Time for GNU Partners to Park Political Manoeuvring and Focus on Their Day Jobs

Party political manoeuvring in the Government of National Unity is a distraction, defocusing the State from its parallel priorities to grow the economy and meet its Constitutional obligations to provide social justice.

Partners in political coalitions generally don’t concur on all policy issues. Parties in successful national coalitions can manage their differences and political contestation, in favour of focusing on the national interest.

Since the formation of the GNU a year ago, political differences among the partners – from BELA, to Land Expropriation, to passing the national budget, to the approaches to corruption and international relations – have completely dominated the South African narrative.

The GNU partners, in the Statement of Intent, agreed to a set of foundational principles including non-racialism and non-sexism, respect for the Constitution and Bill of Rights, advancing social justice, redress and equity, the alleviation of poverty and human dignity.

Without a common purpose to prioritise these fundamental commitments, the issues won’t disappear. They will fuel populist, identity-driven political campaigns positioned to feed off the righteous desperation of millions of South Africans who don’t feel that the constitutional democracy has delivered all they hoped for.

Now that the nation has an approved budget, the GNU partners must resist the creation of further crises and prioritise the work for which South African taxpayers, regardless of political affiliation, richly reward them.