President Ramaphosa Calls Out GNU Partner DA For “Moving the Goalposts” As Cabinet Announcement Is Stalled Further
President Cyril Ramaphosa’s mammoth task of bringing together South Africa’s Government of National Unity has been an unprecedented journey filled with strife, trepidation, and power haggling. With the mounting pressure of announcing his second cabinet looming and South Africans anxiously awaiting a new government to cater for the needs they voted for, Ramaphosa has had to master the balancing act of addressing the demands of the masses as well as those of his GNU partners, further delaying the official installation of the seventh administration’s cabinet.
Although the GNU comprises of ten political parties so far, the greatest contention has been between bitter rivals-turned-bedfellows: the African National Congress (ANC) and the Democratic Alliance (DA). The first- and second-placed parties on the 2024 national and provincial poles, respectively, have been in the spotlight for the past week, as tensions between the two parties have escalated due to cabinet position demands as seen in leaked documents circulating on various social media platforms.
Read: Trouble In GNU Paradise: ANC and DA In Power Struggle For Cabinet Positions
A letter from the DA’s federal leader John Steenhuisen, dated 24 June 2024, sent to the Office of the President made its way to the public. Within the signed document were details regarding Ramaphosa and Steenhuisen’s last meeting, which culminated in the President offering their GNU partner six cabinet portfolios: Home Affairs; Basic Education; Trade, Industry, and Competition; Public Works and Infrastructure; Communications and Digital Technologies; as well as Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment.
John Steenhuisen | SUPPLIED
The document also mentioned that the ANC offered the DA additional deputy ministerial positions for: Finance; Energy and Electricity; Small Business Development; and another unnamed position not decided upon as yet to replace DTIC.
However, the DA was anything but content with the proposition put forward.
The DA argued that they were compromising more with regards to control and power than the ANC was by going into the GNU, and that they felt the offer shortchanged them by at least two positions within the prospective Cabinet.
“In terms of the quantum of portfolios, there remains concern within our structures that the DA is sacrificing from our proportional allocation more than the ANC. On a pure proportional basis, out of a Cabinet of 30, the DA’s share of support within the GNU translates to nine positions rather than the six that are currently on the table,” wrote Steenhuisen in the letter.
Concerning the positions in question, the DA asked that the two positions come from either of the following: Sports, Arts, and Culture; Agriculture, Rural Development, and Land Reform; and Public Service and Administration. Additionally, the party requested that the number of DA deputy ministers be increased in proportion to their most recent proposal.
The Office of the President did not take kindly to the letter, with Ramaphosa penning a cutting response to Steenhuisen the day after.
President Cyril Ramaphosa | SUPPLIED
In the letter, the President slammed the DA’s latest approaches to tabling propositions as “offensive, condescending, and inconsistent with the Constitution”.
“I informed you that the habit of negotiating through correspondence, as adopted by the DA, can be problematic. It can for example make parties play to the gallery of public opinion through media leakages resulting in the loss of focus on the real substance of the negotiations. I also informed you that we [the ANC] found the letter of your Federal Chairperson [Helen Zille] offensive, condescending, and inconsistent with the Constitution.” said the letter.
Mr. President also alleged that the DA was, through its efforts, trying to set up a “parallel government” and that they were “moving the goalposts”.
“I regard your approach in moving the goalposts as a continuation of what was articulated in your Federal Chair’s letter of 22 June 2024 on issues such as “sealed mandates” of Ministries. through which the DA seemed to want to set up a parallel government that would operate outside the framework and parameters of the constitution-based method and protocols of running the government of the Republic of South Africa,” said Cyril Ramaphosa.
The announcement of the cabinet was dealt a further blow as the president made it clear in the letter that he would not agree to the DA’s latest offer.
“We are unable to accede to the DA’s latest proposals, nor its continuously changing interpretation of the meaning of the Statement of Intent and moving the goalposts. Any discussions with the DA must therefore start with a need for an understanding of the principles embraced by all the parties to the Statement of Intent.” said the letter.
Read the letter below:
A screenshot of the President’s Letter
President Ramaphosa’s Letter (Second Page)
Netizens reacted to Ramaphosa’s letter, referring to it under “Dear John” whilst also citing his decisiveness in addressing the Democratic Alliance’s demands.
GNU member Gayton McKenzie, leader of the Patriotic Alliance, responded to the letter citing that: “The ANC has been pushed too far by the DA.”
@BongiMbatha posted “Dear John” with a 2018 video of the President losing his cool in Parliament during a spat with DA member John Steenhuisen.
@sindane took the humorous road, interpreting the back-and-forth between the leaders as “love letters”, attaching an AI-generated meme of a baby monk sipping on juice.
@SunBirdZAKH posted the letters and said: “Not Cyril having to say “stop being sneaky and greedy, you’re embarrassing yourselves and annoying everyone else.”
As the bargaining and politically-correct bickering continues, President Ramaphosa is expected to announce his Cabinet by the end of the week as negotiations continue.