Gauteng Treasury must stand with Minister Gordhan to protect the fiscus
13 September 2016
The DA urges Gauteng Finance MEC, Barbara Creecy, to join the call made by our colleagues in the Western Cape by asking Minister Gordhan to convene a Budget Council Meeting without delay.
The DA is extremely concerned by the public attacks on Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan and National Treasury over the past couple of weeks by President Zuma and his cronies, and the latest attempt to strip National Treasury of its decision making and financial control powers – which will ultimately strip National Treasury of its power to control procurement processes.
It seems that the ANC believes that Treasury is too powerful, and has so much control that it can defy even the presidency when it comes to funding dubious projects and bail-outs.
One of the key changes appears to be for Treasury’s chief procurement officer, Kenneth Brown, to report directly to the president, and not the finance minister.
President Zuma is actively trying to reign in Minister Gordhan and get rid of him in order to capture National Treasury, and expand his network of patronage and tenderpreneurship, which has underpinned his presidency.
The DA firmly believes that any perceived attack on Minister Gordhan and National Treasury will bring about an extreme loss of confidence in our capacity to deliver on the goals of the National Development Plan, and on our objective to grow the economy and create decent employment opportunities.
We cannot sit back and watch the National Treasury being systematically attacked, its authority eroded and our fiscal sustainability undermined.
It has become urgent to discuss the fiscal and economic implications of the crisis facing Treasury. It will impact the fiscus of the National Government, all provinces and municipalities.
Provincial budgets are being squeezed by austerity brought on by financial mismanagement.
The impact on frontline service delivery will be hard to avoid if we allow the economy to be downgraded, or fall into a recession that takes us over the fiscal cliff.
We need to do the responsible thing and show a united front against attacks on Treasury.
The time has come for all finance MECs in all nine provinces to stand together and support and protect the integrity of National Treasury during this time of crisis, and ensure that the people are put before the needs of crony capitalists.
Issued by Adriana Randall, DA Gauteng Shadow MEC on Finance, 13 September 2016
