Dianne Kohler Barnard was quoted in reports on Saturday as saying that she plans to appeal against the Democratic Alliance’s decision to fire her.

Her membership of the DA was terminated on Friday night after a meeting of the party’s federal executive.

This is after she was found guilty of misconduct for sharing a Facebook post praising former apartheid-era president PW Botha‚ for which she apologised “unreservedly” stating that she had not read the contents of the post fully before sharing it and had missed the reference to Botha.

DA spokesperson said Kohler-Barnard‚ a former journalist‚ had the right to appeal against the expulsion‚ which she had to do within 10 days.

The ANC on Saturday described Kohler Barnard’s expulsion as a “convenient publicity stunt”‚ saying it would do little to cleanse the party of “twin demons of racism and apartheid rule”.

A statement issued by the office of the ANC chief whip stated: “Until the DA has consistently dealt with all racists within its ranks‚ it would continue to struggle to convince South Africans that it has transformed and is a home for all people regardless of the colour of their skin.”

The Congress of People party (COPE) said it agreed with the DA’s decision to terminate Dianne Kohler Barnard’s membership of the party.

COPE spokesman Dennis Bloem said the damage she had caused to her party was “just too immense to ignore or treat lightly”.

“Those who unsparingly wield the sword on others when they act out of turn must fall on their sword when they do the same‚” he said.

“Our country buried apartheid 21 years ago. We certainly cannot allow its ghost to inhabit the present or the future. Those who yearn for the old order have no place in our society and least of all in the political sphere‚” Bloem added.