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Dion George keeps options open as ActionSA signals willingness to talk
A political exit that keeps echoing
When Dr Dion George walked away from the Democratic Alliance earlier this month, it was never going to be a quiet departure. His resignation has continued to ripple through South African politics, and now ActionSA has confirmed that it would be open to welcoming him, should he choose that path.
For now, George is pressing pause. Speaking publicly, he has made it clear that he has not joined another party and has not yet decided what comes next. Instead, his focus is firmly on an escalating legal dispute with the DA, which he says must be resolved before any future political plans take shape.
ActionSA signals interest without pressure
ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba’s party has positioned itself carefully. While confirming that its membership is open to any South African aligned with its mission, the party has avoided directly courting George.
National spokesperson Matthew George said ActionSA does not involve itself in factional fights within other parties but added that the serious claims made by Dion George about the DA deserve investigation by the relevant authorities.
The message is clear. The door is open, but there is no rush to push George through it.
Inside the DA fallout
George’s break from the DA followed a bitter public dispute with party leader John Steenhuisen and senior leadership. A member since 1995, George resigned as both a DA MP and the party’s federal chairperson of finance after being removed from Cabinet in November 2025 while serving as Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment.
He has said his political fate was sealed when the party requested his dismissal as minister, a move he claims he learned about through the media while attending COP30 in Brazil. He was replaced by DA spokesperson Willie Aucamp, whom George describes as the start of a coordinated effort to sideline him.
Since then, he has accused the DA leadership of being captured by ANC and criminal interests and of losing its backbone within the Government of National Unity by supporting ANC budgets and policies.
Allegations, denials, and legal battles
At the heart of the dispute are allegations that George misused public funds, interfered politically within his department, and brought the DA into disrepute. He has firmly rejected all claims.
George says his lawyers are currently engaging with the DA, and his legal team has strongly denied that he was ever formally charged. According to Gittins Attorneys Inc., there was no proper disciplinary or investigative process initiated in line with the DA’s own rules, and no formal opportunity given for George to respond.
The firm also dismissed claims of salary abuse and improper use of departmental information, stating that staff salaries are gazetted and legally regulated. They added that George and his staff were out of the country at the time he was removed and replaced.
The DA, through Federal Council chairperson Helen Zille, has maintained that George resigned before responding to allegations before the party’s Federal Legal Commission. Zille confirmed the internal process would continue, despite his resignation.
What this means for the opposition landscape
Independent political analyst Goodenough Mashego believes George’s next move will matter symbolically, even if it does not dramatically shift voter numbers.
Mashego noted that George is among the figures that Mashaba, Mmusi Maimane, and Mbali Ntuli once wanted to keep within the DA. All three have since left the party. Mashaba and Maimane departed in 2019 to form their own political movements, while Ntuli resigned in 2022 after 15 years with the DA.
Maimane’s Build One South Africa has since merged with GOOD and partnered with Rise Mzansi, with the alliance set to contest the 2026 local government elections under the banner Unite for Change.
Mashego also cast doubt on the DA’s ability to expand its support base, pointing to ongoing internal turmoil and what he described as a lack of a clear strategy to attract Black voters.
A waiting game with wider implications
For now, Dion George remains unaffiliated, publicly calm but legally combative. His resignation, he says, was a principled decision to remove political distractions rather than an admission of wrongdoing.
Whether he eventually joins ActionSA, another political home, or chooses a different route altogether, his exit has already reopened uncomfortable questions for the DA about discipline, dissent, and leadership in a shifting political era.
In the run-up to the 2026 local government elections, those questions are unlikely to fade quietly.
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Source: IOL
Featured Image: Newsday
