South Africa’s mineral resources minister, Ngoako Ramatlhodi, at the weekend threatened to withdraw from facilitating talks aimed at ending the protracted platinum wage strike in South Africa.

Ramatlhodi warned he would do this on Monday only if labour and platinum mining firms did not find an amicable solution to the wage strike. Soon after he was appointed to head the ministry, Ramatlhodi appointed a task team to look into finding ways of ending this strike by way of facilitation.

“I am pulling out on Monday if they do not find each other,” Ramatlhodi told news agency, Sapa. “If they do not find each other I wish them and South Africa luck.”

Workers belonging to the militant Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU), downed tools in late January this year wanting to be paid a basic monthly wage R12,500 (about $1,200).

The affected platinum miners include Lonmin, Impala Platinum (Implats) and Anglo American Platinum (Amplats). They are the world’s three biggest platinum miners.

At the weekend, the ruling ANC said the 0.6 percent negative growth in South Africa’s economy in the first quarter of this year was attributable to the five-month long strike in the platinum belt.

“Of concern was whether this was a collective bargaining strike or a political strike. This question arose having noted the following disturbing developments: The articulation of AMCU position by white foreign nationals, signalling interest of the foreign forces in the destabilisation of our economy,” Gwede Mantashe, the secretary general of the ANC, said at the weekend.

He was speaking after the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the ANC met over the three days late last week at a Pretoria hotel.