ActionSA can today reveal — through a damning parliamentary reply — that the DA’s Deputy Minister of Finance, Ashor Sarupen, was intimately involved in the budget process, particularly in drafting the original 19 February budget speech which included the deeply unpopular 2 percentage point VAT increase, as well as the subsequent revision to the split 1 percentage point increase, despite their denials.
Yet in recent weeks, the DA has cynically weaponised this very VAT hike in a desperate attempt to salvage its political image and to extract more influence in the GNU. Far from acting in the public interest, the DA has waged an internal war in the GNU — prioritising extortionist power plays and Ministerial positions in the GNU over the financial well-being of millions of struggling South Africans.
Their kamikaze-style attacks on the budget process were never about blocking an unjust tax hike— they were a deliberate attempt to sabotage the budget entirely and hold the country’s finances hostage, all in the hope of renegotiating their increasingly fragile position in the GNU. They failed.
In that failure, the DA’s effort to secure unrelated concessions to strengthen their grip over the Western Cape became plain to see. Far from opposing the VAT hikes, they were fully aware of them — and offered their support on a silver platter — right up until their power-play demands were rejected.
The very party that nearly left teachers and doctors unpaid now seeks to masquerade as the people’s defender. The truth, however, is that the DA’s Deputy Minister was directly involved in the initial drafting of the VAT increase. They knew it was coming and said nothing until it suited their narrow political agenda.
This is not governance — this is reckless, chauvinistic opportunism. ActionSA as the only rational opposition had to step in at the 11th hour and entered budget negotiations with no hidden motives, no secret deals, and no preconditions. Our only strict conditions, on behalf of the people of South Africa, were no VAT increase and no income tax bracket creep. Our recommendations included in the fiscal framework report opened the only practical door to meaningful alternatives — and we backed it up with real solutions.
We have identified over R100 billion in alternative revenue proposals, which we believe are credible and considered measures designed to shield ordinary South Africans from the consequences of economic mismanagement. Our commitment remains simple: We will not rest until the VAT hike is scrapped either before the 1st of May or as soon as possible thereafter.
Finance Ministry Confirms DA Complicit in Original 2% VAT Increase Despite Denials
ActionSA can today reveal — through a damning parliamentary reply — that the DA’s Deputy Minister of Finance, Ashor Sarupen, was intimately involved in the budget process, particularly in drafting the original 19 February budget speech which included the deeply unpopular 2 percentage point VAT increase, as well as the subsequent revision to the split 1 percentage point increase, despite their denials.
Yet in recent weeks, the DA has cynically weaponised this very VAT hike in a desperate attempt to salvage its political image and to extract more influence in the GNU. Far from acting in the public interest, the DA has waged an internal war in the GNU — prioritising extortionist power plays and Ministerial positions in the GNU over the financial well-being of millions of struggling South Africans.
Their kamikaze-style attacks on the budget process were never about blocking an unjust tax hike— they were a deliberate attempt to sabotage the budget entirely and hold the country’s finances hostage, all in the hope of renegotiating their increasingly fragile position in the GNU. They failed.
In that failure, the DA’s effort to secure unrelated concessions to strengthen their grip over the Western Cape became plain to see. Far from opposing the VAT hikes, they were fully aware of them — and offered their support on a silver platter — right up until their power-play demands were rejected.
The very party that nearly left teachers and doctors unpaid now seeks to masquerade as the people’s defender. The truth, however, is that the DA’s Deputy Minister was directly involved in the initial drafting of the VAT increase. They knew it was coming and said nothing until it suited their narrow political agenda.
This is not governance — this is reckless, chauvinistic opportunism. ActionSA as the only rational opposition had to step in at the 11th hour and entered budget negotiations with no hidden motives, no secret deals, and no preconditions. Our only strict conditions, on behalf of the people of South Africa, were no VAT increase and no income tax bracket creep. Our recommendations included in the fiscal framework report opened the only practical door to meaningful alternatives — and we backed it up with real solutions.
We have identified over R100 billion in alternative revenue proposals, which we believe are credible and considered measures designed to shield ordinary South Africans from the consequences of economic mismanagement. Our commitment remains simple: We will not rest until the VAT hike is scrapped either before the 1st of May or as soon as possible thereafter.