Read more
ATM rejects a plan to split South Africa into two countries
ATM president Vuyo Zungula believes separating the Western Cape from South Africa could be devastating.
ATM president Vuyo Zungula at the Debate on State Of The Nation (SONA) at Cape Town City Hall on 14 February 2022. Picture: Gallo Images/Die Burger/Jaco Marais
The African Transformation Movement (ATM) has slammed the intentions of a movement by some lobby groups to separate the Western Cape from the rest of South Africa.
ALSO READ: Western Cape: A different country on its own
A plan to split SA
For some time there has been some groups who have been galvanizing support for the Western Cape to become an independent country. The movement has been described as the CapExit.
According to the ATM the Democratic Alliance (DA) has tabled this as a document for discussion. The bill concerning this exit is being discussed at the Western Cape legislature and was likely to be discussed in the National Council (NCOP) of Provinces and parliament at large.
ALSO READ: Western Cape warned of ‘Mafias’ trying to infiltrate service delivery
ATM president Vuyo Zungula said talks about a Cape exit would only divide South Africa and open old wounds.
“This divisive agenda, masqueraded under the cloak of a legislative proposal, is reminiscent of the painful history South Africa endured during the arrival of settlers in the Western Cape,” Zungula said.
According to Zungula the proposed Cape Independence is nothing but a “thinly veiled” attempt to perpetuate hatred and intolerance.
“This bill, in our view, serves as a cunning ploy to further marginalise black South Africans, relegating them to the bottom of economic and social structures,” Zungula said.
He said it was imperative that the citizens of South Africa recognise the insidious nature of this agenda and stand united against any forces that seek to erode the hard-fought gains in equality and inclusion.
Western Cape contain SA history
Zungula said the Western Cape was an integral part of South Africa containing the history of settlers and the first inhabitants of South Africa, the Khoi people. He said the province could not be divorced from South Africa’s past and future.
“The ATM wishes to caution the citizens of South Africa regarding the DA’s recent appointment of an international consulting firm to supposedly promote the party’s interests in the US. This move raises concerns about potential foreign interference in our domestic political landscape and questions the transparency of such engagements,” Zungula said.
