In South Africa, the African National Congress (ANC) has agreed with several parties to form a government coalition. The coalition includes the centrist-liberal Democratic Alliance (DA), the nationalist Zulu party Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) and several small groups, said ANC Secretary General Fikile Mbalula at a press conference in Cape Town on Thursday. The ANC, which has been in power for 30 years, did not achieve an absolute majority for the first time in the parliamentary elections at the end of May.
As a result of the agreement, the incumbent head of state Cyril Ramaphosa is likely to be confirmed at the inaugural meeting of the newly elected parliament on Friday. “We have made a breakthrough and agree that we must work together,” said ANC Secretary General Mbalula. It is a cabinet of national unity.
According to Mbalula, in addition to the ANC, DA and IFP, the alliance includes the small centre-left party United Democratic Movement and the right-wing Afrikaner Freedom Front Plus (FF). Several smaller parties have declared their limited support, including the Muslim party Al Jamaah, the centre-left formation Rise Mzansi and the National Coloured Congress.
The left-wing radical party Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), however, was not included in the coalition, nor was the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party of former head of state Jacob Zuma. In recent days, MK had contested the results of the parliamentary elections and declared that its 58 MPs would boycott the people’s parliament.
The ANC received the most votes in the parliamentary elections on May 29 with 40 percent and had 159 of the 400 MPs – the party previously had 230 MPs. A series of corruption scandals in the ANC leadership, high unemployment, the weak economy, high crime rates and constant power outages, among other things, led many South Africans to turn away from the ruling party.