Steenhuisen said the ANC had failed to honour the statement of intent setting up the GNU and “they continue to protect corruption”.
The DA will stay in the government of national unity (GNU) to “course correct” the ANC.
This is after President Cyril Ramaphosa fired DA deputy trade, industry and competition minister Andrew Whitfield.
DA leader John Steenhuisen claims, “he started to ask questions around the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) board and the transformation fund”.
“If the ANC fails to course-correct, the FedEx (DA’s federal executive) will seriously consider exercising our constitutional prerogative by tabling a motion of no confidence in Ramaphosa,” the party said.
“The ANC has become increasingly uncomfortable with the DA representatives in the GNU because they are uncovering corruption and maladministration,” the DA leader said.
One of them, Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Dean Macpherson, described his department as a site of “frenzied and rampant corruption and mismanagement”.
Macpherson added that the DA had “uncovered deeply entrenched patterns of mismanagement, lack of accountability, patronage networks and corruption”.
Party to honour mandate despite tensions
Steenhuisen told The Citizen the decision to remain part of the GNU had been taken to honour the party’s promise to voters in the election last year to “put the country on a new path”.
“We love our country, and we work against tremendous odds every day to act in the best interests of all South Africans.”
He said the ANC had failed to honour the statement of intent setting up the GNU and “they continue to protect corruption”.
If, in the course of the DA being a watchdog, “the ANC wants to kick the DA out for fighting corruption, so be it”, Steenhuisen said.
The DA would vote against the budgets for the departments of those ministers who had allegations hanging over their heads.
These were earlier cited by Steenhuisen as being Thembi Simelane, Nobuhle Nkabane and Deputy Minister David Mahlobo.
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Mixed reaction from experts
The DA’s decision has drawn mixed reactions from political experts.
The FW de Klerk Foundation said: “The DA’s plan to withdraw from the National Dialogue makes no sense. What does the National Dialogue have to do with the dismissal of Whitfield?
“The DA has the advantage of the moral high ground and has the public’s support. Therefore, it is unfortunate that the DA is now walking away from a process that is desperately needed to empower the country’s residents to gain control over their future,” it said.
Political analyst Ntsikelelo Breakfast said the removal of Whitfield had nothing to do with him visiting the United States earlier this year without Ramaphosa’s permission.
“Ramaphosa has some reasons known to him, but I don’t think it is connected to the US visit.”
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The withdrawal from the National Dialogue was irrelevant because “we know the DA has always not been interested in discussing the national problem, especially poverty, unemployment and other related issues troubling black people.”
“The GNU was in trouble, but none of the parties would walk away because the GNU was the idea of those funding the parties,” he said.
Analyst Goodenough Mashego said the DA’s threat of pulling out of the National Dialogue was just sulking because the dialogue is not even a political platform.
“The dialogue was intended to be a civil society mobilisation whereby South Africans have a conversation,” Mashego said.
Political analyst André Duvenhage believed firing Whitefield was not only inconsistent, as there were a lot of errors on the side of the president.
“Ramaphosa acted in the interest of the ANC, rather than the interest of the GNU,” he said.
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