National Freedom Party members at the launch of the party's 2014 election manifesto at Mehlareng Stadium in Tembisa, South Africa. (Photo by Gallo Images /Sowetan / Mohau Mofokeng)
As the coalition talks about who will govern KwaZulu-Natal unfold, the National Freedom Party (NFP), which holds a single seat in the legislature, is likely to play a kingmaker role in the province.
While the NFP took a beating nationally and lost its seat in the National Assembly in last month’s elections, its one seat in the KwaZulu-Natal legislature may turn out to be worth its weight in gold — politically speaking — given the balance of power in the province after the 29 May vote.
It is likely to extract a provincial cabinet position from which every bloc governs the province, where the ANC lost the majority it had held to the breakaway uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) party, which took 45% of the KwaZulu-Natal vote.
The MK party has 37 seats in the 80-member legislature, followed by the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) with 15, the ANC with 14, the Democratic Alliance (DA) with 11, the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) with two and the NFP’s single seat.
The NFP KwaZulu-Natal provincial chairperson occupies its seat. The party’s vote would take a coalition between the ANC, IFP and DA to 51 in a vote to elect a premier, while it would take an EFF and MK party coalition to 50.
While this would not give EFF-MK a majority, it is understood that the MK party believes it will get votes from at least one of the ANC’s 14 members of the provincial legislature in a secret ballot, because of their divided loyalties.
Should the IFP and MK party secure a two-party coalition, they would not need either the NFP or the EFF to govern, but the IFP leadership is understood to favour working with the ANC and DA because this would give it national as well as provincial presence in government.
Thus far, both the ANC and the IFP have reached out to the NFP, which is open to talking to all parties, according to its president, Ivan Barnes.
Last Sunday, the NFP national executive committee took a position that it would “welcome all parties that want to negotiate with us with regards to the formation of a coalition government”, Barnes said.
“We have been approached by the IFP and the ANC for preliminary talks. We have not finalised anything. We are still waiting for other organisations. If they think they need us, they will approach us,” he added.
The NFP is part of the coalition that is keeping the ANC in power in the eThekwini metro and has a relationship with it in other municipalities. It has written to its members informing them that it is entering into coalition talks in the province.
The NFP’s founder, the late Zanele Magwaza-Msibi, served as deputy minister of science and technology in the Zuma cabinet.
Barnes said the party had not yet spoken to the MK party.
“They haven’t approached us. The DA and the EFF also haven’t approached us,” he said. “Until somebody does, we will remain as an opposition party with our single seat.”
Barnes said the party was looking for a seat in the provincial cabinet.
“Whoever it is that we find common ground with, we want to be part of service delivery in the province. We don’t want to be a backbencher in government. We want a cabinet seat in return for our support. We don’t expect other parties to represent us in government,” he said.
Barnes added that he party, which has been battling to avoid liquidation over a R25 million debt to Ezulweni Investments, had resolved its issues with the Electoral Commission of South Africa over its failure to submit financial statements.
“We are now in good standing,” he said.