ATM's Vuyo Zungula calls out black parties in GNU for neglecting community needs

IOL News

14-05-2025

ATM leader Zungula criticises black-led GNU parties for failing to negotiate meaningful outcomes, pointing to the Freedom Front Plus as an example of successful negotiations for their community's interests.
Image: Oupa Mokoena/Independent Newspapers
ATM leader Vuyo Zungula has criticised black political parties within the Government of National Unity (GNU), accusing them of prioritising ministerial positions over tangible benefits for their communities.
In a video on X (formerly Twitter), Zungula referenced the Freedom Front Plus, a predominantly Afrikaner party, as an example of a political group that negotiated effectively for its constituency during coalition talks.
"Last year, as you know, we had elections in our country, followed by a period of negotiations. During that time, something that's not often talked about, there was a party called the Freedom Front Plus, which is predominantly an Afrikaner party. When they were negotiating, they pushed for the recognition and protection of Orania, an Afrikaner-only town,' said Zungula.
He accused black-led parties in the GNU of failing to secure meaningful outcomes for their supporters.
'But you find that the other black parties that are now in the Government of National Unity did not negotiate things for the betterment of our people. As long as they got ministerial positions, they were fine. So I think that is the root cause of our problem,' he said.
Zungula's comments come amid an intensifying national debate over the continued existence of racially exclusive towns like Orania and Kleinfontein.
As previously reported by IOL, ActionSA condemned both settlements, labeling them 'dangerous symbols of racial isolation masquerading as cultural preservation.'
Parliamentary Chief Whip Lerato Ngobeni criticised the use of Section 31 of the Constitution,which protects cultural rights, as a justification for racial separation.
'That section protects cultural expression, not the establishment of modern-day Bantustans for those unwilling to let go of apartheid's legacy,' she said.
Ngobeni went further, calling Orania and Kleinfontein 'sanctuaries of apartheid nostalgia' and 'breeding grounds for division and symbolic violence against the dream of inclusion.'
The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) have also taken a firm stance, staging protests at both Kleinfontein and the Northern Cape Premier's Office.
EFF leaders argue that such towns promote segregation and violate the Constitution. The Pretoria High Court has previously ruled that Kleinfontein is unlawful due to zoning infractions.
EFF Gauteng chairperson Nkululeko Dunga urged the Tshwane Municipality to act swiftly to shut down illegal developments at Kleinfontein. In the Northern Cape, the EFF has pledged to take further action against Orania.
'We can never be party to a government that is allowing segregation within our province,' said EFF representative Prince Mashele.
The uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MK Party) also joined the debate, announcing plans to introduce a private member's bill to clarify Section 235 of the Constitution, which relates to the right of cultural communities to self-determination.
Following a fact-finding visit to Kleinfontein, MK Parliamentary Chief Whip Mzwanele Manyi argued that Section 235 is being exploited to justify racial exclusion.
'We hold the view, as the MK Party in Parliament, that Section 235 is vague and leads to all kinds of interpretations, some of which resemble apartheid-era policies,' said Manyi. 'As much as we must respect all cultures, that respect must not in any shape or form remind us of apartheid.'
MK Party leaders maintain that communities like Orania and Kleinfontein distort the Constitution's intention by using cultural rights as a shield for racial separation.
Meanwhile, the Freedom Front Plus has defended Orania as a legitimate cultural project aligned with the constitutional principle of self-determination.
Freedom Front Plus Member of Parliament Dr Wynand Boshoff dismissed the criticism as politically motivated and an attack on minority rights.
'Since its founding, the VF Plus has been advocating self-determination, as embodied by Orania, among others,' said Boshoff.
'In a multi-ethnic country like South Africa, there is often a majority that pays lip service to recognising diversity but, in reality, denies it.'
Boshoff further claimed that the ANC government has marginalised Afrikaners through its transformation policies and insisted that Orania operates within the law and does not engage in racial discrimination.
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