ANC Faces Challenges Forming Coalition Government

The African National Congress (ANC) faces a tough task as it seeks to form a coalition government, leaving its supporters, like Solomon Mogale, a 78-year-old pensioner and resident of Soweto, feeling worried.

"I would like an ANC, DA and EFF coalition, provided that Cyril (Ramaphosa) becomes president. He's very smart and deserves a chance," stated Mogale, expressing unwavering loyalty to the ANC.

In a seismic shift last month, voters angered by economic stagnation and national decline dismantled the majority of the late Nelson Mandela's party has had held since 1994, leaving it little choice but to forge a coalition with its rivals.

The talks could be a daunting task for the former liberation movement as it aims to balance the broader interests of the nation with those of its supporters, the majority of whom are Black.

The ANC had said it is leaning towards the idea of a government of national unity that could bring in partners as diverse as the Marxist Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and the white-led, free-marketeer Democratic Alliance (DA).

The prospect of a deal with the DA in particular, though the partner favored by the business community and global investors, makes many ANC rank and file members uneasy.

The ANC's National Executive Committee was meeting to discuss the make-up of the next government.

It will have 159 seats out of 400 in the new National Assembly, while the DA will have 87.

The populist uMkhonto we Sizwe (MK), led by former president Jacob Zuma, will have 58 seats, the EFF 39, the socially conservative Inkatha Freedom Party 17 and the far-right Patriotic Alliance nine.

All of these potential partners come with their own unique baggage for the ANC.