By 10pm on Thursday, the ANC was still scrambling to find common ground with its potential ally the DA as its president Cyril Ramaphosa left a national executive committee earlier to meet political party leaders.
On the eve of the first sitting of parliament, ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula confirmed to the media that the party was yet to finalise a deal for its government of national unity.
Central to the pact is the DA, the second biggest party, which has been reluctant to give the ANC an assurance that it would vote with it to re-elect Ramaphosa as the head of the seventh administration.
DA leader John Steenhuisen met Ramaphosa on Thursday as talks between the two parties stalled. According to those privy to the negotiations, the DA wants a binding agreement with the ANC.
Insiders said the two parties had not agreed on a framework for governing, much less the position of speaker of parliament. Mbalula said as much when he told journalists the ANC would be “dead” if it conceded to the DA's demands.
This means it would be up to Ramaphosa to convince his counterparts during late night meetings to agree to its governing framework.
The DA is said to be aiming for an agreement that would see it taking control of ministries and implementing its own policy and party mandate. But the ANC has been opposed to the idea, using the constitution as its weapon against the DA.
When asked about this during the media briefing, Mbalula said: “The NDR (national democratic revolution) must breathe life within the framework of the government of national unity notwithstanding what others want.”
Mbalula said the discussions had so far not been transactional, adding that all the other ingredients of the GNU would be refined later.
But parties such as the Patriotic Alliance, which have announced their intention to join the GNU, indicated they would want to hold the police ministry.
The DA is believed to be divided on whether it should negotiate for the executive or take positions in a Ramaphosa cabinet.
Meanwhile EFF leader Julius Malema revealed his party will not be entering into the GNU due to the ANC's advanced talks with “right-wing and reactionary political parties”.
Instead, it has expressed its intention to contest other positions, touting its national chairperson Veronica Mente for speaker or deputy speaker, alongside deputy president Floyd Shivambu for finance committee chairperson.
Malema said their move to contest these posts is not a result of their involvement in a government pact as they have decided to not enter into any concrete agreement with the ANC.
“The EFF will, however, participate in parliament and provincial legislatures and will contest for the positions of speakers, deputy speakers and chairpersons of committees.
“These responsibilities are not a product of an elite pact, but an electoral outcome which has mandated us to be members of parliament and provincial legislatures.”
Malema said his party has communicated this approach to the leadership of the ANC and all other political parties that they have engaged with.
“We report to South Africa that we do not have any concrete agreement with the ANC, which has said it will come back to us after the two official meetings we held with them. We are, however, aware that the ANC is finalising an agreement to work with the DA, the Freedom Front Plus (FF+) and other reactionary political parties.
“As we said before, the EFF will not participate in a government that includes right-wing and reactionary political parties,” he added.
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