The Referendum Party has slammed the Democratic Alliance (DA) for supposedly betraying its voters over its flip-flopping stance on the Expropriation Act, accusing it of singing for its supper in the Government of National Unity (GNU).

The Referendum Party, which is advocating for the autonomy of the Western Cape, said the DA was suddenly supporting land expropriation ideas sold by the ANC.

But it is not just this party that is accusing the DA of selling voters short, with netizens spewing anger on social media over its "dishonest" handling of the Expropriation Act.

Last Month, President Cyril Ramaphosa signed the Expropriation Bill into law, which provides for the expropriation of land without compensation.

"We expected the ANC to pretend 'expropriation with nil compensation' is not the same as 'expropriation without compensation'. We didn't expect the DA to back up their ruse," the party said.

Speaking to IOL, party leader Phil Craig said the DA has been weak from the outset in the GNU and was not doing enough to protect its constituents.

"The GNU represents the realisation of a 15-year DA plan, that SA can be saved by a centrist coalition government consisting of the DA and the good ANC," he said.

According to Craig, this was betrayal. He said the DA fought the Act and even opposed it in Parliament, saying it must not happen.

"We are not at all happy about how the DA is handling the expropriation issue, and neither are its own supporters. The DA voted against this bill, but now it is helping the ANC sell it. It is a betrayal," Craig said.

He explained that the issue is not that land has already been taken, there hasn't been enough time, "the issue is that land can and will be taken".

He said it was disgraceful that the DA was not making this point.

"Undermining property rights is not only immoral, but it will have disastrous consequences for an economy already in deep trouble."

Craig urged the DA to use US President Donald Trump's comments and the international pressure to force the ANC to back down on the issue of nil compensation.

"The ANC has chosen to hide behind semantics. Trump says land is being expropriated, the ANC says it is not. The DA has effectively taken the ANC's side. The Bill has only just been signed into law," he maintained.

Some of the DA voters took it to X to raise their concerns about the blue party.

The former DA MP Renaldo Gouws said he never have imagined a day where the DA would defend expropriation without compensation.

"There are no misconceptions here, it's a simple case of you creating a narrative warning South Africans about EWC and the Expropriation Bill through years of campaigning for elections ... and now you are telling South Africans it's fine, don't stress.

"I don't know what is going on in the DA, but I can't realistically even begin to understand or reason as to how this happened.

"Call me a bitter ex or face the facts. The DA, as we knew it, died a sudden death the moment they signed on the dotted line to form part of the GNU," @RenaldoGouws.

"I no longer trust the DA. They are not on our side. They are in bed with the WEF," @katiabeeden said.

"The DA has succumbed to the ANC, how pathetic. We did not vote for the DA to play roll over!" @costakonti1 said.

"The Democratic Alliance peddled the disinformation. Your campaign was dishonest, inflammatory and aligned to AfriForum and other bad faith players.

"The DA are equally responsible for the “misconceptions”. You cannot come here pretending to have clean hands. Your hands are stained," @brettherron.

Furthermore, Craig said their vision is for a state built on non-racialism (a meritocracy), private property rights, law and order, a professional civil service, and a market-oriented economy. This will create a better life for all, he added.

"Expropriation without compensation (or nil compensation - same thing) or even the threat of it is economically destructive and we therefore are strongly opposed to the Expropriation Act in its current form," he said.

Meanwhile, the DA has called on Trump’s administration to reconsider threats to cut critical aid funding in response to the Expropriation Act, saying “it is not true that the Act allows land to be seized by the state arbitrarily".

kamogelo.moichela@iol.co.za

IOL Politics