuisen’s department of agriculture, his department had a different mandate and that this distinction should be “respected”.
It has also been suggested that Steenhuisen sought to install Aucamp in the portfolio to appease the game farming industry, following George's reported push for new restrictions on canned lion hunting. However, this allegation is undermined by the fact that Steenhuisen initially offered the position to Meyer, one of the DA’s top three leaders as the party’s federal chairperson.
George's supporters claim that Steenhuisen is acting under the influence of the ANC, alleging that George had a falling out with ANC Cabinet members such as Gwede Mantashe, the minister of minerals and petroleum resources. Steenhuisen has dismissed these claims, asserting that the DA "has never made any strategic decision on what would appease the ANC."
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