New cracks have emerged within the National Freedom Party (NFP) after its president, Ivan Barnes, allegedly went behind his party leaders to call for a vote of no confidence against KwaZulu-Natal Premier Thami Ntuli.
A senior NFP leader, who cannot be named as he is not mandated to speak to the media, said Barnes also did not consult with Social Development MEC Mbali Shinga, who, as the only NFP deployee in the provincial Parliament, has the power to table the motion.
The leader said the party’s provincial executive committee (PEC) did not support Barnes’ call.
He said Barnes made the call out of bitterness against the IFP, whose provincial chairperson is Ntuli, because IFP President Velenkosini Hlabisa did not offer him the position of mayor of Zululand District Municipality.
“Barnes should get support from his party’s only MPL, but since he had not spoken to her (Shinga) about this, how is this vote of no confidence going to be tabled?
“I am confused about how he is going to make it possible,” said the member.
He said the matter of the vote of no confidence is dealt with in Parliament and by MPLs, and since he is not in Parliament, his call for a vote of no confidence during a media briefing was meaningless, as Shinga knew nothing about it.
“Shinga does not have that mandate, but she holds the mandate given to her previously, which is to work with the IFP, DA, and ANC in the GPU (Government of Provincial Unity).
“He does not enjoy support with the party, which is out of personal interest, as he indicated in the media briefing that the promise of giving him the position of Zululand mayor was not kept.
“He said Hlabisa told him that he could not undermine people’s mandate, of which I think Hlabisa meant that the IFP has many councillors to govern Zululand,” the member said.
“You should ask him how, as an outsider in Parliament, going to make this call possible since he does not have parliamentary power.
“He is calling for a media briefing without the deployment of the NFP at the KwaZulu-Natal Parliament,” said the member.
He said if Shinga were to call for a vote of no confidence without the support of other parties in the GPU, this would lead to her losing support when it comes to voting on her budget.
“Let me say, he (Barnes) gives her the mandate to table the vote of no confidence against the premier, who is going to vote for it to pass if other parties do not support it, since the NFP only has one seat?
“Where is the PEC, which was elected in New Castle before we elected him in December. We cannot disregard that structure,” he said.
Barnes has not yet responded to questions sent to him, but the story will be updated as soon as he responds.
In a statement released on October 25 after the media briefing, Barnes said under the GPU, there was a lack of service delivery.
“The recent election results clearly show that the electorate expressed overwhelming support for the MK Party (MKP).
“Perhaps it would be wise to allow the MKP to take a leading role in any future provincial governance formation,” read the statement.
He said his party was open to working with any political party that prioritises service delivery, transparency, and the creation of an enabling environment for investment and growth.
“What matters most to us is restoring accountability, rebuilding public trust, and ensuring that the people of KwaZulu-Natal receive the quality services they deserve.”
IFP spokesperson Mkhuleko Hlengwa also did not respond.
ANC provincial spokesperson, Fanle Sibisi, said the party has not yet discussed Barnes’ call, but this might be part of its meeting agenda on Monday.
MKP provincial leader Willies Mchunu said the NFP’s call for MKP to lead the government was exciting.
“It is exciting when there is a party that recognises a mistake that happened by leaving the NKP out of government.
“We are with the NFP in saying it was wrong for the government to be constituted by a party with a small vote while there is a party (MKP) that received more people’s votes because this was undermining the majority vote,” said Mchunu.
Political analyst Thabani Khumalo said the NFP would be shooting itself in the foot by preferring the MKP to lead the government, as this would strip its position to hold the balance of power.
He said currently, the NFP has the power of being the kingmaker, which it would lose if the MKP were to form the government with the ANC.
“The MKP would only need the ANC to have enough numbers to form the government,” he said.
“Currently, without them (NFP), the government would collapse, but if the MKP works with the ANC, they would be able to form a government, as they would be able to reach 51%.
“They are definitely shooting themselves in the foot,” said Khumalo.
