Hlabisa: ANC food parcel bribery behind shock IFP by-election reverse

 The IFP steamroller appeared to be gathering irresistible momentum since SA’s November 2021 Local Elections. In one by-election after the other, the IFP posted huge increases in the share of the vote and won an unprecedented eight wards off the ANC in the ruling party’s strongholds. So last week’s loss to the ANC in Estcourt’s Ward 14 was a shock, causing commentators to predict a rejuvenation for Ramaphosa’s beleaguered organisation. Not so, says IFP president Velinkosini Hlabani who puts the reverse down to ANC dirty tricks, not a sudden surge in popularity. Hlabani, tipped by the Freedom Front + as SA’s most likely next president, shares details with Alec Hogg of BizNews. He also looks ahead to the opposition party codesa next month - and explains why any IFP post-2024 election coalition with the ANC would be “very, very difficult for us”. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices