As SA’s political landscape grows increasingly uncertain, key parties within the ruling coalition continue holding separate meetings to deliberate on the future of the nation’s fragile government of national unity (GNU).
Amid pressure from organised business lobby groups to resolve the impasse, the GNU’s two anchor parties, the ANC and DA, are holding separate meetings over the next two days to discuss the future of coalition.
The FF Plus’ federal management committee voted against the fiscal framework along with the DA last Wednesday and will discuss the matter on Tuesday, while the IFP’s leadership was set to announce the outcomes of its meetings about the coalition on Monday.
Business Day understands the current configuration of the 10-member GNU will be the key question under consideration within discussions among the respective parties including how to formalise the operations of the coalition government and its dispute mechanisms. The GNU founding document, the statement of intent, was signed by all parties in the wake of the 2024 elections and the clearing house mechanism, headed up Deputy President Paul Mashatile, was “insufficient and needs to be reworked”, according to a source close to the discussions.
The ANC’s national working committee (NWC), which is responsible for the daily operations of the party, is set to meet on Monday afternoon to decide on the way forward. The NWC will then make recommendations to the party’s NEC on the way forward.
Following a meeting with his ANC branch in Soweto on Sunday, president Cyril Ramaphosa pushed back against big business attempting to influence the outcomes of the discussions among parties saying “business does not dictate what happens in government. We make our own decisions on everything that advances the interests of our people.”
Ramaphosa confirmed he and DA leader John Steenhuisen received correspondence from a business delegation, as first reported by News24, urging that the GNU remain intact.
“We are going to have cool heads, we are going to sit back, examine everything properly without being driven by emotions and sectional interests. We will be driven by what is important for the people of SA,” he said.
Parliament adopted the 2025 fiscal framework and revenue proposals as tabled in the Budget Speech by the finance minister and which also includes a 0.5 percentage point VAT increase.
The passing of the fiscal framework faces a legal challenge from the DA.
For the FF Plus, which also voted against the fiscal framework, its federal executive management committee still intends to participate in the coalition government. The party’s top brass held meetings following the outcomes of parliament’s vote on the fiscal framework last Wednesday and reaffirmed its commitment to the GNU, saying “the party will not let the decisions or actions of another party affect its own decision-making”.
In a statement, the FF Plus said the GNU, however, required a “reset” without mentioning what the reset would look like.
“The FF Plus wants to be part of a GNU whereby the country’s problems are effectively addressed, and the ideals and needs of Afrikaners and other minorities in SA are met. That is the party’s commitment, but it warrants a thorough reconsideration of every party involved in the GNU,” the party said.
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