Day One: The centre holds – the Zunami fizzles.
Ferial Haffajee is Daily Maverick Associate Editor. In her long and storied career, she has been editor-in-chief of both City Press and Mail & Guardian.South Africans sent a huge message in how we chose to vote. No single party won a mandate to govern, so the next 15 days will be crucial in shaping our country to benefit its people and return our trust in the political class.
All of that bonhomie can change in the cut and thrust of coalition-making. However, the first day revealed that institutional strength and constitutional democracy are still more robust than the politics of chaos, and we should all work to keep it that way. All these are necessary signals that institutional democracy is flexing its muscles against agents of chaos and possible insurrection. The democratic media will also have its hands full over the next fortnight to ensure that a massive disinformation drive to prevent a grand coalition or government of national unity does not derail the people’s vote.
That, unfortunately, is also the reason why it would be near impossible to convince Zimbabwe to join. DA also did badly in all earnest. When the biggest party loses 17% and the second biggest party gains only +1% that is failure. There is a need for a great rethink on party strategy which What these Journalists advocated for. If in the next elections ANC lose 20% more.. and DA does nothing again… it means we are going to have a new governmening party that is not DA.
It will be good for the country if coalitions are not farces as what happened with ANC and irrelevant parties when ANC needed to get to 50+1 in a council or metro. If the DA gets at least that concession from negotiations, great. That all said its immaterial now. As much as I dont agree with Zille in her position there is no doubt whatsoever that she is right person, along with Leon, to handle these negotiations. I would have loved to see Pappas in the mix but the dearth of black faces is going to be used to fuel the DA is racist narrative that they have done bugger all to correct.
If the ANC are open to a better country for all and are able to approach coalition with the DA with the desire to weed out the corrupt and move our country towards a law-abiding more prosperous nation then we all have a bright future ahead of us.
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