Cape Town – The ANC’s national executive committee (NEC) will meet on Thursday to discuss coalition options, including a possible partnership with the DA and other parties.
The NEC, the party’s highest decision-making body between national conferences, will decide the party’s course following its loss of majority in the recent election, where it secured just over 40% of the vote compared to the DA’s 21.8%.
The ANC said on Wednesday it had reached out to rivals to form a government of national unity, after failing to win an outright majority in last week’s general election.
The final tally gave the ANC 159 members in the 400-seat National Assembly, its lowest score in a general election.
According to AFP, ANC spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri told reporters the party held “explorative” talks with several others, including the DA, IFP, EFF, NFP, and PA, as it attempts to secure enough parliamentary support to form a government and elect a president.
DA leader John Steenhuisen told Newzroom Afrika that coalition talks with the ANC and other parties are still in the early stages.
He emphasised the need for initial agreements and a common consensus on South Africa’s future before progressing.
[ON AIR] “We’ve met with the ANC and IFP but these are very much in the initial phases; there haven’t been any formal ideas or offers put on the table. We are waiting to see what will happen in the NEC. We hope to have some clarity by the weekend.” DA leader John Steenhuisen is… pic.twitter.com/4ugoUwM9cJ
— Newzroom Afrika (@Newzroom405) June 5, 2024
“We are too far away from the finalisation of this process to be dealing in granular detail. We still need to agree that we want to talk to each other, can we find a common consensus about what we believe is the future of SA? That is where these things start.
“We are still unsure whether talks are going to continue. We are unsure what the outcome of the various party meetings will be,” said Steenhuisen.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
