Ishana Barciela, a Member of the Provincial Legislature (MPL) for the MK Party in KwaZulu-Natal, has declared that her party will soon table a motion of no confidence against the province’s Government of Provincial Unity (GPU).
The GPU is a coalition made up of the IFP, ANC, DA, and NFP. While the MK Party won the largest share of the vote (45%) in last year’s general elections, it was unable to form a government because the GPU parties together secured a majority.
Barciela, a staunch supporter of former president Jacob Zuma, argues that the will of the voters is being subverted. She believes that the party which received the most votes should be allowed to govern the province.
This move follows an MK Party protest against the coalition that took place in Durban last Friday. Barciela is confident the motion could succeed, claiming the GPU parties are not united and are only held together by their desire to keep the MK Party out of power. She suggested some GPU MPLs might vote with the MK Party.
When asked about her political history, Barciela stated she was a staunch ANC supporter when Jacob Zuma was the party’s president. She said she left the ANC when Zuma was arrested for contempt of the Zondo Commission, calling the arrest unacceptable.
Despite criticism that the MK Party is not effectively holding the government accountable as the official opposition, Barciela defended her colleagues, saying they have done a “sterling job” exposing corruption within the GPU.
She described former president Zuma, whom she has visited in Nkandla, as a “visionary and highly informed leader.”