By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has been re-elected for a second term, having won a majority of votes in the National Assembly, the chief justice announced on Friday evening.
Ramaphosa fended off a challenge by Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader, Julius Malema by 283 votes to 44 with the help of his partners in the newly formed Government of National Unity (GNU) , that includes the Democratic Alliance (DA), Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), the Patriotic Alliance (PA) and Freedom Front Plus (FF+).
The President-elect will be inaugurated during a ceremony in Pretoria which, according to the Constitution, should take place within five days after the President’s election, Parliament said in a statement.
Once the President has taken the oath of office, he will proceed to form a cabinet, selecting ministers who will head various government departments and execute the administration’s policies.
400 new and old members of Parliament were sworn in before the election of a Speaker and Deputy Speaker, followed by the election of a president.
Thoko Didiza was voted and elected as the new speaker and DA MP Annelie Lotriet became deputy speaker of the National Assembly.
The African National Congress (ANC) had 159 seats and needed another 42 votes to have Ramaphosa elected.
The Democratic Alliance comes back to Parliament with 87 MPs, the Umkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party with 58 and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) with 39.
However the ANC and DA have reached a deal to form the Government of National Unity which will also include the Patriotic Alliance (PA) and Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP).
Meanwhile Smaller opposition parties in Parliament have accused the ANC of using the government of national unity to disguise their alliance with three DA and IFP.
The parties, including the EFF, the PAC, the UDM, Al—Jamah, the UAT, and the ATM, have formed what they call a Progressive Caucus.
“We demand that the ANC meet us to get a progressive government established,” the parties have said.
UDM leader Bantu Holomisa said if the ANC was honest from the start, they should have shared their agreement with all parties.
Al Jama-ah leader Ganief Hendricks said the ANC should meet with the progressive caucus because the GNU is a smokescreen. “They should all consider a national front. We cannot return to white rule. There will be a bloodbath”
MK Party boycotted the session, which did not affect the voting as only a third of the house is needed for a quorum.
Parliament convened in an unusual setting after a fire in 2022 gutted the National Assembly building in Cape Town and lawmakers came together at a conference center near the city’s waterfront.