ANC First Deputy Secretary-General Nomvula Mokonyane has vowed that the 112-year-old liberation movement will not die in their hands.
After enjoying impressive electoral support since 1994, the ANC has for the first time lost its majority and is now forced into a Government of National Unity with nine parties.
The party’s top brass is now locked in a three-day NEC meeting which will be followed by the NEC Lekgotla, to reflect on the outcomes of the elections and re-assert the party as the leader of society.
With fears that its future generations will inherit a dying organisation, Mokonyane said the ANC will not die in their lifetime.
“I take a full exception to say we are presiding over a carcass, a party that receives 40 percent and what we are sitting and deliberating on is that it will not become a carcass in our lifetime. And what we are going to do, renewal must not be subjective, recruitment of members must go with political education. The ANC that gets preoccupied with the elections of internal structures must be something of the past and a branch of the ANC that is functional must be measured not on the basis of 100 members but must be on the basis of its programs in the community. So, that it’s not a door-to-door for the first time in five years.”
The few remaining opposition parties in Parliament say the Government of National Unity (GNU) has not weakened the country’s opposition politics.
At least 10 parties have joined the ANC in the newly constituted GNU.
For now, it’s only the EFF, the MK Party and ActionSA who have openly rejected the GNU invitation.
Eleven of the 18 political parties in Parliament, are part of the GNU. Collectively, they represent over 70% of the votes cast in the 2024 elections. Opponents of the GNU are reluctant to join over fear of a weakened opposition.
But the EFF has promised to take opposition politics to another level in the 7th democratic Parliament.
“Opposition politics is as strong as ever with the EFF occupying those benches. We will relentlessly continue to hold the executive accountable, we are actively pursuing justice for the crimes that occurred on [President]Cyril Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala farm. We are geared up to challenge that white supremacist DA and more over we are committed to preventing any regression in transformation caused by the appointment of white supremacist ministers by that so called GNU,” EFF spokesperson says Leigh-Ann Mathys.
For its part, ActionSA has vowed to use its opposition status to champion accountability.
“We are going to punch far above our weight. We have a history in South Africa of opposition parties that fight wrongdoing that operate way bigger than they are in real life and we are going to work with other political parties to make sure that our voice of six Members of Parliament feels like 60. We are going to be the point of the spear of accountability in the South African Parliament and will do so unapologetically,” says ActionSA National Chairperson Michael Beaumont.
The MK Party shares the same sentiments, insisting that the ANC can only survive if it works with the left-wing parties.
“What we are saying is come a time very shortly we are going to continue to push and hold them accountable for implementation and delivery. But they won’t be able to do that because they will be arguing on policy so who’s going to win? Us as the incoming government. And the only way to ensure that we get our country back is for the ANC to wake up from their slumber on the back of this right-wing alliance that they have now out themselves in and start working with progressive parties like the MK and the EFF but without Cyril Ramaphosa,” says MK Party spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela.
Political pundits say these former political rivals, working together in the GNU, is just a political re-alignment.
“I do not necessarily think that opposition politics has been weakened based on the fact that about ten parties have joined the ANC in government. So, what is happening is just a realignment and one, if we are looking at opposition politics, should therefore put hope and faith in the likes of EFF and ActionSA and MK Party. These are some of the parties that might be replacing that vacuum that now has been left by the DA to try and sound alarm bells to try and create campaigns, going to the media if they want to hold power to account,” says political analyst Dr Tshepang Molale.
As the parties in the GNU get down to work, many believe the next five years will redefine the country’s politics, for better or worse.
After a thorough consultation, the ANC says President Cyril Ramaphosa is set to announce his new executive within the next few days. The party released a statement after bagging the tenth member for its government of national unity initiative.
The ANC is pleased to welcome the 10 founding political parties to the Government of National Unity as follows: ANC, PA, DA, IFP, GOOD, PAC, FF+, UDM, Rise Mzansi and Al Jamah.#GNU#LetsDoMoreTogetherpic.twitter.com/uMedrCA6sJ
Al Jama-ah party is the latest to have joined the unity government at the weekend bringing the total number of signatories to ten with more still set to join.
Playing its cards close its chest, the ANC is seemingly not prepared to give up any of the economics or security portfolios. It also wants to keep the Presidency with the consensus that Paul Mashatile should stay.
Meanwhile, the DA is believed to have set its eyes on the Minister in the Presidency with its leader John Steenhuisen’s hat thrown in the ring. But, constitutionally it remains the president’s prerogative on who to field in his executive.
In Limpopo Dr Phophi Ramathuba is set to replace Stan Mathabatha who has served two terms as Premier.
Maqueen Letsoha-Mathae is set to replace Mxolisi Dukwana as Free State Premier.
Three other provinces where the ANC got majority votes to govern alone are the Eastern Cape where Oscar Mabuyane remains the Premier, the North West where the party’s Deputy Chairperson Lazarus Mokgosi is now the new Premier, with Mpumalanga fielding party provincial Chair, Mandla Ndlovu.
Gauteng has retained Panyaza Lesufi as Premier and Dr Zamani Saul will continue as the Northern Cape Premier.
The ANC says it believes this crop of leaders is equal to the challenges facing their provinces.
Both the Western Cape and KZN are out of their reach with the DA winning and having Allan Winde as Premier and the KZN Premier candidate still to be decided after the MK Party received over 45% of the votes in the province.
As the race to form a government continues, some political parties will be reporting back on their coalition talks on Monday. They have just over a week to constitute a government following the declaration of election results last Sunday.
The Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) National Executive Committee will receive a report back from its Coalition Task Team while the Democratic Alliance (DA) Federal Executive is expected to brief the party’s Federal Council on its coalition talks with the African National Congress (ANC). The party’s national spokesperson, Solly Malatsi, says they should know their position later on Monday.
“The party’s Federal Council which is the senior decision-making body of the DA in between congresses, will convene on Monday, where it will, among other things, be briefed by our negotiating team on the status of the negotiations between the ANC and other parties. To this end, there will then be a discussion by the Federal Council on those negotiations and we will hopefully have an update that we will be in a position to communicate following the conclusion of the Federal Council.”