Ten years ago, I would have been dismissive of the EFF as a splinter party from the ANC that would suffer the same fate as the PAC, UDM, or even COPE. The track record of parties that were the chip off the ANC block was not great and the point of reference was not a great one — as we speak none of these splinter parties have more than a handful of seats in parliament.
As it marks its 10th anniversary we have to give the EFF credit for its solid showing in parliament and across the provincial legislatures and local councils. As the third biggest political party in the land we have to say that it is a force that can’t be ignored in our politics. With recent developments in the local government coalition, the EFF is now also about to be put to the test whether they can govern as well as they perfected protest and the use of courts to force the hand of the state. This we saw in the Nkandla case where they defeated the ANCs attempt to use its majority to defend Jacob Zuma’s Nkandla corruption.
But what does the EFF have to offer in the future to rebuild South Africa? Its seven strategic non-negotiable pillars, in what will give any coalition party a headache. The expropriation of land without compensation seems a bridge too far, even for the ANC if the parliamentary attempt at an expropriation bill is anything to go by. It seems even among “black parties” in parliament the mechanisms of how to implement this policy are an ingredient for deadlock. It seems to me the scepticism to place all ownership in the hands of a state that has let us down so often does not bode well and must be questioned whether it is the only gateway towards resolving the land question.
The EFF would not want to be seen to compromise on this front and so the ANC will have to be ready to make concessions. What is likely to happen is an agreement on a staggered approach to this policy that will not upset the apple cart. This will also be an issue over which the coalition may be threatened in the future, when the reality of its implementation complications hits the EFF. They will be forced to play hardball or they may give in to incumbency, turning a blind eye in exchange for being in power.
Ruling out coalition possibilities ahead of an election is not strategic at all. Similarly, picking coalition partners before they prove themselves at the polls is another equally fatal mistake.
Another bridge too far for the ANC will be the nationalisation of the banks. This will be resisted at all costs. The ANC will argue that this will collapse the economy. The track record of the ANC on this score is there for all to see. While many transformation charters demanded industries empower up to 25%, the financial sector has always been insulated from radical change. The financial charter only requires the sector to give up to 10% for black people. The JSE has, as a result, remained largely in white hands and corporates have largely dragged their feet in implementing the broad-based BEE. The ANC, one hopes, can use the coalition with the EFF to implement its own policy of radical economic transformation, which so far has been merely lip.
One more bridge too far for the ANC will be privatisation as a public-private partnership. The EFF insists on building a capable state while the ANC has given up on SOEs. The recent SAA deal that will see the family silver being sold to the lowest bidder, is going to be reversed by an EFF government. This is explains the hurry and desperation of how it is being pushed through by Pravin Gordhan (EFFs enemy No.1). He is aware that the next few months are the only window he has to implement this deal. Meanwhile, Denel, SAPO, and other SOEs including Eskom are being prepared to be sold off as the government argues there is no longer money to bail them out of their financial woes.
These economic questions on land and property; the relationship with the financial sector, as well as the capacity of the state will be front and centre of the negotiations between ANC and EFF in a possible joint government and may change the face of South African politics in the next phase of our democracy. This may be a combination that sees a fundamental shift in our economics for good or bad.
The DA has raised a red flag about the possibility of the EFF coalescing with the ANC to get into power. They are using this to lobby other parties to push back on such a possibility. This is a strategic error in that it will push the EFF and ANC together to form a government if the ANC is pushed below 50% in the 2024 elections. Ruling out coalition possibilities ahead of an election is not strategic at all. Similarly, picking coalition partners before they prove themselves at the polls is another equally fatal mistake. More so with the emergence of so many new parties.
The so-called moon shot pact seems to have been premised on a “rooi gevaar” — fearmongering around the EFF. This is what may well make it fail. The country needs to be sober in identifying good men and women in all parties to possibly construct a government of national unity that can save the country from the mess it is in. To do this we need to dial back to the 1994 playbook where the National Party, even with all its evil history, was incorporated into that government in the name of nation-building. It should be logical, therefore, that we should all strive to be inclusive in our politics to take the country forward and not base the solutions on petty and narrow party politics.
* Dr Onkgopotse JJ Tabane is the editor of Leadership Magazine
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