The PAN African Congress of Azania (PAC) with the African Transformation Movement (ATM) and the EFF are likely to join forces in a coalition post the 2024 national elections.
This after the PAC and the ATM pledged their support to the EFF during the party’s manifesto launch in eThekwini last Saturday.
The troika have all called for unity and for the working together of like-minded organisations ahead of the upcoming general elections.
The parties have made it clear that they shared the same views and were in talks about the prospects of working together to boot the ANC out of power.
President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to announce the date of this year's general election by Friday, February 23, his spokesperson Vincent Magwenya told a post-State of The Nation (SONA) media briefing last week.
“The president will announce the election date within 15 days,” Magwenya said, counting from the day of the State of the Nation Address (Sona) delivered on February 8.
The Star reported recently that for the first time analysts believe there was a real threat for the ANC to lose power since the end of apartheid in 1994.
The elections will give South African citizens the chance to vote for the party of their choice to govern nationally and provincially.
If any of the contesting parties do not get an outright majority, it paves the way for coalition agreements within parties.
The PAC and the ATM attended the EFF’s manifesto launch at Moses Mabhida Stadium to give messages of support to the red berets.
Speaking to The Star yesterday, PAC president Mzwanele Nyhontso said the reality had come that no party could govern alone after 30 years of the ANC being at the helm.
“The likelihood of coalitions can be with anyone after the elections but we have been in engagements with like-minded parties like the EFF.
“The reality has come that nobody can just govern alone … otherwise it would be like how the ANC governed. They did nothing for the people or to provide what we were fighting for before 1994 … so it’s a reality that parties must talk, must work together and provide services to the people.
“We had received an invite from the EFF to deliver a message of support which we did … we delivered the message of support at the EFF manifesto launch,” Nyhontso said.
He stressed, however, that the party would be contesting independently in the upcoming elections and was on its way to launch its own manifesto with the EFF also being invited.
“We are having our own manifesto on March 2 when we will invite like-minded political parties to come give messages of support.
“The PAC is contesting elections just like other political organisations, but we keep on engaging other political parties.The decision of coalitions will be kick started after the elections,” he said.
The PAC has also aligned itself with the Azanian People’s Organisation and plans to be one party one day.
“We are still in a co-operation agreement with Azapo. Next week together with Azapo we are going to be in Gqebera celebrating 100 years of Robert Sobukwe at the Nelson Mandela University,” he said.
He said the two parties would not be contesting as one in the upcoming elections because time did not permit them to do so.
“These things are also because of mandates from branches and need thorough consultation … I’ve always said that I’d want Azapo and the PAC to be under one roof and under one name,” he said.
Speaking to The Star yesterday, ATM leader Vuyo Zungula shared the same sentiments.
“We have long stated that opposition parties who share the same views on the transformation of the economy, land expropriation without compensation and having a new Constitution based on the word of the people and not negotiation and compromise need to work together.
“In some events we have attended policy conferences of the PAC, Azapo and a few programmes of the EFF and they equally have attended our events as the ATM … we are in talks about finding ways and means to work together,” Zungula said.
The party, which did fairly well in the 2019 national elections, gaining two seats in Parliament, added that the ATM would be contesting the 2024 elections independently.
The Star