Gayton McKenzie Slams Helen Zille Following GNU Rejection
- Gayton McKenzie criticised Helen Zille for bullying the PA out of the grand coalition
- He said Zille implied in interviews that the ANC needed the DA's approval to invite the Patriotic Alliance (PA) into the Government of National Unity (GNU)
- McKenzie emphasised that the PA, like other parties, was invited independently by the ANC to join the GNU
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Reitumetse Makwea, a Briefly News current affairs journalist in Pretoria, South Africa, has covered local elections, policy changes, the State of the Nation Address and political news at The Citizen and Rekord Noweto for over five years.
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Patriotic Alliance (PA) leader Gayton McKenzie says the party has been a victim of the Democratic Alliance's (DA) vindictiveness.
Addressing the recent comments made by DA's Federal Chairperson Helen Zille regarding the inclusion of the PA in the emerging Government of National Unity (GNU), he said they were also invited, like other parties.
McKenzie’s response highlights his belief that Zille's remarks reveal a misguided sense of authority over the African National Congress (ANC) and its coalition decisions.
See the statement in the post below:
The ANC must consult the DA for every membership
McKenzie criticized Zille for her apparent expectation that the ANC should have consulted the DA before inviting the PA and other parties to join the GNU.
According to McKenzie, the ANC had already extended invitations to the PA and others long before formalising an agreement with the DA.
“Helen Zille clearly fails to grasp that the PA also signed a Statement of Intent to form part of the GNU on the same day the DA did.
“There can be no possible reason for the ANC to have to ask for the DA's permission to include willing parties in a grand coalition that can govern the country with or without the DA.”
Zille's comments in an interview
During an interview on Tuesday, Helen Zille told the SABC that the ANC lacks the authority to extend invitations to other parties unilaterally.
See the post on X below:
Zille's remarks responded to ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula's assertion that the ANC remains open to other parties joining the unity government.
Just days ago, the DA, ANC, and IFP confirmed the signing of a binding GNU document at the Cape Town International Convention Centre during Parliament's inaugural session.
Zille referred to Clause 24 of the GNU statement of intent, which grants veto power over including outside parties solely to the GNU's founding members.
Thus, she stressed that the ANC cannot arbitrarily invite external parties into the GNU, specifically referencing the PA.
South Africans agree with McKenzie
Netizens agreed that Zille's statement showed her hunger for power and control in the grand coalition.
@bonnyskosana jokingly said McKenzie rubbed 'the madam' the wrong way:
"You should have left it alone. Hayi manje Madam is going to make sure you don’t get minster position. Wena @GaytonMcK was baiza manje."
@julianNkruger also commented that:
"@helenzille and @Our_DA have no real interest in an inclusive government or 'rescuing' RSA. They want an exclusive relationship with @MYANC. The DA undermined the MPC and will do the same with the GNU. The DA wants to be the de facto government."
Gatekeeping the GNU
McKenzie accused Zille of trying to position the DA as a gatekeeper for the ANC, attempting to dictate the terms and participants of the GNU.
He lamented Zille’s approach to negotiation, describing it as humiliating rather than consensus-building and indicative of a "my way or the highway" mentality.
“The DA’s obsession with keeping us out of its provincial fortress has now sadly spilled over to the GNU."
He urged the ANC to dismiss Zille’s “sour grapes and petty provincial conceits” and focus on the broader goal of national unity and cooperation.
McKenzie warned that yielding to the DA's demands would set a dangerous precedent, portraying Zille as having undue influence over the ANC.
ANC welcomes 5 parties into the Government of National Unit
Last week, Breifly News reported that the African National Congress (ANC) welcomed three more parties into a Government of National Unity (GNU), which formed a coalition with the DA.
The Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), GOOD and Patriotic Alliance (PA) are now part of the GNU and collectively hold 68% of the National Assembly seats.
South Africans are still sceptical about the coalition's durability and the roles of different parties within the GNU.
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Source: Briefly News
