Attempts by the ANC, DA, IFP and the NFP to elbow out uMkhonto we Sizwe Party (MKP) from forming a government in KwaZulu-Natal despite getting the lion’s share of the votes have been slammed, with political analysts describing the move as “undermining the will of the people”.
The MKP, which is disputing the outcome of last week’s elections, told “The Mercury” on Monday that it will “not negotiate with the ANC of Cyril Ramaphosa and the DA”.
The MKP won the majority of the votes in KZN and consequently, the most seats in the province in the general elections held last week.
It won 37 seats, with the IFP getting 15, the ANC 14, the DA 11, the EFF 2 and the NFP won 1 seat in the provincial legislature.
With its one seat, the NFP has proclaimed itself as the kingmaker, saying it will be an important player in forming a provincial government.
However, political analysts warned that attempts to form a government without the MKP would result in instability and chaos.
MKP’s Mervyn Dirks said the party will not talk to the DA and “Ramaphosa’s ANC”.
“I cannot confirm anything now, but one thing for sure is we will not talk with the DA and the ANC of Ramaphosa.
“With other parties there is a possibility. Parties like the EFF and the IFP know that they are currently in talks with the ANC on a national level, and that will make it difficult for us to have any discussion with them,” he said.
Dirks added that the MKP is also pushing for a vote recount.
An IFP member familiar with the party’s internal discussions, said they want to be part of a stable government.
The IFP has appointed a team to look into the coalition. It will make a recommendation to its NEC, which in turn will recommend to the national council that will then take the decision.
“We want to be in coalition with partners that will give us the premiership of the province; our premier is an experienced individual.
“We are number two in terms of the number of MPLs after the MKP. The MKP is unlikely to give up the premiership, that is why the party is leaning towards a DA, ANC and IFP coalition,” said the member, speaking on condition of anonymity.
“We want to be part of a governance that is stable, this coalition will give us that.
“In that context, the IFP would want to keep some distance from the EFF, considering how they behaved when we were in a coalition with them in municipalities like uMhlathuze,” said the member.
A DA member in the province said there have been informal talks in the province between four parties.
“There are only six parties in the legislature and we are talking to them, except for two parties, the EFF and the MKP.”
NFP leader Ivan Barnes said the party understands how critical the single seat they got is for the coalition government in the province.
“The NFP welcomes the single seat it got despite the different internal challenges. We believe that the seat we got is very critical.
“For now I can say we have had different informal talks with so many political parties besides the MKP. As the NFP we are willing to work with anyone who will put the needs of the people first,” Barnes said.
Political analyst Professor Sipho Seepe said based on the percentages of the parties, the MKP should lead any government formed in KZN.
“The people of this province have spoken. Failure to listen would be undermining the will of the people.”
The ANC has previously advocated that any party that has the most votes should lead that government, he said.
“The ANC cannot start behaving in a manner that it does not want directed at it; it cannot start a process of crowding out the winner of the election,” said Seepe.
Leaving out the MKP from the government is a recipe for disaster and instability, he warned.
“That will create a situation where 45% of the people in the room object to whatever you want to put on the table.”
Another political analyst, Makhosini Mgitywa, criticised the DA for saying “it is committed to keeping the MK Party and the EFF out of the provincial government”.
Writing on his Facebook page, Mgitywa said: “The MK Party got the highest number of votes in KZN and it must be allowed to form the government.
“If the DA wants to govern KZN it must win elections, just like it does in the Western Cape. The will of the voters must be respected.”
The Mercury