ActionSA Promises to Hold ANC Accountable, Says Budget Support Will End if VAT Hike Isn’t Scrapped

• ActionSA promised that it would hold the African National Congress (ANC) accountable
• The party agreed to support the ANC’s budget on condition that it scraps the Value-Added Tax hike
• The ANC turned to ActionSA for support after the Democratic Alliance rejected the budget

Briefly News journalist Byron Pillay has dedicated a decade to reporting on the South African political landscape, crime, and social issues. He spent ten years working for the Northern Natal Courier before transitioning to online journalism

WESTERN CAPE - ActionSA has promised that it will hold the African National Congress (ANC) to its promises made when adopting the 2025 budget.

The budget was adopted by the National Assembly after the ANC received support from ActionSA, the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), the Patriotic Alliance (PA) and other smaller parties.

Herman Mashaba’s party previously stated they would not support the budget due to the Value-Added Tax (VAT) increase but then later came up with a compromise.

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ActionSA agreed to support the budget provided that the ANC find an alternative to the proposed VAT hike within 30 days.

ActionSA will withdraw support if VAT hike not scrapped

Addressing the media on 3 April in Cape Town, Parliamentary leader Athol Trollip said it would withdraw its support for the budget if the ANC didn’t scrap the 0.5 percentage points in May as promised.

Trollip added that there was a long way to go before the budget was finalised, and so the party could still withdraw its support.

"If we don't find a solution in 27 days, don't look to us to support you to pass the rest of this budget. The passage of this budget is still a long, long way away, and the people they've convinced to get them out of the hole that they’ve dug for themselves are not going to continue doing that if they show no good faith. So, we are going to hold the ANC to account," he said.”

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You can watch Trollip’s address below.

Why the ANC needed ActionSA

The ANC agreed to ActionSA’s proposal after it failed to receive support from their second biggest party in the Government of National Unity (GNU), the Democratic Alliance (DA).

The DA rejected the budget at every stage due to the inclusion of the VAT increase. The party has promised to take legal action after the budget was adopted, but they weren’t the only ones unhappy with it. The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) also stated that they would not support the budget in its current form. The party also questioned the legality of the process to adopt the fiscal framework.

The ANC also could not count on the support of the uMkhonto WeSizwe (MK) Party as the official opposition announced that they would not support the budget.

ActionSA open to joining President Ramaphosa’s cabinet

Mashaba stated that his party would join the government if President Cyril Ramaphosa asked.

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The ActionSA leader previously said he wouldn’t work with the ANC, not even in the next 300 years.

Briefly News reported that South Africans accused Mashaba of being a turncoat and a sellout.

Source: Briefly News