There has been much concern in some quarters around the voting out of Cilliers Brink as the mayor of Tshwane and what this means for the Government of National Unity (GNU).
Speculation has suggested that this could be the first crack in the GNU’s shell, with the anti-GNU faction in the ANC – which seems to be in control of Gauteng – seemingly gaining the upper hand, with the result being Brink’s being voted out in Tshwane. Brink’s ousting, thanks to an alliance between ActionSA, the ANC, and the EFF, now sees the ANC back in control of all three Gauteng’s metros, with the EFF also in government in all three. The DA, having governed all three at certain points since the 2021 local government poll, is now in the opposition benches in the trio.
The ousting of Brink and the DA comes after speculation that the GNU agreement nationally would filter down to provinces and municipalities. Such “Governments of Local Unity” (GLUs) would ideally help stabilise governance in a number of municipalities, particularly in metros where instability has been common. Talks were already quite far advanced in Ekurhuleni, eThekwini, and Nelson Mandela Bay but have now floundered after the events in Tshwane.
GNU under threat?
Concerns have thus been raised that the lack of co-operation between the DA and the ANC to secure these GLU agreements means that the GNU itself is under threat. But is this true and should it be? And is it healthy for South African democracy for our two biggest parties to work together in every instance?
When the GNU was first formed it faced opposition from within both its two biggest partners, the DA and the ANC. We know that in both parties there were factions that would have preferred a different outcome. There were some in the DA who would have preferred to remain on the opposition benches, while in the ANC it did seem that a large minority in the party’s national executive committee would have preferred some kind of agreement with the radicals of MK and the EFF.
It should thus be unsurprising that GNU-type agreements haven’t filtered down.
We should be even less surprised that it is in Gauteng that there seems to be the most resistance to a Government of Provincial Unity (GPU) – as was formed in KwaZulu-Natal between the DA, ANC, IFP, and NFP – and various GLUs.
Panyaza Lesufi, the chairman of the ANC in Gauteng, and premier of the province, has long shown himself to be sympathetic to the more radical wings of the party, as well as parties such as the EFF, and nobody should be surprised that unity-style agreements have not taken in the province.
But is this all necessarily a major concern?
Healthier
In fact, it is probably healthier for South African democracy, in overall terms, if the ANC and DA approach these coalition agreements on a case-by-case basis, rather than trying to compel sub-national entities, such as provinces and municipalities, to adopt them universally. In each municipality and province there are different political dynamics, depending on factors such as electoral outcomes and personalities involved.
For example, the forming of a GPU in KwaZulu-Natal went relatively smoothly for a number of reasons. Partly it was because the ANC was shellshocked after getting an absolute drubbing in the May election, falling from being the biggest party to only the third biggest. This also meant that it was a junior partner in the provincial coalition. In addition, the DA and the IFP have had a history of co-operation in the province, likely making the formation of a GPU smoother than in Gauteng. And there is also the absence of anyone like Lesufi, whose disdain for the DA had been clear for some time.
Having a standard agreement between the ANC and the DA on working together could also dilute democracy, which some have raised concerns about. Already there have been rumblings that the DA is no longer playing its usual role as a fierce parliamentary watchdog because it is in the GNU – these claims are probably exaggerated but may have some merit. A similar situation in the metros could perhaps be less than optimal.
Lessons from abroad
In addition, lessons from abroad show that parties can be in coalition nationally and be opponents elsewhere. For example, in Germany it is often the case that parties may govern at a federal level together, but face each other from across the political aisle in a number of states.
Nationally Germany is currently governed by a coalition made up of the Social Democrats (SPD), the Free Democrats (FDP), and the Greens. In the state of Hesse, for example, the SPD and the Christian Democrats (CDU) govern together, while the Greens sit in opposition (the FDP is not represented in the Hesse state parliament). In North-Rhine Westphalia it is a slightly different story, as the Greens are in a governing coalition with the CDU, while the SPD and FDP sit in opposition. In only one state – Rhineland-Palatinate – is the federal governing coalition replicated at state level.
India is a similar case. The current coalition, formed after the election held earlier this year, has not been replicated across the various states. Parties which may sit with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on the government benches in New Delhi could well sit on the opposite side from the BJP in the various state legislatures.
There is no reason this can’t be the case in South Africa, where GNU partners are adversaries at sub-national level, while the national coalition remains stable.
Coalition politics in South Africa is still fairly new. There are bound to be teething problems and observers shouldn’t be surprised at tensions between partners in the GNU, particularly the ANC and the DA, which have for so long been adversaries. Truth be told, it is more surprising that it has been relatively smooth sailing for the GNU so far. Of course, significant risks remain, especially in the next leadership battle within the ANC. But much can still happen before then.
As it stands, however, there are probably more reasons to be hopeful than despondent.
If you like what you have just read, support the Daily Friend.
Image by Clayton Majona from Pixabay