African Transformation Movement (ATM) president Vuyolwethu Zungula says his party is a step closer to introducing the Foreign Agents Bill in parliament.
The Private Members Bill, which he says is with Parliament’s legal department, is aimed at exposing foreign agents who are hiding behind the banner of NGOs and civil society groups, whilst pushing their own agendas.
He expects to table the Bill in Parliament in July.
Zungula also weighs in on a number of issues, including his party’s collaboration with the Umkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party, ahead of the 2026 polls.
The role of certain NGOs and civil society groups has recently come under scrutiny in the country. Some, including ATM president Vuyolwethu Zungula have accused them of being active in politics on behalf of foreign funders, to push a particular agenda or narrative in the country.
Zungula says it is for this reason that he will soon be tabling the Foreign Agents Bill in parliament.
“Now this is not a threat to civil society, actually it is going to give confidence to civil society that the players that are active in civil society do not have ulterior motives because civil society should operate in the best interest of the people. For example, we can’t have an NGO, Natasha, here in South Africa blocking any form of gas exploration, but the very same organisation is also registered and operational in Namibia for example. But whenever there is a gas exploration in Namibia it says nothing because it is the same organisation. Why does it block any form of development in South Africa and does not have any problem in a neighbouring country? So that is what we are trying to correct and safeguard, that we must not be played by NGOs because remember they are registered or funded from Europe, from America. So they have got stronger pounds or dollars which other people can use to influence our government officials, our processes, which at the end of the day is not advancing the cause of the ordinary South African citizen.”
He also comments on the 2025/2026 budget recently presented by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana.
Zungula says the progressive caucus rejects it, mainly opposing the proposed one percentage point VAT increase over two years.
“That is something that we need to do as a progress with caucus whereby we have agreed that we are not going to support that budget and at the same time we need to find ways in which we can sponsor ideas to the ruling party or the anc as to in terms of the budget deficit, what can we do instead of going to increase vat, because there is another echo and it was going to create jobs.”
Zungula also sought to clarify the collaboration between the ATM and the MK Party, saying that the two parties are not merging, but are merely working together as they share the same interests.
“But there are a few things I want to clarify, the first one is that there is no merger. Secondly, there is no collapsing or dissolution of any political party, both political parties are going to continue to exist, and they are going to continue with their programmes. But it is just a matter of discussing at a later stage what then becomes the modalities, we have already seen it now in some of the by-elections whereby they were contesting, and we were not contesting. We said to the members and supporters of the ATM, let them vote for MK because you are not on the ballot paper, so that is the kind of working together that we are thinking about whereby we are thinking about what is in the best interest of the people instead of just focusing inward in terms of our own parties.”
The party has already started gearing up for next year’s local government polls.
