Alpha Ramushwana26 March 2024 | 5:30

Nyati refutes claims he was excluded from DA Parly candidate list: ‘I asked to be removed’

The DA youth leader said it's not yet time for him to occupy a seat in Parliament after his named failed to appear on the official opposition’s election candidate list.

Nyati refutes claims he was excluded from DA Parly candidate list: ‘I asked to be removed’

Picture: @NicholasNyati on X

JOHANNESBURG - Democratic Alliance (DA) youth leader Nicholas Nyati has refuted claims suggesting he was snubbed off the party’s candidate list for Parliament.

On Monday, the official opposition announced candidates who will represent it in the National Assembly and provincial legislatures after the elections.

ALSO READ: DA unveils 11 new faces to represent party at provincial, national level

Nyati told Eyewitness News that he requested his name to be removed from the list before it was finalised.

Nyati, who wants to see young people represented in Parliament, said it's not yet time for him to occupy a seat in the National Assembly.

Instead, Nyati said he felt he had a lot to offer as a councillor in Nelson Mandela Bay – a municipality run by an African National Congress-Economic Freedom Fighters coalition.

“Before the list was finalised, I wrote to Helen [Zille] to have my name removed. We had a long chat. She asked me to keep my name, but I felt that I have to be removed because I believe I have plenty of work to do in Nelson Mandela Bay.”

He also rebutted claims that he failed the DA’s selection processes to make the candidate list.