IFP President Velenkosini Hlabisa is confident his party will win the KZN provincial election. The IFP’s victory in another by-election against the ANC last week — its 10th since the 2021 Local Elections — lends credibility to this prediction. In this in-depth interview, Hlabisa urges members of the Multi-Party Charter to “engage, engage, engage” and specifically calls for including Gayton MacKenzie’s Patriotic Alliance in the Opposition coalition. He also addresses critics who foresee the IFP’s disintegration following founder Mangosuthu Buthelezi’s passing. Hlabisa outlines what it would take for the ANC to successfully woo the IFP away from the Opposition pact next year, setting a very high bar for such a scenario. – Alec Hogg
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Relevant timestamps from the interview
- 00:07 – Introductions
- 01:14 – Velenkosini Hlabisa on the commentary that the IFP would implode with the passing of Mangosuthu Buthelezi
- 06:39 – The Multi Party charter prospects for 2024 and beyond
- 10:34 – The situation in KZN
- 14:26 – The prospect of an IFP/ANC coalition
- 18:57 – The Patriotic Alliance joining the Multi party Charter
- 21:09 – The hostility between the DA and PA
- 22:58 – Conclusions
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Edited transcript of the interview with Velenkosini Hlabisa, president of the Inkatha Freedom Party
Alec Hogg: There’s been lots of discussion and speculation around the IFP’s future, especially after Prince Mangusutu Buthelezi’s passing. Interestingly, this week the IFP took yet another ward from the ANC in by-elections. This doubles the number of municipal wards it has won from the ANC. Could things be very different for the IFP in 2024? Let’s find out the party’s viewpoint from its leader, President Velenkosini Hlabisa.
Velenkosini Hlabisa: First of all, the IFP was humbled by how people from South Africa and around the world paid tribute and respect to Prince Mangusutu Buthelezi during his condolences and funeral. Although it was painful, we felt comforted by how people supported him on his last journey.
Regarding your question, some people hoped and predicted that the IFP would disappear from the political landscape. They make these predictions every time there’s an election. But the IFP has seen difficult times and has survived. Prince Mangusutu Buthelezi leaves the IFP in safe hands. I joined the IFP in 1978 and am serving on the NEC of the party with leaders who joined as far back as 1975. Considering this experience, the IFP has endured various political stages in our country and has returned stronger each time
In recent years, we have won a majority of municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal. We’re on an upward trajectory, winning wards from ANC strongholds, the latest being one on Wednesday in Ward 13 along Richards Bay. Our strategy, well thought out since 2012, has been implemented effectively in subsequent years and is yielding results.
We plan for 2024, 2026, and 2029 as we approach future elections. We’ve seen political parties disintegrate after the departure of their founders or senior leaders, but we won’t fall into that trap. The IFP remains a voice of reason in South African politics. When people look for a party they can trust to lead them with integrity and honesty, they know it’s the IFP. So anyone thinking the IFP will disintegrate should watch this space but also consider supporting the IFP, as we will become an even stronger force in South African politics, both regionally and nationally, by 2024.
Alec Hogg: So what about the multi-party charter, Mr. Hlabisa? Many believe that you won’t get the 50% that you need to be controlling government in South Africa after the 2024 election. Is this an immediate coalition opportunity or something you’re working on for 2029?
Velenkosini Hlabisa: The multi-party charter for South Africa is an immediate action for 2024. If you look at the 2021 local government elections at a national level, the ANC declined sharply because people preferred to stay at home rather than vote for a political party that has failed them, not seeing a viable alternative. The multi-party charter is that alternative. Currently, we are sitting at 35 percent in terms of the votes we had in 2021, and we have 27 million voters in South Africa. We will be mobilizing the civil society and various stakeholders. The message is if you stay away, the bad government will remain in power and do more damage in our country.
The 2024 elections will be a watershed moment like 1994, where people of South Africa stood in long queues for many hours because they wanted to remove the apartheid government. The ANC’s performance shows that they are declining in terms of support, and the conditions are worse now than in 2021. Therefore, the multi-party charter is an initiative for now to save South Africa.
