Simon Nare
THE fate of the multi-party coalition or government of national unity seems up in the air as the country waits with bated breath for President Cyril Ramaphosa to announce his Cabinet while the DA digs in its heels on the number of positions it is demanding for its cadres.
However, reports on Thursday morning seem to suggest that Ramaphosa has even toned down on the first offer (rumoured to be Trade and Industry) to the DA by replacing a senior portfolio with a less significant one that could further strain the relationship between the two parties.
South Africa has been without a Cabinet since last Wednesday when Ramaphosa was inaugurated as President of the 7th administration and talks on Cabinet positions between the DA and the ANC have been dragging on for days now.
It has been back and forth with the DA stirring widespread condemnation and ridicule after it tabled what sounded like an attempt at a hostile takeover of the government as it demanded 11 positions in each sector as well as Deputy President or alternatively a Minister in The Presidency among other portfolios.
The DA also made some bizarre demands in that all Director Generals in the departments allocated to it should be appointed within its circles, a move that smacked of cadre deployment, a policy over which it took the ANC to court and won.
Even more puzzling was the party’s demand that all tenders awarded after the pronouncement of the election date in the departments allocated to them be reviewed without giving an explanation.
The DA’s camouflaged cadre deployment was also called out by ANC tripartite alliance partner SACP and general secretary Solly Mapaila accused the party of trying to create an impression that it alone can solve the country’s problems when it has failed black people where it governs in the Western Cape.
A leaked DA letter to ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula didn’t help the situation because of its tone and the “imposing” demands the party was making on the governing party.
Many ANC leaders lambasted the demands contained in the letter with ANC First Deputy Secretary-General Nomvula Mokonyane describing them as imposing.
“No self-respecting organisation can actually settle on what the DA is putting because it is like they are imposing what they believe is good for them. They must actually appreciate that we all serve at the behest of the President in line with the constitution.
“Secondly, there are parties that also have to be accommodated because in line with Rule 23 of the Statement of Intent our intention is to appreciate and embrace everybody. Therefore, we are not responding to the demands of the DA. In negotiation it’s a give and take and the ultimatum that they have put is again an act that shows that their intention is not to be inclusive,” said Mokonyane in a television interview.
The DA on the other hand has been arguing that its demands were in line with the number of seats it secured in the elections and pointed to the Letter of Intent that it maintains should guide the negotiations around the Cabinet positions.
As a compromise, the ANC in response to the “outrageous and ridiculous” demands as described by Mbalula offered six Cabinet positions and seven deputy ministers in addition to deputy National Assembly Speaker which has already been sealed.
The stalled talks on the national level are said to also affect the announcement of the Gauteng provincial members of the executive council after premier Panyaza Lesufi was forced to postpone his announcement.
It was reported then that the postponement came after Lesufi was stopped in his tracks from announcing an all ANC MPLs and was instructed by Ramaphosa to include the DA members in the provincial cabinet.
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