ANC pours cold water on Hill-Lewis' revised 'anti-poor' budget
Hill-Lewis tabled the city’s reworked budget on Thursday, saying it includes a R40 billion infrastructure investment, tariff reforms and a social assistance net for struggling households and pensioners.
Cape Town mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis tabled the City of Cape Town’s budget at a council meeting on Thursday, 26 June 2025. Picture: Supplied
CAPE TOWN - The African National Congress (ANC) has labelled Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis' "invested in hope budget" as anti-poor.
Hill-Lewis tabled the city’s reworked budget on Thursday, saying it includes a R40 billion infrastructure investment, tariff reforms and a social assistance net for struggling households and pensioners.
The former leader of the ANC caucus in Cape Town, Xolani Sotashe, says the ANC strongly rejects the budget.
Hill-Lewis says the city's reworked budget will include amendments to its municipal planning bylaw to make it easier for the development of affordable housing.
Hill-Lewis says the city's proposed R40 billion infrastructure investment will be used to tackle sewage overflows, the new MyCiti south-east route and upgrades to water and electricity networks.
Sotashe says projections indicate the budget will be underspent by R2 billion.
"These are the capital programmes that are supposed to be addressing the hardships that people are facing now."
Sotashe also accused the mayor of lying about the city having the lowest rates in the country, and raised concern that the majority of the public who voted rejected the budget.