Godongwana proposes 21 May for next budget

By Thebe Mabanga

Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana conceded that he and the ANC have learnt lessons from the Budget and VAT hike fiasco.

The minister has proposed 21 May as the date of tabling the third instalment of the national Budget.

“We have learnt lessons,” Godongwana said at a media briefing he hosted with his equally embattled director-general Duncan Pieterse. “One of them is that we are in a coalition government. We have do something differently.”

Godongwana doubled down on his stance that he would not resign unless relieved of his duties by President Cyril Ramaphosa. He does not expect a motion of no confidence against him to succeed as ministers are not elected by Parliament, unlike the president, who could face such a motion, and he would fall with him if he did.

Explaining the budget reset process, Godongwana noted: “This comprehensive review will include the Fiscal Framework, the