The ANC has denied any knowledge of a possible out of court settlement between finance minister Enoch Godongwana and the DA, with its chief whip Mdumiseni Ntuli calling for the DA to produce proof.
This comes after the DA announced that lawyers acting for the finance minister approached its lawyers proposing an out-of-court settlement in the matter the DA brought to interdict the VAT increase scheduled for May 1.
“We are not aware of any out of court settlement between the minister and the DA. It’s better if the DA produces that evidence, otherwise it’s only their word,” Ntuli told TimesLIVE Premium.
The DA said it is awaiting a formal written settlement offer before responding to the minister’s request.
DA leader John Steenhuisen confirmed a meeting with the ANC was scheduled for Friday.
Speaking to the media on Thursday, Steenhuisen said moves to remove the DA from the GNU in the current geopolitical climate would be dangerous for the South African economy.
Steenhuisen warned that a coalition agreement without the DA would render every single item in parliament a state of instability.
“We have got as the GNU currently a sufficient majority to be able to pass legislation and bring stability. I think what we should rather be doing is spending energy on mechanisms within the GNU to resolve conflict.”
Steenhuisen said conflicts were going to occur in a coalition, adding the GNU must find mature ways to resolve them.
The U-turn by THE National Treasury has also put a target on Godongwana's back. However, despite calls for his resignation, the ANC has put its weight behind him.
The EFF, which the ANC has been rumoured to be attempting to woo into the GNU, has called for Godongwana's axing after he reversed the VAT hike that he announced during his budget speech earlier this month.
The 0.5 percentage point VAT hike was meant to kick in on May 1, but Godongwana finally agreed to halt it after tense talks between the ANC, its partners in the GNU, as well as those in parliament.
Talks of the DA being kicked out of the GNU have resurfaced as some GNU partners are agitating for ActionSA to join the coalition
The EFF said Godongwana should resign over what they said was a “misguided”, “ill-conceived” and “reckless” budget that introduced the much-contested VAT hike.
But the ANC on Thursday came to Godongwana’s defence with the party’s secretary-general Fikile Mbalula saying there was no need for him to lose his job over the debacle.
“There’s no need to reshuffle the minister, he has done the job that is expected of him,” said Mbalula.
He said Godongwana had consulted various political parties who made proposals on how the VAT hike could be avoided. Its withdrawal also comes as the DA is awaiting the judgment on its court challenge.
The reversal of the VAT hike is also likely to pit the DA against the ANC and its GNU partners as tensions rise over its decision to go to court and then claim victory after the announcement.
Talks of the DA being kicked out of the GNU have resurfaced as some GNU partners are agitating for ActionSA to join the coalition. It was through ActionSA that Godongwana's fiscal framework managed to pass in parliament, avoiding embarrassing both the minister and the National Treasury.
Mbalula said it was puzzling that the DA remains in the GNU despite voting against and taking the budget to court.
“We have always said that reconfiguration [of the GNU] depends on conduct and if you say that I’m not supporting this and you are in government it means you are defining yourself outside,” said Mbalula.
“The fact that you are still here we are shocked, because you can’t support something that you have not been party to, and that has been the issue before us.”
The ANC meeting with the DA leadership is expected to be a heated one over its continued participation in the GNU. The meeting is also expected to discuss whether the DA would now support the budget given the reversal of the VAT hike. The DA’s court case is also expected to be debated.
GNU members including Rise Mzansi, the Patriotic Alliance, the IFP and the UDM called out the DA for claiming victory. The parties also expressed their dismay at what they said were attempts to use the budget to renegotiate issues that had nothing to do with the budget.
They said the DA had attempted to “extort” the GNU by using the budget to seek to reverse legislation such as the Bela Act, the Expropriation Act and the National Health Insurance. “This process has been about freeing the finance minister from extortion. We can now proceed with the budget without also having to talk about legislation that has already been passed by parliament,” said Rise Mzansi leader Songezo Zibi.
The PA's Kenny Kunene expressed the same sentiments.
“The DA in its negotiations over the VAT increase made some demands. The DA indicated that they will vote for the VAT increase if a certain port was privatised. If the NHI was removed. If the Bela Act was removed,” he said.
“So the DA was going to vote for the VAT increase had the ANC and the GNU parties agreed to be extorted by them. So when the extortionists could not get their way they ran to the courts.”
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