Rival factions within the Inkatha Freedom Party clashed heatedly over whether the IFP should remain in the national government at the party’s national conference last weekend.
Two senior party leaders had to separate the factions — one from the East Rand and the other from Durban — as they rowed over whether they should stay in the African National Congress-led government of national unity.
Party insiders said KwaZulu-Natal provincial minister for social development Gideon Zulu and a member of the provincial legislature, David Ntombela, intervened to prevent about 40 to 50 party members ”from having a go at each other” at the IFP’s national conference in Ulundi.
Delegates at last year’s conference asked IFP leader Mangosuthu Buthe-lezi to withdraw from the ANC-led national government.
The IFP leadership has been split over whether it should stay in the national government and the provincial coalition government that it runs with the ANC and the Democratic Alliance.
Party insiders said hard-core Inkatha supporters would prefer the IFP leaders to walk out. But moderates, like the royal high commissioner Celani Mtetwa, would rather the IFP continues to co-govern with the ANC. Then there is the grouping that prefers the DA as an ally over the ANC. But not all anti-ANC Inkatha leaders like the idea of forging a relationship with the ”predominantly white DA”.
However, the pro-DA, anti-ANC lobby, which includes the likes of Premier Lionel Mtshali and Buthe-lezi’s adviser, Mario Ambrosini, led by the IFP leader himself, has managed to convince the delegates to the weekend’s conference to cooperate with the DA in the coming election.
Significantly, Mtshali read out the absent DA leader Tony Leon’s speech to the delegates, despite the presence of Leon’s deputy, Joe Seremane, who also addressed the gathering.
Buthelezi, on the other hand, also made a strong case for staying in the ANC-led government.
In his keynote address, Buthelezi indicated that the IFP had to stay in President Thabo Mbeki’s Cabinet ”to correct the dreadful policy mistakes which are now affecting South Africa’s government and our country’s future”.
Among the mistakes he listed was the national government’s position on providing anti-retrovirals to people infected with HIV/Aids, economic policy responsible for increasing unemployment and increasing crime and corruption.
He told delegates it had ”not been easy” for him to remain in Mbeki’s Cabinet. ”I had to endure many humiliations. I have sometimes been treated with contempt. Time and again my role has been belittled and, with mine, that of my IFP colleagues.”
In the end, Buthelezi left open the question of whether to stay in or out of the national government and the coalition government in KwaZulu-Natal.
In his opening address he said: ”…I am not concerned about the issue of whether we should stay in it or leave it. I am much more concerned about how we should stay in it, if we are to stay in it. There is no doubt in my mind that wherever we stay and whatever we do, our obligation now is that of promoting the democratic renewal of South Africa.”
IFP national spokesperson Musa Zondi said that at the end of the conference, the members resolved to stay in the government for the time being, while pointing out that whether Inkatha should serve in the Cabinet was Mbeki’s prerogative.
The other issue Buthelezi punted was the formation of a national opposition alliance. The idea was welcomed by other opposition leaders like the United Democratic Movement’s Bantu Holomisa and the African Christian Democratic Party’s Jo-Ann Downs, who also addressed the IFP conference. But they were non-committal about being part of such an alliance.
Holomisa said his party would be debating its election strategy on July 29 and would then take a decision. The New National Party, which was represented by its leaders Boy Geldenhuys and ”Tino” Volker, made a case for ”issue-based” opposition.
The ANC’s absence was glaring. ANC secretary general Kgalema Motlanthe said that the party had received the invitation to attend the conference only on Thursday. He said: ”We felt that perhaps they needed the space” and the ANC decided not to attend.
Meanwhile, a meeting scheduled for Monday between the ANC and the IFP has been postponed. The meeting was a continuation of last week’s talks to decide on a follow-up powwow between Buthelezi and Mbeki.