Alec Hogg: What about KwaZulu-Natal? There are many who believe that there will be a change of government there, as well as in Gauteng and the already functioning non-ANC government in the Western Cape. How are you looking at that or balancing that with your own objectives?
Velenkosini Hlabisa: The IFP and Democratic Alliance are two separate entities. The people of Wazulu-Natal will choose a political party and give a majority mandate to the party they trust and believe will attend to the challenges they face. We are confident that we will do well, as our strategy dates back to 2012, and now we are projecting 2024, 2026, and 2029.
Read more: Hlabisa: ANC food parcel bribery behind shock IFP by-election reverse
Alec Hogg: What about you personally? Are you going to Cape Town or will you stay in KZN after the election?
Velenkosini Hlabisa: The IFP made a strategic decision for me to stay in Wazulu-Natal to consolidate our base. We will make an informed decision about my location based on the prevailing information and evidence and new strategies as we advance to 2026 to 2029.
Alec Hogg: When I had conversations with the elders of the ANC recently, both mentioned that the IFP is a preferred partner for the ANC post-2024. If they approach the IFP as a partner, how would you deal with that?
Velenkosini Hlabisa: The ANC and IFP must first go through a reconciliation agenda. If people have voted them out, it will be difficult for the IFP to bring the ANC back through a coalition. This would have to be a deeply engaged decision, taking into account the ANC’s recent failures.
Alec Hogg: But the ruling party is saying that it’s rejuvenating and fixing itself. Does that change your approach?
Velenkosini Hlabisa: We will need to see drastic steps taken concerning the recommendations by the Zondo Commission. If they don’t act now, future promises will not hold any credibility.
Alec Hogg:
It’s a long list and it’s going to be a tough time. But just before we go, the Patriotic Alliance. How does the IFP stand on that issue? It appears within the multiparty charter that some of the parties, in particular Action SA and the Freedom Front, are keen to give the Patriotic Alliance a chance to join. The DA, on the other hand, is very much against it. Where do you stand?
Velenkosini Hlabisa:
The IFP is very clear. We believe the Patriotic Alliance should be given an opportunity to be part of a broad church of the Manatee Party Charter for South Africa because you need a wide participation of political parties who are willing to be an alternative government as we go forward. On the issue of coalition, you need to engage each other, engage and engage, and also be patient with each other because you are bringing together political parties with divergent views, outlook, and also policies. So now, as the time goes on, I’m sure we will be seeing more political parties joining the Maladi Party Charter, even including the Patriotic Alliance. We are not anti-Patriotic Alliance. We believe the Patriotic Alliance will play a key role in ensuring that we bring a government that can bring change in South Africa. You look, if you look at Johannesburg, it’s a disaster. And without the support of the Patriotic Alliance, the ANC will be taken out. The engagement will go on addressing the challenges at a local government sphere while also preparing for the provincial and national government configuration in 2024 and beyond.
Alec Hogg: But why is the DA then so camped against this, if even yourselves, who appear to be on a similar page to them, are saying the Patriotic Alliance should come into the multi-party charter camp?
Velenkosini Hlabisa: Really, Alec, I do not want to be the spokesperson for the Democratic Alliance. They can explain best their views. But all I can say is, in a coalition government, you need to be patient with each other. You need to persuade each other. You need to engage and engage and engage and try to find a common ground. And this does not happen overnight. That is why I’m saying going forward, we will see more parties coming over and even those who were far apart from each other, closing the gap, eventually accepting each other because a coalition is a combination of different political parties. It takes time for other political parties to accept each other. In some, it happens over a short time. I’m confident political parties who are committed to bringing a new government that will be a solution, bring hope, revive the dreams and aspirations of the people of South Africa, as they were in 1994 and prior, will eventually sing from the same hymn book and say for the sake of the people of South Africa, irrespective of how we differ, let us deliver the government that will bring hope once again and rebuild our country and prevent South Africa from being a failed state.
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