BOSA joins parties meeting with ANC to negotiate passing of budget
The meeting with BOSA follows a similar meeting between the ANC and ActionSA, which has since rejected the budget which still includes a 0.5 percentage point VAT increase.
Build One South Africa (BOSA) leader, Mmusi Maimane, addressed the Cape Town Press Club on 12 February 2024. Picture: @BuildOneSA/X
CAPE TOWN - Build One South Africa (BOSA) has joined the list of parties meeting with the African National Congress (ANC) to negotiate the passing of the contentious budget.
BOSA confirmed that it had been approached by the ANC requesting a meeting on the budget, which still has to go through Parliament before it’s fully adopted.
The meeting with BOSA follows a similar meeting between the ANC and ActionSA, which has since rejected the budget, which still includes a 0.5 percentage point value-added tax (VAT) increase.
BOSA said it noted that other parties outside the Government of National Unity (GNU), including the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party, and ActionSA, had also been engaged in similar discussions with the ANC.
The party said it wanted to be clear that it would only support a budget that served the best interests of South Africans.
BOSA said it had decided to engage in negotiations based on a few fiscal reforms that include the size of government and government expenditure by reducing state-owned enterprise bailouts.
Spokesperson, Roger Solomons, said that beyond cost-cutting, the party "firmly believes that South Africa needs a bold and ambitious pro-growth agenda".
"Negotiations about the budget cannot be transactional or bilateral. Only an agreement that addresses the pains of citizens will be accepted by BOSA," said Solomons.
It called on the GNU to adopt a growth charter that targets a 5% economic growth rate within the next three years and must also include ease of doing business reforms to attract investment.
EXPLAINER: How the budget goes from being tabled to approved