Democratic Alliance (DA) national spokesperson Solly Malatsi has dismissed claims that his party is in secret negotiations with the African National Congress (ANC) for a coalition government after the 2024 elections.

This follows a recent book titled ‘Who will rule South Africa?: The demise of the ANC and the rise of a new democracy’ written by News24 editor-in-chief Adriaan Basson and assistant editor: politics and opinion Qaanitah Hunter, which claims that there are secret talks between the ANC and the DA that would result in an ANC president and Cabinet and the DA controlling the legislature and Parliament.

Malatsi accused Basson of using false claims to sell copies of his book.

“The DA will not be deterred by this sideshow. We have an election to win and a government to form that will not include the ANC or Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF),” he said firmly.

The DA has previously been on record saying that it and its Multi-Party Charter colleagues will never enter any coalition arrangement with the EFF and the ANC.

Malatsi said Basson’s claims were untrue and added that “a claim of this magnitude must never be published without supporting evidence or seeking comment from the DA to clarify it. By doing so without applying those basic journalistic requirements, Basson has allowed fiction to get in the way of facts”.

He noted that the DA's mission for South Africa had always been to replace the ANC's “corrupt” government with one that upholds the rule of law and pursues market-orientated policies that create jobs and produce an economic surplus to alleviate poverty.

“The DA's vision centres on accountability, good governance and economic growth, something that the ANC has proven incapable of providing to South Africa,” said Malatsi.

He added that the DA had no interest in co-governing with the ANC or keeping the ANC in power and that the party was also “not interested in rescuing the ANC from their own mistakes”.

Malatsi pointed out that the recent alignment of the ANC with the EFF in Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni highlighted the ANC's willingness to compromise on anything for the sake of power and patronage.