Cartoon of the day: 7 April 2025

The future of the government of national unity (GNU) in its current form may not survive last week’s bruising budget vote.

Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana’s 2025 national budget went before Parliament last week for adoption, with the ANC’s biggest partner in the GNU voting against it.

While the DA and FF+ rejected it, ActionSA, among others, supported the budget.

ActionSA president Herman Mashaba told The Citizen previously that ActionSA and the ANC held favourable talks ahead of the budget vote to get the proposal passed.

ActionSA proposed before a joint finance committee meeting that the National Treasury explore alternative revenue streams within 30 days to replace a planned 1% Value-Added Tax (VAT) increase over two years. This was supported by the ANC and adopted by the committees.

Replacement

ANC NEC members told City Press that the DA and FF+ would be replaced by ActionSA and other smaller parties that voted for the budget to be passed.

“Furious ANC NEC members are calling for the party to eject the DA and FF+ from the GNU after accusing them of betraying them during the passing of the 2025 fiscal framework,” the insider told the paper.

READ MORE: Budget 2025 passed with VAT increase while rand tanks

Reconsideration

ActionSA parliamentary leader Athol Trollip said the party would reconsider its current stance if asked to join the GNU. 

“If the DA leaves the GNU, or if they are kicked out of the GNU, we will reconsider our position because the DA is good at opposition,” Trollip said.

“The opposition space is suddenly disproportionately full, and the government space might be limited. So, we will re-evaluate. We will do that only once this VAT matter is sorted.”

Trollip, however, said the ANC had not yet been contacted about reconfiguring the GNU.

READ MORE: ‘Political thuggerism’: Legal action on the cards after budget’s adoption

Future of GNU

Speaking to reporters after delivering the Solomon Mahlangu lecture in Khayelitsha on the Cape Flats on Sunday, ANC deputy president Paul Mashatile said the party’s national working committee (NWC) would decide on the future of the GNU.

“We will hear from the NWC what we should do. As you know, when we were in Parliament, they (DA) didn’t vote for the budget, and we passed it with other parties, the fiscal framework.

“We’re still going to go back; we have to pass the Expropriation Act and other laws. The NWC is only meeting tomorrow [Monday] to get this report, and after its deliberation, it will say what should happen next,” Mashatile said.

Additional reporting by Molefe Seeletsa and Faizel Patel

NOW READ: Budget vote fallout: Is the DA’s future in or out of GNU?