ANC open to coalition with any party in KwaZulu-Natal as MK Party leads

ANC Moses Mabhida regional coordinator Zet Luzipho during an interview with IOL on Friday, as the MK Party maintained its lead in the KwaZulu-Natal election results.

The ANC has signalled its willingness to work with any political party in KwaZulu-Natal as the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party maintains its lead in the province's local government election results.

Speaking to IOL, ANC Moses Mabhida regional coordinator Zet Luzipho said the party was prepared to work across political lines, provided coalition arrangements were guided by the ANC's national and provincial leadership.

His comments come as the Electoral Commission of South Africa's (IEC) results dashboard indicated that 82% of votes in KwaZulu-Natal had been counted by 2pm on Friday.

The MK Party was leading with 34.12% of the provincial vote, followed by the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) at 22.67%, while the ANC was in third place with 21.01%.

Luzipho said the ANC accepted the emerging results as the will of the people, despite the party not being the preferred choice of many voters."We welcome the results, in as much as they are not finalised. This is the will of the people and it has to be respected, and we accept the results," he said.

He said the party would use the outcome as an opportunity to continue working for communities, particularly in the uMgungundlovu District, which falls under the Moses Mabhida Region.Luzipho also thanked residents who turned out to vote, acknowledging that some had chosen not to support the ANC.

He said the right to vote was hard-earned and that the party respected the choices made by voters.

On the possibility of coalition governments, Luzipho said the ANC was not opposed to working with other political parties, provided there was agreement on issues affecting communities.

"The African National Congress has always been committed to work for the people of this country, regardless of their political affiliation. Equally, we'll work with any and all political parties as long as we're guided by the national and the provincial leadership on how we manage the issues of coalition, as and when they prevail," he said.

He pointed to Msunduzi Municipality as an example, saying the ANC had previously governed without an outright majority and had worked with other political parties.

Luzipho said coalition discussions should be guided by what parties brought to the table rather than simply their political identities.

"We've always said measure the ANC on the basis of the issues that are put on the table and we think that is what must guide us even in this situation," he said.

He added that the ANC was willing to work in an environment with any party that shared its commitment to addressing the needs of communities.

Where the party had concerns about the election results, Luzipho said it would follow the appropriate legal channels to raise them.