Malusi Gigaba, once hounded by the DA, now slams ANC for teaming up with them

Key topics:Malusi Gigaba slams DA’s inclusion in Government of National Unity.His career was defined by relentless DA opposition scrutiny.Critics highlight irony of Gigaba opposing ANC-DA partnership.Sign up for your early morning brew of the BizNews Insider to keep you up to speed with the content that matters. The newsletter will land in your inbox at 5:30am weekdays. Register here.Support South Africa’s bastion of independent journalism, offering balanced insights on investments, business, and the political economy, by joining BizNews Premium. Register here.If you prefer WhatsApp for updates, sign up to the BizNews channel here..By Kerry Lanaghan.In the shifting landscape of South Africa’s Government of National Unity (GNU), an unlikely voice has emerged to challenge the inclusion of the Democratic Alliance (DA): former Home Affairs and Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba. According to a recent report by the Sunday Times, Gigaba has voiced strong opposition to the ANC's alliance with the DA, arguing that the GNU should have been formed without them. The comments are notable not just for their content, but for the profound irony they present, given Gigaba's long and fraught history with the opposition party.Gigaba’s career has been marked by persistent and often vicious battles with the DA, who have long positioned themselves as his chief critics. The party’s scrutiny of Gigaba’s conduct during his tenures at various ministries was relentless. According to a press statement from the DA following his resignation in November 2018, the party welcomed his departure, citing a history of "breaches of the Constitution" and a legal battle that found him to have "deliberately told untruths under oath." This was about the Fireblade Aviation case, a protracted legal saga where a private company successfully sought to compel the Minister to abide by a decision he had initially approved.The DA's efforts to hold Gigaba accountable extended beyond that court case. The party was a key figure in the campaign to expose state capture, consistently calling for ministers implicated in corruption to be held accountable. A look back at a press release from that period shows the DA was calling for Gigaba's resignation and actively pushing for him to be a central witness at the State Capture Commission.His recent comments, therefore, present a stark paradox. A man whose career was arguably defined by the DA's attempts to remove him from public office is now a vocal critic of the ANC’s decision to work with that party. His reported preference for the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) or other parties over the DA in the GNU suggests a deep-seated political animosity that supersedes the need for a stable, cross-party alliance.From a political strategy perspective, Gigaba’s criticism can be viewed as an attempt to appeal to a more populist, anti-DA faction within the ANC and its broader support base. By framing the GNU as a betrayal of core ANC principles, he positions himself as a purist who believes the party has lost its way. However, for many South Africans, it's difficult to reconcile his past with his present, particularly when the DA's sustained pressure on figures like him significantly shaped the post-Zuma political landscape. This latest chapter in the political saga is a potent reminder that the grudges of the past are likely to linger and complicate the delicate future of the GNU.

Malusi Gigaba, once hounded by the DA, now slams ANC for teaming up with them

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