ANC NWC resolves that party must revisit negotiations with GNU partners, those who helped pass budget
Insiders in the closed meeting, which took place on Monday, said that this could mean that a Cabinet reshuffle was on the cards.
Ministers and deputy ministers of the Government of National Unity pose after being sworn in at the CTICC in Cape Town on 3 July 2024. Picture: @GovernmentZA/X
JOHANNESBURG - EWN has learnt that the African National Congress (ANC)'s national working committee (NWC) has resolved that the party must go back to the drawing board and revisit negotiations with all its Government of National Unity (GNU) partners and those who helped pass the budget.
Insiders in the closed meeting, which took place on Monday, said that this could mean that a Cabinet reshuffle was on the cards.
Tensions in the GNU between the Democratic Alliance (DA) and eight other parties increased last week following its refusal to back Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana's fiscal framework.
ALSO READ:
• Mulder says Freedom Front Plus not quitting GNU over national budget disagreement
• EFF says it will join GNU if it's in the best interest of the country
• DA vows to continue fight against VAT increase
• Zille: DA not in GNU for perks, will carefully consider involvement in coalition
• 'We are not going to be fooled by the ANC' - ActionSA's Trollip
The ANC got it over the line with the help of ActionSA, with those in the NWC saying it had an obligation to honour its agreements with Herman Mashaba's party.
The ANC, as the proverbial saying goes, is seemingly stuck between a rock and a hard place.
Its NWC knows it must see through its obligations to ActionSA, but it's also concerned about burning bridges with the DA.
The ANC has now brought back to life its coalition team, instead of hastily cutting relations with the blue party.
The panel, made up of five of the top seven excluding party president, Cyril Ramaphosa and his deputy, Paul Mashatile, will be joined by the likes of Parks Tau, David Makhura, Phoebe Potgieter and Nkenke Kekana to explore the way forward.
The team's scope of work has been extended beyond the DA and ActionSA and is aimed at setting in place new rules of engagement for all GNU partners.
EWN understands that the team has already reached out to the DA for talks.
Meanwhile, the blue party’s federal executive also met on Monday night, opting to adopt a wait-and-see approach despite some of its members in government already expressing a desire to call it quits on the GNU.