By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Image Supplied.
The African Congress for Transformation (ACT) leader Ace Magashule says his party will forge strategic partnerships with other parties including MK Party.
“We are going to work with uMkhonto weSizwe. We have been engaging with other radical, progressive parties to ensure that in 2024 South Africa changes for the better,” he said.
“It’s going to be a pleasure to work with uBaba Msholozi, uMkhonto weSizwe and bring back the dignity of the black person and South Africans.”
Magashule was speaking in Pietermaritzburg on Friday as ACT kick-started its three-day awareness campaign in KwaZulu-Natal.
He, however, maintains ACT will contest the coming general elections independently.
“We are going to be on the ballot but we are going to contest elections as African Congress for Transformation and we are going to contest elections but we had discussions with several parties especially those we share same ideologies and policies where we define the DA as our ideological enemy. We are going to work with such parties, we have met several times. We are going to work together with other likeminded parties, strategic alliances are very important in politics.”
Speculation about a possible merger with Umkhonto weSizwe party, prompted some ACT leaders to write a letter seeking clarity on this relation.
“I have seen the letter it was written by the comrades here, it is not talking about any merger, it is still talking about working together strategic alliances because it is what we are going to do. We are going to work with these parties because our people are hungry and we must fight hunger and femicide and we can’t do it alone on our own but we are saying to South Africans vote ACT wherever you are.”
Magashule, was neither surprised by the formation of the Umkhonto weSizwe Party or Zuma’s endorsement.
The move could further dilute support for the ANC, which is struggling in the polls and could see its share of the vote drop below 50 per cent for the first time since the advent of democracy in 1994.
Magashule, 64, was kicked out of the ANC last year over graft accusations but remains popular with parts of the left-leaning electorate. He formed the ACT in August.
In another twist, the Pan African Congress (PAC) visited Zuma in what is perceived as a notice to join the newly established party.
This is despite the PAC showing signs of teaming up with another leftist political party, Azanian People’s Organisation (Azapo), to contest the upcoming 2024 national elections in unison.
In June the two organisations, who both have suffered a loss of support over the years, met in Johannesburg to review the cooperation agreement.
This would further contribute to the ANC’s sleepless nights as many of its supporters might show allegiance to the newly formed union of the three parties.
This week the MK party started conducting nationwide grand parades to promote itself in urban hubs and densely populated areas, coinciding with the ANC’s birthday party.
Thousands of ANC supporters are expected to make their way to Mbombela Stadium, where President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to deliver his keynote address.
While the ANC has begun celebrations in Mpumalanga, opposition parties have increased their visibility in confronting various issues impacting the country.
In power for three decades, the ANC has had its once-stellar standing mauled by allegations of corruption and mismanagement, amid a weak economy hampered by power cuts, high unemployment and rampant crime.