In the heart of South Africa's political landscape, a storm is brewing within the newly formed Government of National Unity (GNU). What began as a beacon of hope for stability and collaboration is now facing its first major test, threatening to unravel the fragile coalition that was so carefully constructed. The Democratic Alliance (DA), a key partner in the GNU, is at odds with President Cyril Ramaphosa and the African National Congress (ANC), leading to cancelled trips, stern ultimatums, and potential motions of no confidence.
The catalyst for this turmoil was the unexpected dismissal of Andrew Whitfield, the DA's Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, on 25 June 2025. The reason given for his removal was an "unauthorized" trip to the United States in February 2025, a move that apparently did not sit well with the President. However, the DA views this as a blatant disregard for the principles of consultation and consensus that underpin the GNU, as outlined in the Statement of Intent.
Adding fuel to the fire, DA leader John Steenhuisen issued a 48-hour ultimatum to President Ramaphosa, demanding the removal of ANC ministers and deputy ministers implicated in alleged wrongdoings. Steenhuisen specifically named Human Settlements Minister Thembi Simelane, Higher Education Minister Nobuhle Nkabane, and Deputy Minister of Water and Sanitation David Mahlobo, accusing Ramaphosa of a "flagrant double standard". The DA's stance is that if Whitfield was dismissed for an unauthorized trip, then those facing more serious accusations should also be held accountable.
As the deadline loomed, the political tension became so palpable that President Ramaphosa made a last-minute decision to cancel his scheduled trip to Seville, Spain, where he was to attend a conference on financing for development on 30 June 2025. Instead, he delegated International Relations Minister Ronald Lamola to represent South Africa, a clear indication of the seriousness of the situation unfolding at home. According to a statement from his office on 28 June 2025, the President needed to remain in the country to closely monitor and manage the recent political developments.
The DA's Federal Executive (FedEx) convened on 28 June 2025 to decide on the party's next course of action. The stakes were high, with speculation mounting that the DA might withdraw from the GNU altogether. Such a move would have sent shockwaves through the political landscape, potentially destabilizing the government and triggering a new era of uncertainty.
In a press conference held in Cape Town on 28 June 2025, Steenhuisen announced the DA's decision. While the party would not be leaving the GNU, he declared that it would no longer participate in the planned National Dialogue, an initiative spearheaded by President Ramaphosa to address South Africa's pressing issues. Steenhuisen lambasted the National Dialogue as an "obscene waste of R740-million", questioning the President's ability to engage in meaningful dialogue even with his own coalition partners.
The DA's leader didn't hold back his punches, stating that the party would actively mobilize against the National Dialogue and call on civil society to demand its cancellation until President Ramaphosa takes action against ANC members facing allegations. This marked a significant escalation in the DA's opposition to the President's leadership and the direction of the GNU.
Steenhuisen emphasized that the DA's decision to remain in the GNU was driven by a sense of responsibility to the country. He argued that if the DA were to leave, it would pave the way for a "coalition of chaos and destruction", leading to disastrous consequences for South Africa. He said that the country "benefits" from having the DA in the GNU.
However, Steenhuisen made it clear that the DA's continued participation in the GNU was not unconditional. He threw the ball back into President Ramaphosa's court, stating that it was up to the ANC to decide whether they wanted the DA to remain in the coalition. "The ball is in the President's court and the ANC's court – if they want to take a strong stance against us and want to stop us [from] standing against alleged wrongdoings, well, they must fire us from the Government of National Unity," he declared.
In addition to withdrawing from the National Dialogue, the DA announced that it would be voting against the individual budget votes for the departments headed by Simelane and Nkabane. This is a strategic move aimed at putting pressure on the ANC to take action against these ministers. "We will keep voting against those departmental votes until those ministers are removed," Steenhuisen asserted.
The DA believes that this approach strikes a balance between ensuring the stability of the country through the broader GNU budget process and holding individual ministers accountable. Steenhuisen said that the ministers in those portfolios would need to source other ways of getting their budgets passed in Parliament. If the ANC wants the DA's support for those departmental budgets, they must replace the incumbent ministers with alternatives that meet the same standards applied to Whitfield, Steenhuisen explained.
The DA's FedEx also considered tabling a motion of no confidence in President Ramaphosa. While they ultimately decided against it at this stage, Steenhuisen made it clear that the DA was losing confidence in the President's ability to lead the GNU. "If the ANC fails to course-correct, the FedEx will seriously consider exercising our constitutional prerogative by tabling a motion of no confidence," he warned.
Steenhuisen also raised concerns about the undermining of the GNU Statement of Intent by President Ramaphosa and the ANC. He said that certain clauses relating to consultation and consensus were being violated, and that the Statement of Intent needed to be respected in both letter and spirit. He also said that Ramaphosa had not afforded him the opportunity to inform Whitfield himself about what was expected to happen before he received a letter from Ramaphosa alerting him of his removal. "That is not respectful and that is not right," he said.
Despite the turmoil, the DA has confirmed that it will be submitting a replacement name for Whitfield's position as Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry. Steenhuisen emphasized that the DA's decision to accept six ministerial and six deputy ministerial positions in the GNU was a demonstration of putting South Africa first, even though they were entitled to more.
The events surrounding Whitfield's dismissal and the DA's response have exposed deep fault lines within the GNU. The DA's actions can be seen as a direct challenge to President Ramaphosa's authority and a test of the ANC's commitment to the principles of the coalition. The coming weeks will be crucial in determining whether the GNU can weather this storm and emerge stronger, or whether it will succumb to the internal pressures that threaten to tear it apart.
The situation has placed President Ramaphosa in a difficult position. He must weigh the need to maintain stability within the GNU against the pressure to address the allegations against ANC ministers. A misstep could have far-reaching consequences for the country's political and economic future.
