DA demands 12 cabinet posts and preference in selection of DGs

The DA has demanded it have representation in all cabinet clusters setting out 12 cabinet posts it wants to take over from the ANC.

In a letter to ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula seen by TimesLIVE Premium, DA federal council chair Helen Zille demands that the DA's cabinet posts should "rightly" include the post of deputy president, "as is standard practice in similar governments around the world".

"We can only agree to give up that post if it is replaced with both a minister in the Presidency, who is also designated as the leader of government business and participates fully in the policy development and monitoring responsibilities of the Presidency, and a deputy minister of finance, who participates fully in the development of the budget.

"It is also reasonable and fair that the DA should have representation across all cabinet clusters. To speed matters along, we set out here our preferred portfolios in each cluster," she said.

She said the DA will also require that the directors-general (DG) in departments reporting to Democratic Alliance ministers are selected by panels consisting of DA ministers, submitted to the president for his approval, "and that such approval cannot reasonably be withheld".

"The contracts of all current DGs would also need to be reconsidered in light of our concern that incumbents may not be amenable to direction from Democratic Alliance ministers, especially given the ANC’s cadre deployment policy.

"That all tenders in departments reporting to Democratic Alliance ministers issued since the promulgation of the election date be reviewed. It is obviously not possible to effect change in a context where recent decisions by the previous government are rendered irreversible."

She added that a technical “clearing house” be established, consisting of a representative from each participating party, with a mandate to resolve differences over policy and other decisions of government by consensus, before they become a source of conflict in the cabinet.

"In the event consensus isn’t possible, sufficient consensus would be required, as contemplated in clause 19.3 of the Statement of Intent. In the event that differences prove particularly intractable, they would need to be resolved by the president and the leader of the Democratic Alliance. This approach would give proper effect to clause 19 of the Statement of Intent," she said.

The DA is demanding cabinet posts in the following ministries:

economic sectors, investment, employment and infrastructure development cluster:

mineral resources and energy;
transport (with Transnet reallocated to this portfolio);
trade, industry and competition;

social protection, community and human development cluster:

public works and infrastructure (provided the infrastructure function now sitting in the Presidency is relocated to this portfolio);
higher education, science and innovation;