Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA), whose members are drawn from the largest domestic and multinational businesses operating in the country, has backed the African National Congress’ (ANC’s) proposal for the formation of a government of national unity (GNU) to end the electoral stalemate that has arisen after no single party secured an outright majority in the May 29 poll.

In a statement published following ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa’s late night announcement that the party’s national executive committee had agreed that a GNU was “the best option to move our country forward”, BLSA urged parties to act with urgency to form a stable government.

“We need to quickly form a stable GNU that will assure all South Africans as well as businesses and investors, both locally and internationally, that government will be committed to our constitutional democracy and the institutions that it rests on, including a well-managed National Treasury and the rule of law,” BLSA said.

While recognising that a coalition would require sacrifices, BLSA urged parties to put narrow interests aside and find a way to agree.

It made no comment regarding the form that the GNU should take nor on its composition, which Ramaphosa said should be underpinned by written agreements committing participants to pursue a “common minimum programme that focuses on measurable targets for economic growth and inclusion, service delivery and development”.

BLSA did, however, emphasise the need for parties to commit themselves to respecting the Constitution and to prioritise the continuation of economic reforms being implemented to address loadshedding, the underperformance of the country’s ports and railways, and to rebuild the criminal justice system.

“The structural reforms under way to address these and other challenges are critical to turn the tide on unemployment and restart economic growth.”

It also called for the agreements reached to be capable of holding for the full five-year term of the administration.

The ANC said it would be pursuing talks across the political spectrum and confirmed that discussions had already been held with the Democratic Alliance (DA), the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), the National Freedom Party and the Patriotic Alliance.

The DA indicated its willingness to entertain a GNU, and has underlined that it, too, wanted the economic reforms initiated by government to continue. However, it had also indicated on several occasions that it was unwilling to enter into governance arrangements with the EFF and the uMkhonto WeSizwe Party (MKP).

The MKP, which continues to dispute the election results and has called for the scrapping of the Constitution, indicated that it would talk to the ANC but remained hostile to Ramaphosa as the party’s leader.

The EFF, meanwhile, gave the GNU concept a cool reception, indicating its unwillingness to work with the DA, while the IFP indicated that, while it was not averse to the GNU, the “devil is in the details”.