The DA's decision to remain in the GNU, while simultaneously challenging President Ramaphosa, is a calculated gamble. They are betting that they can exert enough pressure on the ANC to force change from within, without triggering a collapse of the coalition. However, this strategy carries significant risks, as it could further strain relations within the GNU and lead to a breakdown in trust.
As South Africa watches with bated breath, the future of the GNU hangs in the balance. The decisions made by President Ramaphosa and the ANC in the coming days will determine whether this experiment in coalition governance can survive its first major crisis. The stakes are high, and the consequences of failure could be dire for a country already grappling with numerous challenges.
The DA has threatened President Cyril Ramaphosa with a motion of no confidence if he doesn’t act against implicated ANC ministers and treat the government of national unity (GNU) with respect. A simple majority (51%) in Parliament is required to remove the president. With 40% of seats, the ANC received its most serious threat yet from DA leader John Steenhuisen on 28 June 2025. Yet again, the DA decided not to leave the GNU.
The GNU was limping in the wake of Ramaphosa’s unprecedented sacking of the DA’s deputy trade and industry minister, Andrew Whitfield, this week for travelling to the United States without Ramaphosa’s blessing. At least four ANC Cabinet ministers are under criminal investigation, and Higher Education Minister Nobuhle Nkabane faces censure for allegedly lying about a panel advising her to appoint ANC loyalists to the boards of Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETAs).
After a brief period of stability following the DA’s refusal to support the original Budget that introduced a two-percentage-point hike to VAT, the relationship between the DA and the ANC is again on the rocks. Ramaphosa cancelled a trip to Spain to see if Steenhuisen would lead the DA out of the GNU on 28 June 2025. He stopped short of doing so, saying the DA leaving the GNU would “open South Africa up to a coalition of chaos and destruction, leading to disastrous consequences”.
This is the DA’s bind: they have to choose between facing criticism from their supporters for not doing more inside the GNU, or leave and risk collapsing the economy and government if the ANC makes a deal with the EFF or MK Party (MKP). Despite threatening Ramaphosa and withdrawing from the president’s National Dialogue process, Steenhuisen said he believed it was not in the country’s best interests to collapse the GNU. He warned of damage to the economy and markets if the EFF or MKP were to enter the governing coalition.
Instead, Steenhuisen directly dared Ramaphosa to fire the DA from the GNU. “The ball is in President Ramaphosa’s court,” Steenhuisen said, stating Ramaphosa would protect corruption-accused ANC ministers if he removed the DA from the GNU. The DA retaliated against Whitfield’s axing by withdrawing from the National Dialogue, which it says is a waste of R700 million to campaign for the ANC, threatening Ramaphosa with a motion of no confidence and announcing it would vote against departmental budgets of ministers accused of alleged wrongdoings.
Withdrawing from the national dialogue may be a symbolic blow, but the risk of a recall will sting Ramaphosa. The DA could very well get the support of parties like the EFF, MKP and the FF Plus to remove Ramaphosa. This will require Parliament to elect a new president. It is a real mathematical possibility and will make Ramaphosa think twice before acting against the DA. A coalition with the EFF or MKP will be even more unstable and have dire consequences for our struggling economy.
The president’s options are limited. Steenhuisen has confirmed the DA will replace Whitfield with another DA nominee as deputy trade minister. Still, Ramaphosa can no longer turn a blind eye to the accusations against Nkabane, Paul Mashatile, Thembi Simelane, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni and Gwede Mantashe. Steenhuisen has exposed Ramaphosa’s alleged hypocrisy. How can the president fire a deputy minister for failing to get a letter signed but ignore much more serious accusations against ANC ministers?. This is the question the DA has now forced the president to answer.
President Cyril Ramaphosa cancelled his planned trip to Spain at the eleventh hour in anticipation of a major announcement by GNU partner the DA as the fallout over his axing of deputy minister Andrew Whitfield heightens. TimesLIVE understands that Ramaphosa decided to stay in the country in case the DA decides to leave the government of national unity (GNU) on 28 June 2025. The DA was said to be considering exiting the one-year-old coalition after Ramaphosa this week fired the party’s deputy minister of trade and industry Whitfield without consultation.
The blue party’s federal executive met on 28 June 2025 to decide the way forward after giving Ramaphosa 48 hours on 26 June 2025 to also fire ministers implicated in alleged wrongdoings, state capture and other forms of wrong doing. Ramaphosa said he decided to axe Whitfield after he undertook a trip to the U.S at the height of the diplomatic tensions earlier this year without his authorisation. Whitfield argued he had asked Ramaphosa for permission to travel and decided to go after not getting a response after 10 days.
The DA has taken a dim view of Ramaphosa’s actions and had given him until 3pm on 28 June 2025 to reverse his decision to fire Whitfield. The DA said it would consider its continued participation in the GNU should he not reverse this decision. The DA believes Ramaphosa has been ill-treating the party by taking decisions without proper consultations including the signing of several laws.
So aggrieved is the DA over its treatment that the party even voted against the proposed budget to hike VAT – a move that has created even further tensions in the GNU. Sources with intimate knowledge say Ramaphosa, who was expected to travel to Spain on 27 June 2025 on a commercial flight, decided to miss the trip in case the DA’s federal executive meeting on 28 June 2025 decides to leave the GNU. “The president said he is not going any more, just in case the DA does funny things like leaving the GNU,” said a senior government insider. Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya on 28 June 2025 morning confirmed Ramaphosa had cancelled his trip. He said Ramaphosa’s decision was informed by the possibility of the DA exiting the GNU. “Indeed, the president has cancelled his trip to Spain to keep a close eye on developments at home,” said Magwenya.
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