DA set to lose two more young leaders after Nicole Graham’s exit

The DA is set to lose two more young leaders days after the departure of eThekwini council leader Nicole Graham.

The Sunday Times can reveal that party MP Hlanganani Gumbi met top party leaders to inform them of his decision to resign from parliament. Gumbi's close allies said he also has plans to resign from the party. A senior party leader in Gauteng is also expected to submit his resignation later this month.

Gumbi confirmed he had spoken to the party's leadership about his future but denied he was resigning from the party. 

“I have had conversations about my future to pursue my business interests with the leadership, both in the province and nationally. I’m definitely not resigning my DA membership and have not resigned as a public rep,” he said.

But party insiders said Gumbi would no longer be active in the DA.

DA federal council chair Helen Zille did not confirm or deny that Gumbi was leaving parliament. Instead, she asked Gumbi to respond to the Sunday Times.

In an earlier conversation with the newspaper, Zille said Gumbi and she had always had a positive relationship, as she did with the majority of emerging young leaders in the DA.

However, she refused to speak about Gumbi’s rumoured resignation from parliament or the exodus of young leaders from the party and  accused the Sunday Times of being biased when reporting on DA resignations. 

“People leave every party all the time for a host of reasons. This usually has nothing to do with the party, but the life trajectories of individuals. 

“We are attracting far more 'talent' (of all races) than we have lost.  Mbali [Ntuli] gave a clear reason for taking her life on a new trajectory, which was prominently reported in the Sunday Times. I think you should speak to Hlanganani yourself and see what he says,” she said. 

Zille said the media applies a warped double-standard when it came to the DA and everything was reported through a racial lens — this is despite the Sunday Times not mentioning race in questions put to her. 

“Given this, there is really no point in speaking to you. You have made up your mind already and I do not want to lend any credibility to this manipulative agenda,” Zille said.

The party has been plagued by an exodus of mostly young black leaders since the departure of Mmusi Maimaine as leader, though the resignations are attributed to different reasons. The list includes former youth leader Ntuli and former Midvaal mayor Bongani Baloyi. 

Graham left the eThekwini council — and did not resign from the party. She said she wanted to pursue an MBA at the University of Sydney in Australia. But Gumbi, according to party leaders close to him, wants out of the DA.

“Gumbi informed the DA leadership of his intention to resign, however was asked to not formally tender his resignation until the end of August — he was ready to resign this week but yes he is leaving parliament.

“Yes he may say he is leaving parliament not the party but he has checked out of the party too — no-one is going to see him in DA colours or doing DA work after he resigns. The only reason he may not resign from the party is because he doesn't want drama,” a source close to Gumbi said.

Gumbi has been in the party for 14 years. He rose through the ranks to what will be his last DA deployment — as MP responsible for the tourism portfolio committee.