Discussions around ongoing budget deadlock set to resume this week
Several political parties continue to oppose Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana’s budget, primarily rejecting the 0.5% increase in Value Added Tax (VAT).
The giant dome used as a temporary chamber of the South African National Assembly in Cape Town, South Africa. Picture: Supplied/@ParliamentofRSA
JOHANNESBURG - Discussions around the ongoing budget deadlock are set to resume this week, with the African National Congress (ANC) optimistic that parties within the Government of National Unity (GNU) will reach common ground.
Several political parties continue to oppose Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana’s budget, primarily rejecting the 0.5 percentage point increase in value-added tax (VAT).
Over the weekend, the ANC held meetings with the Democratic Alliance (DA), Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), and Freedom Front (FF) Plus, with the engagement with the DA described as "robust and constructive".
Political analyst Goodenough Mashego raised doubts about the African National Congress’s willingness to make any compromises.
READ: GNU parties need to put political interests aside to break budget deadlock - Analysts
"The 1993 CODESA has shown the ANC can be flexible. The compromise was huge in 1993. Right now, the ANC doesn’t have the capacity for big compromises because it has already compromised a lot when it comes to dealing with the Afrikaner factions that were threatening to derail South African democracy."
Another analyst, Bheki Mngomezulu, said that some parties had been negotiating in bad faith.
"The issue here, which is basically the bone of contention, is the budget vote. The DA has been using this situation to bargain for other issues it has been complaining about. So the only thing the DA can do to make sure an agreement is reached would be to scale down on other issues that are not related to the budget."