ANC moves to undercut DA influence in GNU

The DA’s tendency to “blackmail” the ANC in the government of national unity (GNU) is behind the ANC considering inviting other parties to join the unity government, but the main idea is to weaken the DA’s influence in the national administration, according to experts.

Political analyst Sandile Swana said it also indicates growing frustration with the DA’s conduct in the GNU, not only by ANC members but also other parties such as the Herman Mashaba-led ActionSA.

In fact, he said, it had been a long time in the making that ActionSA and Rise Mzansi could be invited to participate fully in the GNU.

ANC plans to balance out DA’s sway – experts

Rise Mzansi is considered part of the GNU as its leader, Songezo Zibi, chairs the standing committee on public accounts (Scopa) and is part of the provincial executive council in Gauteng.

Analyst Goodenough Mashego said it was no surprise that the ANC intended to invite other parties into the GNU because that was its original position after the May 2024 elections and during the 1994 GNU.

“There is a realisation on the part of President Cyril Ramaphosa that the GNU is not going to work because there is a kingmaker – the DA.

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“Over the past year, the DA has been behaving like a kingmaker in the GNU, raising questions about the survival of the unity government,” Mashego said.

Swana and Mashego were reacting to reports that Ramaphosa and the ANC were considering inviting ActionSA and the little-known Western Cape-based National Coloured Congress to join the GNU.

Some said Rise Mzansi was also likely to be invited into the coalition at the national level, not just in Gauteng.

Bringing in ActionSA

But that would mean Zibi would have to relinquish his post as chair of Scopa, an important committee that holds the executive accountable for its spending.

Swana said the DA’s manner of raising irrelevant issues in order to expose the ANC, such as its opposition to the VAT increase early this year, was partly an attempt to win over the poor, but more to appeal to Afrikaner right-wing voters.

At the same time, the DA blackmailed the ANC, prompting some smaller black parties to want to assist the ANC to deal with the DA.

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“The main reason is the blackmailing tendency of the DA, sometimes immorally so, and that has activated anger from the likes of Mashaba and Zibi, Mmusi Maimane and so on,” Swana said.

The ANC would have liked the GNU to be able to make decisions without the veto power of the DA.

The DA should not have veto power. That’s the reason for this problem, Swana said.

DA shouldn’t have veto power – Swana

While the ANC is avoiding openly working with the EFF and other left-wing parties, the push for it to align with the US in the current tariffs debate is in conflict with the ANC’s pro-poor, problack perspective and this is what the Ramaphosa government was grappling with, he said.

It looked like the envisaged cooperation between the ANC and the smaller parties opposed to the DA might have the blessing of big business, which is the force behind the GNU of the ANC and the DA.

Swana said it might happen because business leadership might have approved it.

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Mashego said ActionSA is seen by business as a “DA-lite” and procapitalist and, therefore, acceptable to the captains of industry.

“The decision that Ramaphosa or the ANC took over the weekend to include these other parties is, in a way, to weaken the DA’s influence in the GNU, while also keeping the business interests.

“The GNU is a construct of business. It was created by business, it is not a political animal, but a business animal.

GNU a construct of business

“So, bringing in ActionSA is meant to bring in other people that business can trust so that even if the DA wakes up tomorrow and leaves the GNU, ActionSA as a party with the same DA ethos is still there,” Mashego said.

He said this is part of an ANC strategy to diminish the DA’s power in the GNU while trying to keep both the MK party and EFF away from the coalition.

This made Mashaba a potential candidate to be appointed to Ramaphosa’s Cabinet in future, he added.

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