JOHANNESBURG—After a month of political maneuvering, South Africa finally has a cabinet to get the country going again after one of the most contested elections in its history.
The African National Congress (ANC) was forced to form a coalition government after it got just 40 percent of the vote in an election on May 29, losing the overwhelming majority that it had held since South Africa’s first democratic election ended apartheid in 1994.
This means that the ANC’s ability to pass legislation will be severely curtailed going forward.
South African President and ANC leader Cyril Ramaphosa, who kept his job as president because of support from South Africa’s second-biggest party, the centrist Democratic Alliance (DA), on June 30 appointed one of the largest national executives in the world.
This was a result of having to give leadership positions in most sectors of the economy and society to seven of the 11 parties that make up South Africa’s Government of National Unity (GNU).
“This cabinet will cost billions to operate, and we don’t have that kind of money or the luxury of that size cabinet in a country that’s relatively small,” veteran opposition politician Athol Trollip said. He’s a leader of the Action SA party, which isn’t part of the GNU.
Like many South Africans, Mr. Trollip is concerned that governance will be disorderly, with too many people making decisions and setting policy direction.
Among those challenges are rampant violent crime, with an average of 84 people murdered every day; the world’s highest unemployment rate, at almost 35 percent; desperate poverty; infrastructure decay that has crippled services at ports and railways; corruption; electricity blackouts; water outages; and crumbling education and health sectors.
In a speech to the nation on June 30, Mr. Ramaphosa confirmed that the ANC had given several key ministries to the DA.
“All parties have made a commitment to respect the constitution and to promote accountable and transparent governance, evidence-based policies and decision-making, [and] the professionalization of our public service based on integrity and good governance,” Mr. Ramaphosa said.
“The incoming government will prioritize rapid, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth and the creation of a more just society by tackling poverty and inequality.”
The DA considers the ANC leader’s commitment to “professionalizing” the public service as a major win.
The DA has often accused the ANC of giving management positions at state-owned enterprises to party loyalists, instead of to people with the requisite skills, resulting in service delivery failures.
John Steenhuisen, the DA’s leader, told The Epoch Times that his party’s 12 cabinet positions mean that it now has “meaningful influence” to set South Africa on a path of recovery.
“We now have footholds in the country’s economics cluster, which is integral to what we want to achieve,” he said.
“We’ll use our influential cabinet seats in agriculture, public works and infrastructure, forestry, fisheries, and the environment, as well as our deputy minister roles in finance, trade and industry, and small business development, to pursue a rapid growth and job creation agenda.”
In Mr. Ramaphosa’s new cabinet, the DA also controls basic education, communications, and home affairs.
Mr. Steenhuisen said the DA also has “watchdog” deputy ministers in important sectors including energy and electricity, water, and higher education.
“The DA will build on our experience of improving service delivery,” he said. “We were never in this for positions for their own sake, which is why we refused to accept watered-down compromises and why we drove a hard bargain at times to ensure the portfolios we got were of real substance.
“We’re also pleased the negotiations reaffirmed that any suspicious tenders could be investigated and that senior civil service appointments will not be obstructed or politicized.”
The DA, however, doesn’t have any positions in security departments, which could set the scene for conflict with the ANC.
Mr. Ramaphosa has also given top posts to smaller opposition parties that are members of the government of national unity.
Two of the most significant appointments are Patriotic Alliance leader Gayton McKenzie as minister of sports, arts, and culture, and Freedom Front Plus leader Pieter Groenewald to oversee correctional services.
With so many parties involved in governance, independent political analyst Ntsikelelo Breakfast told The Epoch Times, there’s bound to be “confusion.”
Mr. Breakfast asked: “Where does policy come from? Does it come from political parties? Does it come from bureaucracy? Each and every political party normally holds conferences where it adopts policies. So what do you do? Do you cut and paste policies?
“Things are going to be very interesting, and I hope this new government actually gets some work done amid all the horse-trading and compromises that will have to be made,” he said.
Foreign Relations
In the new government, the ANC remains in control of foreign policy, with the DA bitterly opposed to its close relations with China, Iran, and Russia.Pre-election, one of the DA’s chief promises was to “end relationships with autocratic regimes” and to move South Africa closer to the West.
This would be “pragmatic,” Mr. Steenhuisen said, given that the UK, European Union, and the United States are South Africa’s biggest trade partners, and because South Africa’s democratic political values, including freedom of speech, are in “direct opposition” to what happens in China, Russia, and Iran.
“These countries are essentially run by autocrats and regimes that survive only because they brutally suppress any and all opposition voices,” the DA leader said.
“Just because we’re now in government doesn’t mean we’re going to shut up about our country’s relations with the Chinas and Russias of this world.
“We’re also deeply aware of the fact that our American friends are less than happy about our closeness to China, Russia, and Hamas.
“Senior DA officials spent many months in 2023 in Washington, talking with members of the U.S. Congress and other senior American political figures.”
The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed legislation that would require the Biden administration to conduct a full review of the United States’ relationship with South Africa.
If the bill passes the Senate, it will oblige the administration to report to Congress on whether South Africa has engaged in “activities that undermine United States national security or foreign policy interests.”
Republican and Democrat members of Congress are concerned about South Africa’s growing military and security ties with countries that the United States considers to be its geopolitical enemies.
Mr. James pointed out that South Africa remains the United States’ largest trade partner in Africa, and more than 600 U.S. businesses are invested in South Africa.
