Faiez Jacobs
The recent postponement of the 2025 Budget Speech has exposed the DA’s true agenda – not one that seeks the betterment of South Africa’s economy, but one that aims to embarrass and weaken the ANC-led GNU.
It is a blatant attempt to create instability, divide the nation, and derail the progress we are making to uplift the poor and working families. The DA’s actions are akin to those of AfriForum and other reactionary forces that thrive on division, anti-transformation and economic sabotage, seeking to force the ANC’s hand and undermine President Ramaphosa’s leadership.
A Manufactured Crisis to Embarrass the ANC
The DA has positioned itself as a party that claims to care about the poor while vehemently opposing any measures that tax the wealthy. Their so-called support for postponing the Budget Speech under the guise of ensuring a “pro-poor” budget is nothing but political posturing.
This is the same party that fights against social welfare, rejects minimum wage increases, and calls for a lean market-driven state where social services such as education, healthcare, and pensions are drastically cut.
Their refusal to engage constructively on critical budgetary matters and their eagerness to block governance efforts are clear indications that they are not in the Government of National Unity (GNU) to take South Africa forward.
Instead, they are using the GNU as a platform to look for weaknesses in the ANC’s leadership and weaponize them for political gain. The DA’s real agenda is to liquidate the ANC, divide its support base, and erode the very foundation of democratic governance that has brought stability and progress to millions of South Africans.
The DA’s True Agenda: A Lean Market State That Neglects the Poor
The DA has consistently advocated for a neoliberal economic framework that prioritizes the interests of big business and the wealthy over the working families and the struggling poor. Their vision for South Africa includes:
1. A Lean Market-Driven State: The DA’s economic policies favour reducing the role of government in economic affairs, which would significantly undermine public service delivery, particularly in social welfare, pensions, healthcare, and education.
2. Opposition to Progressive Taxation: While claiming to care about the poor, the DA actively resists policies that would ensure that the wealthy pay their fair share. Their opposition to VAT increases is a smokescreen; their real agenda is to prevent any tax burden from being placed on corporations and high-income earners.
3. Privatization and Deregulation: The DA’s policies would see essential services like public transport, energy, and even education subjected to private market forces, leading to increased costs and reduced accessibility for the poor.
4. Disempowering the State: By continuously attacking the government’s fiscal management, the DA creates an environment where austerity becomes the default response, further stripping away the state's capacity to deliver services.
Alternative Solutions to Raising Revenue Without Overburdening the Poor
The ANC remains steadfast in its commitment to economic justice. We must now pivot and rethink our approach, ensuring that any future budget adjustments prioritize progressive taxation rather than regressive increases that disproportionately impact the poor. Instead of a blanket 2% VAT increase, the ANC must adopt a more nuanced approach:
1. Increase VAT by only 1% exclusively on luxury goods (such as high-end electronics, imported luxury vehicles, and other non-essential items). This ensures that the burden falls on those who can afford it, rather than the working class.
2. Expand corporate tax contributions by closing tax loopholes that allow multinational corporations and high-income earners to evade fair taxation.
3. Strengthen enforcement against illicit financial flows: billions are lost annually due to tax evasion, under-invoicing in trade, and illicit outflows that benefit only a privileged few.
4. Implement a wealth tax on high-net-worth individuals to redistribute resources without placing additional strain on struggling households.
5. Enhance fuel levy efficiency by ensuring that the funds collected are directly reinvested into public transport subsidies to offset the rising cost of living for the poor.
6. Scrap VAT on key household essentials, ensuring that the most vulnerable South Africans are shielded from any tax hikes.
This multi-pronged approach would allow us to achieve our fiscal goals without punishing the very people we are meant to uplift.
The DA’s Hypocrisy: Anti-Poor, Pro-Elite
The DA’s attempt to paint itself as the “champion of the people” in opposing the VAT increase is a textbook example of political dishonesty. Let us be clear, the DA does not care about the poor. It has:
• Consistently opposed increases in social spending on housing, health, and education.
• Believed in a lean, market-driven state, meaning that it would cut funding for social welfare, basic education, healthcare, and pension schemes if it had its way.
• Refused to increase corporate taxes or impose wealth taxes – because its real constituency is big business and the elite.
• Governed in a way that prioritizes the wealthy and entrenches economic disparities.
In Cape Town, which it controls, gentrification has forced thousands of working-class families out of their homes while prioritizing the interests of big developers.
Their opposition to the VAT increase was never about helping the poor. It was a cynical political manoeuvre to create instability, fuel public anger, and weaken the ANC’s standing with its historical support base.
Regaining ANC Unity: Lessons from this Crisis
The fact that ANC leaders themselves had differing views on the Budget suggests a deeper issue. The ANC cannot afford to allow internal divisions to be exploited by opposition forces.
We need to reaffirm our principles, discipline our ranks, and move forward with a clear and unified vision:
- Internal Unity is Non-Negotiable: The ANC leadership must speak with one voice on major economic decisions. Disagreements should be handled internally, not in a way that gives ammunition to our political opponents.
- Better Political Communication: We failed to prepare our people for the VAT increase debate. Instead of letting the opposition define the narrative, we should have engaged the public earlier, explained the trade-offs, and sought broader consensus on alternative solutions.
- Reassert ANC’s Pro-Poor Credentials: We must re-commit ourselves to policies that uplift the working class and make it clear that no economic measure will be implemented without ensuring that it benefits the majority of South Africans.
- Review the GNU Agreement: This incident has demonstrated that the DA and others in the GNU are not interested in stable governance but are using their positions to sabotage the ANC. Is the GNU serving our people, or has it become a Trojan Horse for the opposition to weaken us? We must critically assess our continued participation and ensure that ANC policies remain central to the government’s agenda.
Winning the Hearts and Minds of South Africans
The ANC must turn this setback into an opportunity:
• Show that we listen and adapt: We must acknowledge that the VAT increase was a politically unwise move and that we are prepared to find alternative, fairer ways to raise revenue.
• Expose the DA’s hypocrisy: We must launch a nationwide campaign to educate South Africans on the DA’s true economic agenda and how it ultimately serves only the elite.
• Strengthen grassroots mobilization: The ANC needs to return to the ground, rebuild trust, and remind our supporters why we are the party of the people.
A Call to Action
The ANC must not allow the DA and its allies to dictate the political narrative. We must be proactive, not reactive. The party must regain the moral high ground, correct course where necessary, and ensure that our policies remain firmly rooted in the principles of social justice, economic equity, and progressive transformation.
This is not just about a postponed Budget Speech. This is about defending the legacy of the ANC, resisting attempts to weaken the party from within and without, and ensuring that South Africa’s economic future is shaped by a government that truly represents the majority, not the privileged few. We will not be divided. We will not be defeated. We will govern in the interests of the people. The struggle continues!
* Faiez Jacobs is a former ANC Western Cape Provincial Secretary and member of Parliament and is an advocate for equity and justice.
** The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IOL or Independent Media.