Will MK party be blocked from governing eThekwini?
The MK party has announced its negotiations team and said it would work with 'black parties' and progressive formations.
South African political analyst Andre Duvenhage predicts the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party may be prevented from governing the City of eThekwini. Coalition talks underway across the country could mirror the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) provincial government's structure, Duvenhage says. While the MK party secured the most votes in KZN at 38.29%, they were previously barred from governing due to an ANC, IFP, SA, NFP coalition.
In eThekwini, the DA holds 25.45% of the vote, with the ANC at 16.43% and the IFP at 6.79%. The party needs an additional 2.33% to govern. Duvenhage isn't sure if the MK party will maintain consistency in their approach across KZN, but acknowledges recent reports suggest the ANC in KZN might be more aligned with the MK party. However, internal tensions between ANC leader Cyril Ramaphosa and former leader Jacob Zuma will likely impact decision-making.
MK party leader Willies Mchunu is determined to govern eThekwini, stating the party will pursue this goal legally and within their vote share. Mchunu acknowledged the MK party's majority in the provincial legislature but their exclusion from the governing arrangement is "painful." The party plans to work with "black parties" and progressive groups, but notes there's a party eager to block them from power.
Written by urgent.news from The Citizen's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
