Mpumalanga’s second proposed adjustment budget for the 2025/26 financial year leaves a question mark hanging over the ANC government’s financial discipline and planning.
Being a money bill, these budget adjustments must comply with Sections 119 and 120 of the Constitution. Every adjustment must be clearly motivated and linked to concrete, measurable outcomes.
The provincial government plans to mainly allocate large amounts to the Provincial Disaster Response Grants. The most important adjustments include:
• Health: an additional R1,2 billion, of which R8 million goes to the Disaster Response Grant. Although necessary, the Freedom Front Plus (VF Plus) cannot help but wonder whether this is not just a remedy for past maladministration.
• Education: an additional R950 million, of which R12 million goes to the Disaster Response Grant. The party wants to know why these needs were not provided for in the original budget.
• Roads and Transport: an additional R600 million, of which R29 million goes to the Disaster Response Grant. The Freedom Front Plus demands that these funds be linked to specific projects with transparent tender processes.
• Human Settlements and Agriculture: R400 million for Human Settlements and R250 million for Agriculture. The Freedom Front Plus warns that these funds should reach communities and not flow through the cracks to contractors with political ties.
The cutback of R300 million on administrative expenditure is a good start, but oversight and transparency should not be sacrificed as a consequence.
Budget adjustments ought to deliver visible results and contribute to service delivery. They should never be exploited to benefit political favourites.
Taxpayers deserve transparency, accountability and actual improvement in their daily lives.
