Herman Mashaba Questions DA’s Lack of Black Leaders After Helen Zille Decision, South Africans Split
- Herman Mashaba has weighed in on the Democratic Alliance’s (DA) decision to announce Helen Zille as a mayoral candidate
- The ActionSA leader also discussed his party's aims to be part of the government in Gauteng’s three metropolitan municipalities
- South Africans weighed in on the ActionSA leader's comments, sharing mixed reactions to his comments about race
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Briefly News journalist Byron Pillay has dedicated a decade to reporting on the South African political landscape, crime, and social issues. He spent 10 years working for the Northern Natal Courier before transitioning to online journalism.
GAUTENG – Herman Mashaba is not threatened by the Democratic Alliance’s (DA) decision to field Helen Zille as candidate for the City of Johannesburg’s mayoral post.
The ActionSA leader, who served as Mayor of Johannesburg from 2016 to 2019, has opened up on the 2026 Local Government Elections and the DA’s choice. Other political parties also weighed in on the DA's decision to go with Zille.
During an interview with SABC’s The View on 22 September 2025, Mashaba expressed confidence that Zille’s candidacy was not a threat to ActionSA’s plans. ActionSA aims to be part of the government in Gauteng’s three metropolitan municipalities: the City of Johannesburg, the City of Tshwane, and the City of Ekurhuleni.
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Why isn’t Mashaba phased by Zille?
Mashaba said that with the DA selecting Cilliers Brink as a candidate in Tshwane and Zille as its candidate in Johannesburg, it provided an ideal opportunity for ActionSA to rise and take over the three metros.
Mashaba also recalled that it was Zille who brought his time as mayor to an end.
“Zille is the one who actually cut my tenure as the mayor short by going to approach the African National Congress because I was pursuing R35 billion of fraud and corruption of ANC members,” he said.
Mashaba said Zille was deployed as a candidate, not to save the residents of Johannesburg, but to ensure the ANC and DA get enough votes to form a government that can protect corruption in this government.
Source: Getty Images
Mashaba questions DA’s lack of black leadership
The ActionSA leader questioned Zille’s appointment, asking whether the DA didn’t have a single black leader in the whole of Gauteng who could lead. He stated that the party was the second biggest in the country, but after 31 years of democracy, the party was claiming that it couldn’t find ethical and competent black people.
Mashaba stated that he was on a personal mission to identify black excellence, and at ActionSA, black and white, as they were, they were going to ensure everyone had equal opportunity.
“But, we are not going to be colourblind, we are going to be deliberate in ensuring that we expose and unleash the black talent that has been oppressed for centuries.
When asked if he was that black talent that would be taking the city forward, Mashaba said he would only enter the race for the post if the party could not find another person who had the calibre of Dr Nasiphi Moya, the current Tshwane Mayor.
You can watch the full interview below.
How did South Africans react to Mashaba’s comments?
Social media users were left divided by Mashaba’s comments. While some threw their weight behind ActionSA in the province, others questioned why race was such a focus and not the calibre of the candidates.
Le Ntokozo said:
“We tried black Mr Mashaba, and we are in the dark😔.”
Otshepeng Tshepi Martins stated:
“You led Joburg municipality under DA, and it was wow. Gogo Hellen Zille can do better. She was once Cape Town Mayor, and it was👍.”
Teboho Metsing noted:
“Excellence has nothing to do with colour. There is no white excellence; Indian excellence; coloured excellence; Khoisan excellence, etc.”
Hendrick Makgae said:
“I agree with comrade Mashaba on this one.”
Johannes Kamfer agreed:
“ActionSA has many ethical leaders. The important thing is that every ActionSA mayor follows the same script as Dr Moya.”
Mohale Mohale added:
“I think it's time for Herman Mashaba to aim higher than the mayoral position.”
Floyd Themba Chauke claimed:
“Zille is giving him sleepless nights.”
Bongani Mgubela stated:
“Shouldn't be about colour, but capabilities. I don't care if the mayor is black, white, pink, or yellow, as long as they will clean up the mess in the city.”
Zille and Anele Mdoda engage in heated debate
Briefly News reported that radio broadcaster Anele Mdoda and Zille were involved in a heated debate with each other on air.
The DA's Federal Council Chairperson was interviewed by Mdoda and her team on the radio, which soon heated up.
Many netizens had mixed emotions regarding the argument between Zille and Mdoda live on the radio.
Source: Briefly News
