The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) will support the motion of no confidence against KwaZulu-Natal premierThami Ntuli, brought by the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party, its leaderJulius Malemasaid on Thursday. The move will surprise many, as Malema had previously declaredJacob Zuma’s MK — which displaced the EFF as South Africa’s third-largest party last year — as “enemy number one” and accused it of trying to destroy his organisation. The motionagainst the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) premier will be heard at the KwaZulu-Natal legislature on Monday.
“There is a motion on the table. Irrespective of who put that motion forward, if it makes sense to theEFF, we are supporting it,” Malema told a media briefing. “We supported the motion of no confidence in Parliament against Zuma that was brought by theDemocratic Alliance, with whom we have serious ideological differences, but the motion made sense at the time, and we supported it.” In October, MK signalled its intention to enter into agreements with third parties, excluding the IFP.
If successful, KwaZulu-Natal could be forced to hold an early election, and the MK party, EFF, as well as the National Freedom Party (NFP) would likely form a ruling coalition that excludes both the ANC and the IFP. The legislature has 80 members. If MK, EFF, and NFP were to form a pact, it would be divided 40–40, leaving the provincial government unable to pass any legislation.
Read Full Article on Mail & Guardian
[paywall]
MK has 37 seats, the EFF has two, and the NFP has one. The IFP holds 15 seats, the ANC 14 and the DA 11. On Thursday, Malema said if the MK party was serious about taking the province, it should begin negotiating with other political parties as soon as possible.
“If they are serious about that motion, Zuma must be part of the negotiation right from tonight. Over the weekend, we are going to speak even to the ANC. We are going to speak to them to see if the ANC is prepared to engage with us formally,” he said.
“If it is not prepared to speak to us formally, nothing stops us from going to individual members of the legislature to speak to their conscience and do what is in the best interest of the people of KZN.” The ANC’s stance on coalitions is that if a party wins a majority of votes — whether in councils, provincial legislatures, or nationally — it should be allowed to lead coalition formation. The ANC also maintains that where it has the majority, it should be given the mayoral chain, premiership or presidency. This position is evident in municipalities such as Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni, in the Gauteng provincial legislature, and in the national government.
[/paywall]
