EFF statement on Helen Zille’s confirmation that there is no Government of National Unity but a DA/ANC alliance

1 August 2024

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) is exonerated in our original characterisation of the so-called Government of National Unity (GNU) as a grand coalition between the Democratic Alliance (DA) and the African National Congress (ANC). In a public engagement she held with the Friedrich Naumann Foundation, Helen Zille confirmed three very important aspects about the so-called GNU.

Firstly, the real negotiations of the so-called GNU took place between the DA and Cyril Ramaphosa and not the fake National Executive Committee Team led by Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula. Zille's exact words are, "So from the beginning, Cyril Ramaphosa came up with this notion of a government of national unity, which he thought would be a better way of selling the concept of coalition to his own party."

Secondly, she stated that the agreement is a coalition agreement between the DA and ANC, and not the GNU that is presented in public. Zille's exact words are, "Now this, of course, is not a government of national unity, because a government of national unity brings all parties together, which would have had to include the EFF and the MK party, which it did not. But it still gave the president the fig leaf he needed to bring in all sorts of smaller parties to say, 'I'm not in a coalition with the DA.' Now the truth is that we are actually in a coalition because a coalition means that if a party withdraws from the coalition, the government falls. Now, none of the other parties, none of the other blind parties in the coalition."

Thirdly, the EFF has also been correct in asserting that the coalition of the DA and ANC was engineered by the white capitalist establishment through the manipulation of our currency because in the same talk Helen Zille said, "One of the strongest things that we had in the negotiation, the strongest lever the DA had, by far, was the value of the RAND. Every time things were going well, the RAND went up, up, up, up, up. Every time things went badly, the RAND plummeted. The bond market was exactly the same."

In addition to these indisputable facts, it is common knowledge that the foundational document which constituted the GNU was signed by Helen Zille and Fikile Mbalula to solidify the relationship and grand coalition between the two political parties. This explains why the ANC refused to entertain any amendment to the foundational document, which the EFF said must include the Freedom Charter, Progressive Intemationalism, and a commitment to redress our colonial and apartheid past.

Helen Zille's revelations about the DA/ANC coalition, entered into through Ramaphosa's facilitation, also confirm the EFF's President and Commmander-ln-Chief (CIC) Julius Malema's contributions in both the Opening of Parliament and Budget Vote 1 debates. In the Opening of Parliament's debate CIC stated: "It doesn't matter what you say, but we want to state categorically clearly that the coalition between the DA and the former liberation movement is a sellout position, typical of collaborators who sacrifice and compromise the struggle against apartheid and colonialism".

He went on further to state: "We call on all workers movements, civil society, religious leaders, and traditional leaders to reject this grand coalition led by the DA under the pretense of the so-called GNU"

In the Budget Vote 1 Presidency debate CIC stated "It is a fact that in light of the GNU, which originated from the white capitalist establishment, we need to appreciate your own historical involvement with them".

What this reveals, beyond any doubt, is that Mr. Cyril Ramaphosa is a collaborator with the white capitalist establishment and treats black people, including his political party, with utter disrespect and disdain. Mr. Ramaphosa is a manipulator and liar who takes advantage of the politically gullible members of the NEC of the ANC.

We, as the EFF and Progressive Caucus, stand opposed to the DA/ANC coalition because we know that its long-term agenda is to reverse the little progress made in securing freedoms and rights for black people in general, and Africans in particular.

We reject the hypocrisy of Ramaphosa and call on all conscious members of society and all formations to reject Ramaphosa, the collaborator and hypocrite who sold our country to the establishment.

Issued by Leigh-Ann Mathys, National Spokesperson, EFF, 1 August 2024