Maimane calls for urgent fiscal action as SA faces Budget crisis

Cape Town – Leader of Build One South Africa (BOSA), Mmusi Maimane, has called for urgent action to address South Africa’s growing budget crisis, warning that the country faces a critical fiscal crossroads.

In an interview with Newzroom Afrika, Maimane stressed the need for significant reductions in government expenditure rather than increasing taxes, which he argued would be ineffective due to existing loopholes.

With South Africa’s budget deficit at 5%, he highlighted that a large portion of the country’s revenue is consumed by debt repayment, employee costs, and social spending.

“For every R1 that comes into the finance class, 22 cents goes toward funding debt, 30 cents goes to employee costs, and over 60 cents goes toward the social wage,” Maimane said.

He  proposed reconsidering social relief grants, such as the SRD, which he deemed unaffordable, and suggested better funding of agencies like SARS to improve long-term revenue collection.

He also expressed concern that political infighting could prevent necessary fiscal decisions, urging President Cyril Ramaphosa to take strong leadership to avoid economic recession and further cuts to essential services.

The Minister of Finance, Enoch Godongwana, is expected to table the budget on March 12.