With the deadline for the first sitting of the new National Assembly just seven days away, the spotlight has fallen on the politicians appointed by the major parties to try to forge agreement on some form of governing partnership.
In the wake of the ANC’s drubbing at the polls, its national executive committee this week decided the party’s best option was to try to form a government of national unity (GNU) — though political analysts point out this is just a euphemism for “coalition”.
The DA and the IFP said they would be willing to participate in a GNU, but the MK Party of Jacob Zuma and the EFF of Julius Malema rejected any model that would include the DA or FF+. And both Zuma and Malema have repeatedly denounced ANC leader Cyril Ramaphosa.
The ANC named its head of policy and research, Fébé Potgieter-Gqubule, among its team for negotiating terms and conditions of a GNU.
Their kind of negotiating strategy has always been the behaviour and response they have had in parliament. It’s been a very confrontational, combatant, aggressive pushback
— Sanusha Naidu, political analyst
The DA is deploying federal council chair Helen Zille, former party leader Tony Leon, federal chair Ivan Meyer, chief whip Siviwe Gwarube, Western Cape premier Alan Winde and strategist Ryan Coetzee as its negotiators.
Zille, often the focus of controversy, led the DA to its best electoral showing 10 years ago, when the party won 22%. It won just less than that last month.
Political analyst Sanusha Naidu said those on the DA team understood what negotiation strategy was now required, and what compromises they might need to make.
The same could not be said for the EFF. “They have never been in this context. Their kind of negotiating strategy has always been the behaviour and response they have had in parliament. It’s been a very confrontational, combatant, aggressive pushback.
“So, I wonder how you are going to find that level of engagement when already you have seen Julius Malema post on X that he doesn’t agree with a GNU as a model to go forward. Already you can see the irreconcilable areas. You already start off on a bad foot.”
The EFF has deployed its deputy president Floyd Shivambu, secretary-general Marshall Dlamini, party chair Veronica Mente and MP Vuyani Pambo to negotiate in any power-sharing talks.
Naidu said that the negotiation process would start with bilateral talks between whichever parties were willing to co-operate and move on to multiparty discussions. “You must have them all in some kind of room if they all agree with the principles the president outlined.”
She said the ANC may have some level heads among its negotiators, but most had little experience. The exception was Potgieter-Gqubule — “she is good at this”.
Political analyst Susan Booysen said that the negotiations now were not about planning some “grand future” but were focused on the immediate nitty gritty of exiting the governance “quagmire” left by the election outcome.
“I don’t think there is a platform on which all the great negotiating skills are required, although it is a statement of how important the parties regard the negotiations if they do pull out an A-team,” Booysen said.
She said younger people such as the EFF’s Pambo should not be underestimated; he led the negotiations in the Fees Must Fall movement and extended the protest beyond Wits University.
“There are different types of negotiating skills there,” Booysen said, adding: “Opportunistic flexibility, I see that coming in quite a bit.”
She said that while the parties were portraying the GNU model as different to a coalition, it came down to the same thing. “It’s a big coalition, an inclusive coalition where you open the doors to other parties or to anybody who wants to be involved. GNU is just a form of coalition.”
The challenge with coalitions right now in South Africa is that you don’t have legislation that governs coalitions. So with the GNU you have the opportunity to also put into effect some kind of policy design framework that says that you can’t collapse this GNU
— Naidu
She said even the “supply-and-confidence” model that has been mooted — whereby the ANC would try to operate as a minority government with co-operation from other parties on a case-by-case basis — was effectively a kind of minimalist coalition.
“Political parties seem to try to talk their way out of going into coalitions because coalitions come with a negative and adverse connotation. But these are all coalitions.”
She noted that GNUs were usually formed in times of crisis, such as after a war.
Naidu described a GNU as a broad working arrangement that enabled a government to operate.
“In the German model you have parties that can have their own independence,” she said.
“They can disagree with each other, but they come together on particular issues. You have a working relationship of consensus, but it means you can still be critical of each other but in a manner where you also realise there is a greater and public good in all of this.
“Public good is the national interest of the state. A coalition is a more parochial way in which you divide, and you do things,” Naidu said.
“The challenge with coalitions right now in South Africa is that you don’t have legislation that governs coalitions. So with the GNU you have the opportunity to also put into effect some kind of policy design framework that says that you can’t collapse this GNU.”
The IFP has deployed seven members of its NEC to conduct talks — deputy president Mzamo Buthelezi, secretary-general Siphosethu Ngcobo, deputy national chair TP Madlopha-Mthethwa, treasurer-general Narend Singh, national spokesperson Mkhuleko Hlengwa, KwaZulu-Natal chair Thami Ntuli and Gauteng chair Bonginkosi Dhlamini.
The Patriotic Alliance’s leader Gayton McKenzie and his deputy Kenny Kunene are personally conducting negotiations.
The MK Party is engaging through such members as Tom Moyane, Sihle Ngubane, Nathi Nhleko and Duduzile Zuma.
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