DA Urges Godongwana to End “Budget of Broken Promises”

The Democratic Alliance (DA) has called on Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana to use tomorrow’s Medium Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) to break what it describes as a destructive cycle of overspending and overtaxing South Africans.

In a statement on Monday, DA finance spokesperson Dr Mark Burke said: “The seeds of spending surges, revenue shortfalls, and tax hikes are historically planted in [the] MTBPS. The bitter fruit is then shoved down our throats in the following year’s budget.”

Burke said the minister should avoid introducing new expenditure and instead identify billions in wasted spending to be cut in the next budget cycle. “Instead of announcing or sneaking in new spending, this budget should be the first, but not the last, to announce billions identified in wasted spending to be cut in the next budget cycle,” he said.

He added that the DA expects: “a commitment to no increases in VAT, corporate tax, or income tax, including ending bracket creep.” According to Burke, South Africans are already overtaxed and deserve fiscal restraint.

The party said it wants the MTBPS to highlight progress in reforms such as the crowding in of the private sector in electricity generation, rail, and ports. Burke also welcomed Project Vulindlela successes but warned that: “time wasted delaying reform results in growth wasted, jobs lost, and better lives delayed.”

“MTBPS 2025 cannot be business as usual. South Africans are fed up with budgets that bake in a worse future, disguised by speeches promising a better one,” Burke said.