DA warns Mboweni on 'immoral spending' on state entities
The Democratic Alliance (DA) has warned Finance Minister Tito Mboweni against bailing out cash-strapped state-owned entities.
Mboweni is set to table his budget in the National Assembly on Wednesday afternoon.
DA's spokesperson on Finance Geordin Hill-Lewis says the country’s various state-owned entities, such as SAA and Transnet, are failing to generate revenue.
"Then there is less spending on basic services that people really need like healthcare or education and investment in infrastructure.
"It is absolutely immoral to spend tens of billions of rands on these failing companies that will not ever turn around.
“They will not succeed. Instead of spending the money on people who really need it, or on paying off on some of our country's enormous debts, and we must get our priorities straight."
Hill-Lewis says already-struggling South Africans cannot afford any tax hikes.
"The most important thing is that the minister should not increase any taxes, because South African families have already gone through a difficult time this year and they cannot afford any taxes.
"So, we are asking the minister to not increase taxes. We can't afford it and that it is not the right way to grow the economy."
