Credit: Siyabulela Duda
South Africa's Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) leader, Velenkosini Hlabisa, has announced that his party will form part of a government of national unity, which includes the African National Congress (ANC) and the largest opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA). The ANC has previously stated its desire to form a unity government and has engaged with all opposition parties. The new parliament is due to be sworn in on Friday, and the ANC would hope to have agreed a deal by then.
The ANC's vote fell below 50% for the first time since Nelson Mandela led them to victory in 1994 and ended the racist system of apartheid. The ANC received about 40% of the vote, with the Democratic Alliance (DA) at 22%, the MK party at 15%, and the radical Economic Freedom Fighters at 9%. The IFP, a conservative party with a strong Zulu base, received about 4% of the vote share in the election.
Many ANC activists would prefer a deal with the EFF and MK, both led by former senior ANC officials. However, such a coalition would alarm investors as these parties favor seizing white-owned land without compensation and nationalising the country's mines. The business community would prefer a coalition between the ANC and DA.
Bringing in other parties, such as the IFP, would help deflect criticism that the ANC leadership is "selling out" by working with the DA, seen by some South Africans as representing the country's white minority. The DA opposes two of the ANC's core policies: its black empowerment programme and the National Health Insurance Bill.
