Action SA founder and leader Herman Mashaba made a strong pitch for the role of religion-based morality as a basis for South African life.
Speaking to Alec Hogg on BizNewsTV, he described the importance of his Christian faith, saying that as a schoolboy in the 1960s, prayer was a major element in forging resilience through the travails of the time.
He said that worldwide, Communists aimed to destroy faith and families, because ‘if [people] don’t fear God, they fear guns.’ The ANC, he said, was ‘evil’.
He added that he wanted to live in country that honoured God – ‘I don’t mind which God’, noting that he had friends of all faiths and of none.
He went on to describe the difficulties of working in coalitions, and his rocky relationship with the Democratic Alliance. However, he categorically ruled out a deal with the ANC: ‘Over my dead body.’
He also dismissed polling results that showed Action SA was making limited inroads. He said that the party operated ‘on the ground’ – drawing on his business experience competing with larger industry players – and was putting considerable effort into reengaging people who had become disillusioned with politics.
He added that while he occasionally ran into former DA leader Mmusi Maimane, the two had no political relationship.
The full interview can be seen here.