Cape Town – A grouping of left-wing political parties has ruled out supporting ANC-led coalition governments involving the Democratic Alliance (DA) in hung municipalities, while dismissing suggestions that President Cyril Ramaphosa’s resignation would pave the way for renewed political ties with the African National Congress (ANC).
The position was outlined by the Conference of the Left during a media briefing at the Birchwood Hotel and OR Tambo Conference Centre in Boksburg on Thursday, where MK Party member Advocate Dali Mpofu delivered a joint statement on behalf of the grouping.
The coalition brings together organisations including the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), South African Communist Party (SACP), MK Party, Afrika Mayibuye Movement, African Congress for Transformation and the Pan Africanist Congress of Azania, among others.
According to IOL, Mpofu said the organisations had collectively secured more than 20% of the popular vote in the recent local government elections, giving them a significant political voice in the country’s changing electoral landscape.
Progressive political forces
He rejected suggestions that the grouping was seeking to return to the ANC should Ramaphosa step down, saying its objective was to unite progressive political forces.
“Those votes come from our people, they did not come from the air. So we have to acknowledge it. You’re saying are we going to join the ANC? No, we say we are inviting the ANC to join this effort of uniting our people and they will make up their own minds,” Mpofu said.
The grouping also called on parties in the Government of National Unity (GNU), particularly the ANC, to demand the removal of the DA and Freedom Front Plus (FF Plus), which it described as right-wing reactionary forces.
“We call on those within the current national coalition and in the former liberation movement in particular to demand the removal of right-wing reactionary forces from the so-called GNU,” Mpofu said.
Government’s economic policies
He criticised the government’s economic policies, arguing that they had made the cost of living increasingly unaffordable for ordinary South Africans.
The position comes as the ANC faces difficult coalition negotiations following its poor performance in the November 4 local government elections, which saw its national support fall to 30.76%, compared with 45.59% in 2021.
Several municipalities, including Johannesburg, Tshwane, Ekurhuleni and eThekwini, are facing coalition arrangements after no party secured an outright majority.
In a separate report, Eyewitness News (EWN) also reported that the left-wing grouping would not support ANC-led coalitions involving the DA, with Mpofu saying the parties were unwilling to enter arrangements with organisations whose ideologies conflicted with their principles.
Meanwhile, Business Day reported that the Council of the Left was prepared to work with the ANC on condition that it abandoned its alliance with the DA and FF Plus.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
