Johannesburg - DA MP John Steenhuisen will no longer continue as the chief whip of the DA caucus in Parliament.
Steenhuisen explained on Twitter on Thursday that his term as the chief whip for the DA caucus was linked to now-former DA leader Mmusi Maimane's resignation as DA leader in Parliament. As such, he will no longer serve in the role as Maimane announced his exit from the DA and as a member of Parliament.
Steenhuisen said he remains a member of the DA and is "committed to the cause".
blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Let me be clear: I have NOT resigned from the @Our_DA or Parliament. The Leader of the party appoints the Chief Whip. With Mmusi’s resignation from Parliament my term as Chief Whip ends. I remain a committed and determined member of the party and cause.
— John Steenhuisen MP (@jsteenhuisen) October 24, 2019
Maimane announced on Wednesday he will no longer lead the DA following a long DA FedEx meeting. DA chairperson Athol Trollip also announced his resignation alongside Maimane.
Maimane had said he would continue serving as an MP and DA leader in Parliament until the end of the year, but on Thursday he announced he would no longer do so.
He said the effects of the political attacks against him were grave.
Video: Kim Kay/African News Agency
Federal council chairperson Helen Zille said the FedEx's discussions were dominated by Maimane and Trollip's decisions.
She said the FedEx would meeting on Thursday to discuss the matter of who will replace Maimane.
The party is also taking legal advice on the matter, Zille said. She said the party would have hoped for both Maimane and Trollip to stay on until a special congress was held in April.
"A great deal of the meeting was spent discussing today what was said by Mmusi and Athol. We would have preferred for Mmusi and Athol to have stayed until a congress. We now have a challenging road ahead," she said.