President Cyril Ramaphosa has convened a cabinet meeting on Wednesday morning as the Democratic Alliance (DA) threatened to reject the budget again if there is a Value-Added Tax (VAT) increase.
The DA told IOL that they will vote against the budget if the ANC forges ahead with its proposed hike.
IOL understands that a 0.5% VAT has been proposed, and the ANC seems to be supporting the move.
"We will not vote for the budget. We can't support a budget that taxes South Africans heavier than they are [taxed].
“It would have been easier if they had committed to economic reform that we can easily direct to say out of this budget, we will see growth ... But we don’t have that now, so it won’t work,” the DA said.
According to the DA, they presented the ANC with a solution to this, but nothing was used, instead the ANC opted to lower the VAT percentage increase.
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The budget was postponed two weeks ago after the parties in Government of National Unity (GNU) failed to reach an agreement on the budget. The proposed hike was 2%.
Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana is expected to table the budget in Cape Town.
IIn a statement on Wednesday, the ANC caucus in Parliament said it would table a budget that is balanced and appreciative of the difficult choices that need to be made in a low economic growth environment.
"The ANC caucus believes that the budget is an essential instrument for redistributing wealth and income, advancing fundamental transformation, and ensuring the realisation of the socio-economic rights enshrined in our Constitution.
"The ANC further expects sufficient resources to be allocated to measures aimed at stabilising the economy, supporting growth and development, reducing inequality, investing in human capital, tackling the high cost of living, and creating a more inclusive and sustainable economic system," the ANC said.
Meanwhile, the Economic Freedom Fighters called on the MPs to reject the budget.
IOL Politics