Relations between the ANC and ActionSA — who helped push through the first attempt at a fiscal framework in parliament — could be in jeopardy after the ANC left them hanging to reset relations with the DA.
This comes as finance minister Enoch Godongwana is set to deliver his third budget proposal to the National Assembly after his previous two attempts were rejected by the ANC's government of national unity (GNU) partners.
The ANC was forced to turn to ActionSA when the DA initially turned its back on its budget, which included a proposed 0.5 percentage hike in the VAT rate.
Tensions between the ANC and the DA — its biggest coalition partner in the GNU — resulted in President Cyril Ramaphosa accusing the DA of defining itself outside of the government.
In a leaked recording first published by TimesLIVE Premium just a day before parliament was due to vote on the second budget proposal, Ramaphosa praised smaller parties including ActionSA and Bosa for having taken “a much more co-operative and practical type of disposition”.
But the Herman Mashaba-led party said the vote there had been radio silence from the ANC, leading to frustration and resentment.
ActionSA national chairperson Michael Beaumont said engagements with the ANC had been underwhelming.
... Should the ANC find themselves unable to produce a budget down the line, or anything else for that matter, because of the incoherent situation we are seeing at the GNU, they are going to find their options very limited with those parties who they want to engage as and when it suits them. That is their bed to make, and they have clearly elected to do so
— Michael Beaumont, ActionSA national chairperson
“Clearly there has been a decision by the ANC that they must operate exclusively within the ranks of the GNU as it pertains to the passing of the budget, which is entirely their right. ActionSA and other parties have elected to form part of the opposition and therefore it's up to the ANC to elect who they should engage.
“What it does mean is that should the ANC find themselves unable to produce a budget down the line, or anything else for that matter, because of the incoherent situation we are seeing at the GNU, they are going to find their options very limited with those parties who they want to engage as and when it suits them. That is their bed to make, and they have clearly elected to do so,” he said.
The Sunday Times previously reported Godongwana had pulled the DA into direct involvement in redrafting the third version of National Treasury’s budget.
DA federal council chair Helen Zille told the Sunday Times that deputy finance minister Ashor Sarupen — also her deputy on the DA council — was one of two party members heavily involved in the process, along with Mark Burke, who serves on parliament’s standing committee on finance.
ANC chief whip Mdumiseni Ntuli denied that the ANC had left any parties behind.
“We are waiting to see the budget to be presented by the minister. Essentially, we need everyone to support the fiscal framework and the entire budget. We hope and trust that the budget will focus on expenditure and massive investment in infrastructure to stimulate growth,” he said.
Beaumont said ActionSA had indicated it was a constructive opposition, arguing that it would be available to the extent that the ANC or other parties in the GNU wished to engage.
“If they wish to engage us, we will listen, we will make our decision on the merit of the matter in question,” he said.
Beaumont said ActionSA wants to see a budget that includes funding for the Investigating Directorate, a specialised and multidisciplinary unit within the National Prosecuting Authority, to boost their corruption investigations.
He added that government must increase funding for the Border Management Authority and for local government.
“Local government needs more money and not less to address the horrific backlogs that have characterised service delivery failure at local level,” he said.
The Sunday Times reported this week that Godongwana is likely to slash government expenditure — projected at R2.59-trillion in the first budget — by no less than R60bn.
This means funding for some critical projects will be cut while others will be delayed until after October when the adjustment budget is presented.
“What I doubt is these cuts are appearing in areas that affect the cabinet. We want to see the eradication of deputy ministers, the change to the expense of our cabinet and various other things. Our concern is that these austerity measures that are being described are going to harm programmes of government, because they form what we call the lazy budget cuts where everyone is cutting whether it's a priority or serves South African citizens,” Beaumont said.
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