Democratic Alliance (DA) leader John Steenhuisen has defended his party's controversial election ad, which included an image of the South African flag on fire.
He said the ad was a reminder to voters who were planning to vote for the ANC, EFF and MK coalition government in national and local elections later this month.
Steenhuisen describes the coalition of these parties as a “doomsday coalition” that will cause the country's economic decline. Steenhuisen campaigned for his party in east London on the theme of “Rescuing SA.''
The election advertisement was released on Sunday. It has already received over 3 million views on various platforms including social media. The ad has been widely criticized for the images used. The DA's office is unflinchingly supporting it.
“We used this flag as an allegory for the problems that South Africa is currently facing. Our economy is on fire, our infrastructure is on fire, our unemployment rate is on fire, our child malnutrition rate is on fire, and all of this is going on in the country. The ad says if you want to accelerate the flare-up, end the ANC. The coalition with the EFF is out,” Steenhuisen said.
The Ministry of Sports, Arts and Culture is considering legal action against the advertisement and the organization.
“The Democratic Alliance has decided to humiliate and offend the people of South Africa by displaying a political advertisement depicting the burning of the South African flag.The Minister said the flag represents our country and that the flag stands for diversity. He added that it not only represents unity, but also the unity of the nation,” said Lisa Mpondwana, spokesperson for the Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture.
Mr Steenhuisen promised 2 million jobs to the people of the state if the DA ruled the state.
Video: Election 2024 – DA Steenhuisen defends election ads
