Discussion Divulges: Enoch and Treasury's Justified Targeting
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Political discourse swirls around the repeated failures of Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana to submit a 2025 budget to parliament, with debates centered around an attempted VAT increase to offset the ANC's inability to boost the economy.
Some argue that lambasting such crucial pillars of our democracy, such as the National Treasury — explicitly mentioned in the Constitution — is unwarranted, irrespective of political leanings.
But veteran financial journalist and former Treasury spokesman Jabulani Sikhakhane disagrees, stating in a recent conversation with Peter Bruce, "To whom much power is given, much is expected."
"Why exempt the Reserve Bank or the National Treasury from the same scrutiny granted to the judiciary?" he questions. "Both the judiciary and the Treasury are Constitutional creations, and I don't believe they should be shielded from disagreement over their policies and decisions."
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The controversy surrounding the 2025 budget pits proponents of accountability and transparency against claims of technical complexity and procedural rigidity within the National Treasury.
Accountability and transparency advocates maintain that the National Treasury's budget proposals must be subject to thorough scrutiny, and the heated discussions over the initial 12 March 2025 budget, including the proposed VAT increase, demonstrate the value of public debate.
Meanwhile, the National Treasury's defenders emphasize the technical complexity and fiscal constraints faced by the institution, which may not be fully grasped by critics outside the technical and political spheres. They highlight the multi-layered processes employed by the Treasury, including consultations with various stakeholders, to ensure appropriate review and decision-making.
In a broader sense, balanced and constructive criticism of the National Treasury allows for improved public finance management while minimizing potential risks to effective governance. Calls for blame-throwing might impede the Treasury in making tough decisions necessary for long-term fiscal sustainability.
- The debate over the 2025 budget has become a subject of severe political discourse, with accountability and transparency advocates pressing for thorough scrutiny of the National Treasury's budget proposals, questioning the proposed VAT increase as a means to address economic challenges.
- In contrast, the National Treasury's defenders contend that the institution is facing technical complexity and fiscal constraints, suggesting that the critical scrutiny it receives from some quarters might be due to a lack of understanding of these intricacies.
- Moreover, veteran financial journalist Jabulani Sikhakhane, in a conversation with Peter Bruce, argued that institutes of power, such as the National Treasury, should be subjected to the same level of scrutiny as other Constitutional creations like the judiciary, expressing the belief that disagreement over policies and decisions can contribute to improved public finance management and effective governance.
