Johannesburg - The Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) has accepted an invite by the leader of the Democratic Alliance (DA) John Steenhuisen to engage in a national convention with other "like minded" opposition parties to investigate how to collectively strengthen the country's future.
The party has reiterated that although it has accepted the invitation to join the DA and other opposition parties in discussions, this did not mean it has entered into an election coalition agreement with any party.
In a statement issued by the party this weekend, the IFP said it believed there was a need for political parties to talk and it was always open to constructive engagements to take the country forward.
The IFP further cautioned the DA to not adopt a big brother stance on this issue, as such concerns were raised by other parties.
"It is essential that we create an environment and an engagement of parties that can work successfully, should the electorate not give one political party a 50 + 1 percent majority in 2024.
" The IFP is already taking the necessary steps to safeguard the future, taking heed of lessons learned from countries with a long history of successful coalition governments, such as Germany and Denmark, which we visited together with other opposition parties, " the party said.
It further stated that in the IFP’s 48 years of existence, the party had engaged constructive conversations many times with diverse organisations.
" The IFP knows what works and what does not work when it comes to political pacts. We will therefore offer our wisdom to this Convention in the hope that it might avoid the common errors that have weakened past working relationships between opposition parties," it added.
The party said that the current " unstable " situation in the City of Johannesburg, Ekurhuleni, and Tshwane, to mention a few, was of great concern to voters and that South Africans are asking for like-minded parties to begin exploring successful working relations so that they can steer our country out of crisis.
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