Minister in the presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni has expressed confidence that finance minister Enoch Godongwana will table the national budget on Wednesday, saying any disagreements among cabinet members will be dealt with afterwards.
“The minister of finance will finalise and present the budget. It will be tabled, discussed and, if there is a need, sent back,” Ntshavheni told Business Day on Tuesday.
“But there has been [a] sufficient period for input from all political parties and the reality is that long-term proposals will not help fill a projected immediate budget deficit.”
Her comments come a day before Godongwana is due back in parliament to have another go at presenting the 2025 budget. His attempt last month met a rare unified roadblock from government of national unity (GNU) members, opposing his proposal to raise the R60bn shortfall through a two percentage point VAT rate hike.
While the presentation of the budget won widespread praise as the heartbeat of a functioning democracy over the past 30 years, last month’s delay cast the spotlight on the budgeting processes, especially detailed decisions on tax adjustments or how the Treasury funds the budget, which has historically fallen to the department’s discretion.
Ntshavheni said the cabinet subcommittees would “work through the night” and consultations would continue on the sidelines.
“Ultimately, it is the minister of finance who will make the decisions, and then he will give cabinet a sneak peek before addressing parliament,” Ntshavheni said.
Business Day understands the budget presentation will go ahead as planned on Wednesday, and talks about potential adjustments would continue ahead of the votes on equitable distribution to all spheres of government and allocation of funds to departments in parliament in the coming weeks.
“The reason why it is a money bill is because it is subject to discussions. If there is sufficient consensus on it, so be it, but parties will have an opportunity to debate issues one by one,” a source close to the talks told Business Day on Tuesday.
“There may be agreement on growth reforms and budget reprioritisation ... the hiccup is more to do with the how and who does what.”
Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya on Tuesday said everything possible was being done behind the scenes to ensure sufficient GNU consensus on the budget.
“Tomorrow is a normal cabinet meeting that was scheduled in advance. Consultations are under way on the budget and they’ll continue until the evening,” Magwenya said.
Godongwana briefed the ANC top brass on his finalised budget proposal on Monday, and DA leader John Steenhuisen confirmed he had “been conferring continuously” with President Cyril Ramaphosa on it.
ANC ally Cosatu, which is planning a protest against a VAT hike outside parliament on Wednesday, has also held further consultations with the Treasury in the run-up to the budget.
In a suggestion that the DA may not vote for the budget if it includes a VAT increase, senior DA strategist Ryan Coetzee took to social media on Tuesday, saying that “the ANC’s approach to the budget seems to involve trying to save face by punching itself in the face”.
Failure
This suggests that if the ANC tries to push through a VAT increase the party’s dismal performance at the polls may continue as it would be further burdening citizens for the government’s failure to be fiscally responsible in recent years.
“It’s worth remembering that the drama over the current budget is not the real crisis, which is our abysmal growth rate,” Coetzee said.
“Without faster growth every budget will be a crisis, and each crisis will be bigger. It has to stop now, before it’s too late,” he said.
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