Trade union federation Cosatu has revealed it was not the first time the DA had attempted to "capture" former alliance leaders through "a marriage of convenience". This follows revelations in the Sunday Times that DA leader Mmusi Maimane had held a meeting with former Cosatu boss Zwelinzima Vavi.It reported the two had met at a Johannesburg hotel on February 1 this year to discuss forming a coalition government in the highly contested Mandela Bay metro should the ANC fail to win an outright majority there.Cosatu's first deputy president, Tyotyo James, told reporters yesterday said former DA leader Helen Zille had told Vavi they could remove the ruling party from power if they merged."Helen Zille had some discussions with Vavi while he was the general secretary of Cosatu [in which] she said to him: 'If you can come over to me, we can make a formidable partnership against the ANC. The DA needs you, we need you.' That was in 2012. Subsequent to that, we found DA pamphlets here at Cosatu House . [and] of course we spoke against that behaviour as the leadership," said James."He must deny this one again as he has denied that he had meetings with the DA."The Sunday Times reported that, according to insiders, the DA was prepared to offer Vavi the post of deputy mayor if the United Front, to which he has been linked, won a sizeable number of wards and helped to reduce the ANC's majority to under 50% in the August 3 municipal elections.At the same media conference Cosatu president S'dumo Dlamini said EFF leader Julius Malema's comments that his party would have "to remove the government through the barrel of a gun" were "irresponsible and outrageous"...