Debate by
Hon Mntomuhle Khawula MP (IFP-NCOP)
The 2015 Budget provided little hope that South Africa was on track towards alleviating the plight of the poor and instead pushed an underpaid and overtaxed taxpayer into a corner, leaving citizens with more questions than answers.
The increase of the petrol tax and the increase in Road Accident Fund Levy sees petrol go up by 80.5 cents, with routine petrol monthly increases in the offing over the foreseeable future.
An increase in petrol will in no doubt give impetus to an increase in food prices and transport costs, placing an added burden on the poor; underpaid and overtaxed taxpayer; on needy students commuting to schools and university; the unemployed will pay more to travel when looking for employment with the economy set to grow at less than 2%.
The IFP welcomes the increases in Social Grants as they seek to ease the socio-economic conditions of the poor who are struggling daily to make ends meet and bear the brutal brunt of poverty and suffering, however we must in good faith acknowledge that with a shrinking tax base, and an underpaid and overstretched taxpayer these Social Grants are not sustainable. Greater emphasis must be focused on the creation of jobs and we must pioneer the ideals of self-help and self-reliance. We must admit that in light of studded economic growth and snail-pace economic development, South Africa has fast become a dependency state.
The budget provided nothing to be excited about, and gave every reason for South Africans to be worried.
The IFP remains concerned that the government continues to throw financial solutions to non-financial problems, it is grossly unfair for the taxpayer to be expected to fund incompetence and corruption:
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Education receives the greatest share of the budget but we have very little to show for this heavy investment. The allocation to education borders on wasteful expenditure.
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How do we reconcile the fact that the National Students Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) is allocated R6.49 billion with the reality that thousands of deserving and needy students remain left in the cold because of lack of funding? The money is there, but NSFAS is characterised by corruption and poor planning.
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SAA and Eskom are all virtually on their knees, not because they need money but because they lack leadership and the requisite will to plan properly. These State Owned Entities are a burden on the taxpayer with endless bailouts and guarantees. Where will the money come from to stabilise the parastatals? The minister said the allocation of R23-billion made in October for Eskom would be paid in three instalments, but did not make it clear where that money is to be found; similarly, he was quiet on the R14.4-billion guarantees for SAA.
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The energy crisis, more a crisis than a challenge, has in many respects arisen because government has been poor with its planning and relaxed about punishing failure. The failure to maintain infrastructure and the dismal failure to complete Medupi and Kusile power stations on time must not go by unpunished, because it has overshot its budget and paralysed the economy. The 2c temporary increase in the electricity levy to 5.5c/kWh will work out to be a big number and every consumer who pays for electricity will pay that, although this may well work out to be a further subsidy for industrial users paid by residential users, and the minister did not indicate whether this levy will be across the board.
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Corruption, poor financial management, fraud, irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure see a lot of taxpayer money looted from state coffers without consequence. The lack of compliance across the government spectrum with the PFMA, the MFMA, Treasury Regulations and SCM Regulations must be dealt with harshly because it is in this realm that corruption is bred at the expense of an underpaid and overstretched taxpayer and to the detriment of service delivery.
The budget speech was punctuated by fancy niceties about fighting corruption and the IFP will support the initiatives of the Minister in this regard; the ball is now in his court to walk his talk.
I thank-you!
Mntomuhle Khawula MP
IFP-NCOP Representative
078 303 4542
