Road to political unity is long

CROSS-RACIAL SUPPORT: WHY WHITES DON'T SEE ANC AS THEIR HOME ANY MORE

- MANDLA MTHEMBU

Does the ANC really need whites in its ranks? ANC Youth League president Collen Malatji sparked this controversial debate when he said he wants to see more racial diversity in the party.

He made the remarks during a youth rally in the Eastern Cape at the weekend, where he expressed concern over the lack of white participation in the youth league.

Malatji questioned why, decades after democracy, young white South Africans are still largely absent from the ANC's structures, especially considering the pivotal role played by figures like Joe Slovo, Denis Goldberg and other white comrades during the liberation struggle.

"We have to ask ourselves," Malatji said, "why white youth do not see the ANC as their home any more. Why did they join in the past, and what's pushing them away now?"

His comments come at a time when South African politics remains racially polarised. While the ANC continues to dominate the black vote, it has seen declining support among other racial groups.

Meanwhile, opposition parties like the DA and Freedom Front Plus (FF+) are struggling with their own identity challenges.

The DA, in particular, appears unsure whether it is a black-led liberal party or a white-dominated opposition. As Malatji pointed out, the DA "doesn't know whether it is a black or white party" — an identity crisis that speaks volumes about the broader racial tensions that still shape voter behaviour.