Zille insists SA's current govt formation is a coalition of parties, rather than GNU
She said a true Government of National Unity (GNU) would contain a party with an outright majority, and would not exclude some parties as it currently does.
FILE: Chairperson of the DA federal council, Helen Zille. Picture: Jacques Nelles/Eyewitness News
CAPE TOWN - Democratic Alliance (DA) federal council chair, Helen Zille is standing by her view that the current formation of government is a coalition of parties, rather than a Government of National Unity (GNU).
She said a true GNU would contain a party with an outright majority, and would not exclude some parties as it currently does.
Speaking on the Clement Manyathela Show on 702 on Tuesday morning, Zille said unnecessary outrage has been created based on a purely analytical assessment.
Zille took flack last week after remarks made at a seminar of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation, that a GNU was a more palatable selling point to parties including her own, than a coalition.
However, technically she argued, the current arrangement of 10 political parties, none of whom has an outright majority is in fact a coalition.
On Tuesday, Zille said the semantics was irrelevant and her remarks were being used as clickbait.
"We don’t care what you call it. In the DA, we call it a hybrid model, other people call it a GNU. That’s fine. We have no problem calling it a Government of National Unity.
Zille said the ANC is behaving as if it’s a majority party, and has taken umbrage to a remark [by the party’s first secretary general, Nomvula Mokonyane] that the DA is a guest in the GNU.
“If there’s any cause for friction, it is because some people in the ANC, I’m not saying all - think we are there by grace and favour of the ANC. We are not.”
Zille said she would meet ANC secretary general Fikile Mbalula on Thursday, to discuss the arrangements for the national dialogue meant to chart the future for this government.