The African National Congress (ANC) will hold its crucial Special National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting in Boksburg, east of Johannesburg, later this morning to discuss various options to constitute a government within the next two weeks.
Some party members say the ANC-Democratic Alliance (DA) marriage is the best option for the country’s stability.
Others, including alliance partners the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) and the South African Communist Party (SACP), have strongly rejected the deal.
Cosatu says a coalition government between the ANC will not be beneficial to workers.
SACP General Secretary Solly Mapaila says the Communist Party is clear about its anti-capitalist trajectory.
“We support a minority government with GNU features. That is the government of national unity features without the role and participation of DA-led forces. So we are clear about our anti-capitalist trajectory. The problem we face in this country is because we have pursued over the years and have been beholden to the interest of capitalists who have always threatened us about the stability of our economy”
For the first time in 30 years, the ANC has failed to obtain majority votes to form a new government, with their votes falling to just over 40% nationally, with voter turnout at just 58.61%.
After marathon talks at the top officials level and their National Working Committee, ANC spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri says they are now looking at the idea of forming a government of unity or a minority government.
She says they have met with the DA, the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), the National Freedom Front (NFP) and the Patriotic Alliance (PA).
She says the recently formed uMkhontho weSizwe (MK) party, which is now the third-strongest party in the country, is not giving them a hearing.
However, Bhengu-Motsiri says there is fear about some of the permutations with some NEC members and alliance partners not happy with a possible DA coalition arrangement.
