President Cyril Ramaphosa has officially appointed his new cabinet and South Africa is now firmly into the seventh administration - led by what the President has termed an “unprecedented” Government of National Unity (GNU).‘‘The new National Executive will constitute the 7th Democratic Administration as a Government of National Unity comprising a diversity of political parties as an outcome of the national and provincial elections held on Wednesday, 29 May 2024".
The announcement made history as the last time the country in totality experienced a "GNU" Happiest Moment was in 1994 when the global icon and Legendary Nelson Mandela was president.President Ramaphosa’s African National Congress party, which had ruled South Africa without a coalition for the past three decades, lost its majority in the national and provincial elections on May 29.But the party reached a deal with 9 other political parties to form a "GNU".
Members of the South African parliament reelected President Cyril Ramaphosa,June 15 as president for a second term during the first sitting of the legislature.He was officially sworn in as the seventh democratically elected president on June 19 at a colorful ceremony in the capital Pretoria attended by several Dignitaries of state and leaders of government.
After South Africa’s president announced the largest administration in the nation’s democratic history on Sunday, some critics were questioning whether the attempt to pacify diverse political interests would complicate efforts to tackle the country’s myriad economic and social problems.
While the coalition is made up of 11 parties, including seven with Cabinet positions, the agreement Tengibly rests on the ANC and the DA, the two biggest parties eventually putting aside their ideological differences and more than 20 years of being political foes to work together.
“The current Ruling Administration of SouthAfrica will prioritised rapid, inclusive and sustainable economic growth and the creation of a more just society by tackling poverty and inequality,” President Ramaphosa assured the country, after the appointment of the Coalition Cabinet,
As he addressed the nation from the Union Buildings in Pretoria.This year’s General Election results produced no outright majority winner – tasking various political leaders to work together to form a government, much like what was required at the dawn of democracy in 1994.
“The establishment of the Government of National Unity in its current form is unprecedented in the history of our democracy. We have had to consider how to form the new government in a manner that advances the national interest, that gives due consideration to the outcome of the election and that makes use of the respective capabilities within each of the parties.“We have had to consider not only the immediate needs of the country. We have also had to consider the stability, effectiveness and durability of the government we are establishing,” he initially said.
