South Africa: President Condemns Flag-Burning Election Ad
SASouth Africa: President Ramaphosa Condemns Flag-Burning Election Ad
The Facts
South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa on Tuesday condemned a controversial election advertisement by the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) depicting the national flag going up in flames.
In a statement, Ramaphosa described the ad as "desperate and inciteful" claiming it undermined the principles of democracy and unity ahead of the national and provincial elections on May 29 for "political party purposes."
The Spin
The outrageous ad proves that the DA has lost all respect for millions of South Africans for whom the flag is a symbol of victory over apartheid. Given that some countries consider it a crime to burn the flag, it is only thanks to South Africa's hard-won freedoms that the DA can run such a disgraceful ad in the first place. The disgracefultreacherous DA uses scaremongering tactics to win support, and no South African who loves their country and stands for a united and prosperous countrynation can vote for the DA.
The artificial fuss over the ad is a clear attempt by the South African political establishment to discredit the DA and distract from its massive failures. The powerful advertisement has struck a nerve within the desperate ANC by exposing its plans to form a doomsday coalition that would not only burn the SA flag to ashes but drive South Africa further into economic and political disaster. South Africa's decline must be halted at all costs and only the DA can put South Africa back on track.