Ntuli casts doubt on ANC-DA deal for Johannesburg mayoralty, takes swipe at Zille - TimesLIVE
ANC head of elections Mdumiseni Ntuli has cast doubt on a possible deal between the ANC and the DA that could see Helen Zille elected as Johannesburg mayor, suggesting her campaign rhetoric had left a sour taste among ANC leaders.
In an interview with The Political Arena at the IEC Results Centre on Thursday, Ntuli, who is also the ANC’s chief whip in parliament, said some within the party would be uncomfortable working with the DA following what he described as Zille’s arrogance during the campaign.
“A number of us will be very uncomfortable with the display of arrogance of Helen Zille. I’m talking about Johannesburg. This thing that she is the messiah, she is going to travel all the way from Cape Town to fix Johannesburg.
“I would imagine that quite a number of us in the ANC might take issue with that kind of position in the DA. Whether that influences whether we will work with them or work with anyone else, I’m not sure. Time will tell,” he said.
Ntuli suggested the ANC should consider taking up the opposition benches in some municipalities, rather than entering coalitions at all costs.
He pointed to the party’s working relationship with ActionSA in Tshwane, suggesting a similar arrangement could be considered elsewhere, including Johannesburg.
“We work very well with ActionSA in Tshwane. There were no major issues there. I don’t know whether the same kind of outfit will be explored anywhere else outside Tshwane. We will see what happens when discussions are taking place,” he said.
The ANC is facing a bruising electoral defeat, with results pointing to the party potentially failing to reclaim any of the country’s eight metropolitan municipalities, as well as losing ground in several strategic municipalities.
ActionSA is poised to strengthen its position in Johannesburg and Tshwane, giving it greater leverage in coalition negotiations.
Ntuli said it would be “dishonest” to suggest the ANC was feeling anything other than unhappy with its electoral performance.
While counting was still under way on Thursday evening, he said the results already pointed to serious cause for concern.
“We are used to a situation where, even with a number of votes counted, the ANC would have been hovering around 50% and above. Given the fact that we are where we are today is a cause for concern for the ANC,” he said.
The ANC leader also acknowledged the difficulties of working with the DA in the national government of unity, though he stopped short of blaming the relationship for the party’s poor electoral showing.
“As a member of parliament, I can tell you that to manage that relationship has been very complex, difficult and dynamic. The extent to which it has impacted the ANC on the ground, I may not be in a position to confirm that.
“There are too many contradictions, and some of them are deliberately created, in my own view. I suppose that is part of their strategy when they entered the GNU, that they are going to create some landmines.”
Ntuli said the ANC would have to assess whether its participation in coalitions, including the GNU, had ultimately benefited the party.
“The assessment we are going to have to make is whether these coalitions, including the GNU, have actually provided any advantage to the ANC.
“It may very well be that it provided national stability, but to what extent has that stability allowed us to make necessary changes, whether in the economy or in other areas of life, in a manner that is going to make the ANC endear itself again to the population of South Africa?”
