Jobaville
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – For the first time since Nelson Mandela negotiated an end to white minority rule, former bitter enemies have come together in South Africa and pledged to overcome ideological differences for the good of the country.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said the major political shift was a response to voters’ demands for solutions to growing woes – from high unemployment and economic stagnation to corruption and poor infrastructure.
But the prospect of the African National Congress – the liberation movement that liberated the country from apartheid – coming to power alongside the white-led Democratic Alliance (DA) does not satisfy many black South Africans.
“The ANC is siding with the enemies of progress,” said 25-year-old ANC voter Nathi Mboniswa, who fears the party could compromise its values in working with the DA.
Last month’s election, in which angry voters shattered the ANC’s 30-year majority, was disastrous. Ramaphosa, who had no choice but to share power, announced he would form a national unity government open to parties across South Africa’s political landscape.
But the election results suggest the ANC needs to bring in at least one of its biggest rivals – the business-friendly DA, the radical left-wing Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) or the populist uMkhonto we Sizwe.
The latter two refused to join the government, which included the Democratic Alliance.
After Ramaphosa was re-elected by lawmakers on Friday, Electronic Front leader Julius Malema used the allotted time for congratulations to slam the partnership with the DA.
“History will judge you and it will judge you harshly,” he said. “This is not a government of national unity. This is a grand alliance between the ANC and white monopoly capital.”
The DA wants to dismantle some ANC black empowerment policies and rejects any accusations of representing the country’s wealthy whites, saying its economic reforms will benefit all South Africans.
for the love of the people
After three decades of trying to break the ANC’s undisputed hold on power, South Africa’s second-largest party, the Democratic Alliance, emerges from coalition talks in a triumphant mood.
“The DA has taken this historic step out of our deep and abiding love for the people of this country,” its leader John Steenhuisen said in a televised speech, pledging to expand its presence in its strongholds success achieved.
The Western Cape, which the DA has controlled since 2009, is faring significantly better than the rest of the country, with lower unemployment, less severe blackouts and higher investment.
Convincing the skeptics won’t be easy, however.
In a country with a painful racial history, where white South Africans make up just 7% of the population, the DA has struggled to demonstrate that it reflects the aspirations of all.
The country’s predominantly white leadership doesn’t help either.
“The melanin quotient of the DA leader is the least important aspect of this historic deal,” senior DA official Helen Zille wrote on X on Friday, criticizing the international media attention on Steenhuisen’s campaign.
But the DA’s free-market, small-government ideology also worries many in South Africa, where 24 million people – more than a third of the population – rely on welfare to survive.
The vow to end the ANC-imposed racial quota system for employers has also drawn criticism, even as the economic impact of apartheid-era discrimination still lingers.
“I hope the ANC can ensure that progressive policies from the left are advocated,” said 22-year-old ANC supporter Kabelo Phungwayo.
‘Annihilation’
The ANC leadership has been at pains to allay such concerns within its own ranks.
Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula said details of how the alliance would operate had yet to be finalized. He also admitted that the ANC would “die” if it gave in to all the DA’s demands.
“We must be a revolutionary party,” he said on Friday. “If we lose our people, we will be wiped out.”
The parties continue to call the new political bloc a Government of National Unity, although the other two members of the coalition – the Inkatha Freedom Party and the Patriotic Union – are relatively minor figures.
Lukhona Mnguni of the Rivonia Circle think tank in Johannesburg said: “The ANC effectively shirked their responsibility to align themselves with the DA. So they then found the language to sanitize what was going on.”
Yet the best way to quell criticism and dispel doubts about working with district attorneys may be through action.
Polls last month made clear that even many of the ANC’s own supporters are tired of South Africa’s years of decline and are calling for new measures.
“This alliance marks the beginning of a new era in which South Africa’s leaders put aside their differences,” said Sandra Sholayan, a 56-year-old communications manager from east London who voted for the ANC.
“Together we can do more.”
