Durban — The tiny Al Jama-ah Party has lofty ambitions of becoming the kingmaker in what is expected to be the hung KwaZulu-Natal province after the May 29 elections.
The party went on a massive campaign offensive in Chatsworth, south of Durban, on Sunday.
Despite the party having no members in the 80-member provincial legislature, its premier candidate, Asghar Khan, is adamant the party will emerge as the kingmaker, and ultimately have the power to decide who governs the province.
In an interview with the Daily News, Khan said: “We have been around the province and people have been listening to us and have shown massive interest in our message.”
He does, however, concede that a daunting task lies ahead.
“The battle for KZN is intensifying. “All the parties are throwing in everything they have in their campaigns. It is going to be difficult, but we will emerge as kingmakers after the elections.”
Khan said the Al Jama-ah Party, which is traditionally known as a Muslim party, would now extend its reach to other religious and ethnic groupings.
“We have always embraced every person into our fold.
“But we will increase our voice so as to reach every person in every corner of our country that Al Jama-ah is a party that represents everyone who is aligned with our message,” said Khan.
Khan said they will extend their campaign to rural areas in the south of the province to spread their message of hope ahead of the elections.
Al Jama-ah’s shrewd political game saw its member, Kabelo Gwamanda, being elected as the mayor of Johannesburg, the country’s plum economic hub, last year, despite being a three-seat party in that municipality.
It remains to be seen, however, whether the party’s election strategy will pay dividends in KZN as the fierce scramble for the province rages on as elections draw closer.
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