Mmusi Maimane: Prophet or Puppet?
‘Mmusi Maimane Prophet or Puppet’ is a valuable unauthorized biography of Maimane written by one of South Africa’s experienced political journalists, S’thembiso Msomi. Mmusi Maimane was elected as the first black leader of the Democratic Alliance (DA) on May 10, 2015. The DA is a South African political party and the official opposition to the ruling African National Congress (ANC).
The book’s title is a play on Maimane’s dual roles as lay preacher, thus ‘Prophet’, and as leader of a formerly mostly ‘white’ party, thus the ‘Puppet’. Political enemies of the DA have denounced Maimane as nothing more than a ‘rent a black’ puppet in the party.
The book ‘Mmusi Maimane Prophet or Puppet’ is both an excellent scholarly work and a fascinating story of a man who succeeded maverick former DA leader Helen Zille. It is part biography (of Maimane) and part contemporary history of DA’s metamorphosis from an exclusive club of classical liberals to a ‘broad church’ that appeals to the party’s non-traditional support base, primarily the black constituency. In tracing Maimane’s life path, it sheds new light on the man’s and district attorney’s political transformation from a ‘white’ political party to one whose new leader shared similar experiences to those of most voters. As the mantra goes, Maimane seeks to turn the DA into an oasis of freedom, equity and opportunity for all. The book seeks and succeeds in bringing to light Maimane’s early successes in his quest to re-present the opposition party as a party for all committed to a shared future with the majority of South Africans.
The author, Msomi spent several months following his subject in his daily political engagements with a variety of constituents. In Msomi’s attempt to provide a complete picture of the DA’s first black leader, he attempted to connect the dots in Maimane’s life, speaking with his childhood friends, acquaintances, teachers, and family members. He spent a considerable amount of time with the man who recruited Maimane into the DA. We learn that it took three years for DA MP Ian Ollis to finally win Maimane over the ‘blue machine’.
Msomi also waded through a mountain of documentary evidence, including newspaper clippings, Maimane speeches, and broadcast clips, to give us a complete picture of Maimane. In his analyzes of Maimane’s speeches, Msomi was able to discern a man at ease with himself. It is clear that Maimane is personable, warm and a prominent speaker among South African politicians.
‘Mmusi Maimane Prophet or Puppet’ follows Maimane from his birth in Dobsonville, a township in Greater Soweto, Johannesburg, South Africa, to his meteoric rise from obscurity to head one of the fastest growing opposition parties in South Africa. He touches on how he dealt with the idea of joining a liberal political party considering that he had always identified with the ANC. Msomi brings to life the voices and places that made Maimane in a way devoid of bravado. Msomi is critical of, but empathetic towards, his main character (Maimane), whom he believes is a rising political star.
On a macro level, ‘Mmusi Maimane Prophet or Puppet’ is a critic of the South African brand of liberalism. On a micro level, it is a study of the evolution of the DA’s political strategy since Maimane took over the kidneys. It does well by providing a balanced analysis of the DA’s political fortunes; its ideological confusion and growth strategy. However, it lacks Maimane’s exclusive voice, as it seems the author was unable to have an in-depth interview with him.
The result of Msomi’s work is a rich contemporary look at the current state of the DA, its prospects and weaknesses in this fast-paced contemporary politics of our country. The issue of whether Maimane is a puppet is well disputed, but not the ‘Prophet’ part of the equation. Msomi argues that Maimane could be a prisoner of the district attorney’s political past, hence the question, Prophet or puppet?