South Africa’s main coalition partners are at loggerheads just weeks after agreeing to share power, as President Cyril Ramaphosa accuses the leader of the Democratic Alliance (DA) John Steenhuisen of trying to create a “parallel government” in violation of the Constitution.
He is said to have made the explosive allegation in a letter to Mr Steenhuisen on June 25, which was seen by local media.
Markets fell on news of the deepening divide, at a time when Mr Ramaphosa’s African National Congress (ANC) and the DA were supposed to be sharing cabinet roles and taking on roles.
When the ANC failed to win an absolute majority in last month’s elections, the main opposition, the DA, agreed to form a national unity government that would keep President Ramaphosa in power – in exchange for DA politicians getting cabinet positions.
The ANC also subsequently signed a coalition agreement with eight smaller parties, with Mr Ramaphosa under pressure to accommodate at least some of them in his cabinet as well.
Ramaphosa wrote his angry letter after making the DA a final offer of six cabinet positions, according to local media reports.
The prosecution then demanded two more positions, reports the News24 website, which angered the ANC’s top brass.
Mr Ramaphosa’s letter accused the DA leader of “moving the goalposts” during the negotiation process.
He also rebuked the powerful federal DA chair, Helen Zille, for demands he described as “offensive, condescending and constitutionally inconsistent.”
Local media outlets also report that Mr Ramaphosa has reneged on his promise to give the DA the Ministry of Trade and Industry, a key role in boosting South Africa’s struggling economy.
In response to this slight, News 24 says, leaders at the Attorney General’s Office told Mr Ramaphosa that “the deal is off” unless he complies with the previous agreement the two parties made.
The current dispute is causing consternation as South Africa enters foreign political territory.
The ANC has lost its parliamentary majority for the first time since taking power at the end of the racist apartheid system in 1994.
He obtained 40% of the votes, while the prosecutor obtained 22%.
Initially, analysts told the BBC that the two sides could be taking action as they try to get the best deal for themselves, but the latest leaked correspondence suggests deeper disagreements that some fear could sink the coalition agreement they signed on June 14.
News of the deal’s possible collapse sent South Africa’s currency, the rand, plunging against the dollar.
The business sector has strongly defended an agreement between the two parties, believing that this would help achieve stability in the economy.
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