President Cyril Ramaphosa said they have learned many lessons from the budget impasse but stated that this does amount to Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana leaving office.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Workers Day rally in Mpumalanga on Thursday, Ramaphosa defended Godongwana and indicated that he will keep his job.
Last week, Godongwana reversed the 0.5% value-added-tax (VAT) hike, meaning it will remain at 15%.
However, he will table a new 2025 budget together on May 21. Godongwana confirmed this in a media briefing on Wednesday.
He also mentioned that he would not resign unless Ramaphosa called the shots.
“That is not my intention [to resign] … That decision does not lie with me it lies with the president. The president understands the nature of the challenges in dealing with this problem,” the minister said.
Ramaphosa’s comments come as political parties like the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party have called for Godongwana to resign, saying he has failed citizens.
“We have drawn a lot of lessons from all this… This is something that we need to take on board and it doesn’t need to lead to a minister of finance resigning or stepping down, no.
“It should be on all of us to say: ‘What are we learning from all of this?’ and what is it that we can do to strengthen the budgetary process,” he said.
Godongwana is anticipated to start fresh budget consultations soon in light of persistent issues like declining revenue, rising expenses, expensive debt, and growing political pressure.
Politics
