Opposition parties in Gauteng on Tuesday welcomed Gauteng MEC for finance and economic development, Lebogang Maile's provincial budget for its tough stance on corruption and corrupt service providers but said it lacked substance on other significant issues in the province.

BuildOneSA (BOSA) member of the Gauteng provincial legislature, Ayanda-Allie Paine, and the DA's Shadow MEC for economic development in the province, Ruhan Robinson described the budget address on Tuesday as "unconvincing".

Maile presented the province's R527 billion budget in which he indicated that infrastructure development, consequence management for corrupt officials, and prudent fiscal spending would be key to the economic recovery of the province beset by a range of socio-economic challenges, including water and infrastructure development challenges among many other issues.

Despite challenges Maile said the budget, to be complemented by alternative sources of revenue and stringent revenue collection, will go a long way in funding some of the province's key priorities which include health, education, fighting crime, growing the economy and job creation as the Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) remains committed to fostering an inclusive and sustainable economy.

"The Explanatory Mandatory Bill, Estimates of Provincial Revenue and Expenditure Bill and the Socio-economic Review and Outlook documents, collectively provide a comprehensive picture of the state of the provincial economy and finances, and the roadmap that we are using to alter this state in a quest to build an inclusive and sustainable economy," he stated.

Robinson singled out the e-toll debt, corruption and overdue invoices as being key to Maile's lacklustre budget and further slammed the ANC for failing to include the DA in the pre-budget consultation talks and consulting with other minority parties in the province.

"The budget tabled today by MEC Maile mainly focuses on funding the promises made by Premier Panyaza Lesufi during his State of the Province Address (SOPA) in February. While MEC Maile was at pains to explain that the province is not in a financial crisis, he has admitted that the repayment of a portion of the e-Toll debt is affecting provincial finances, something the DA has warned about.

"Despite the ANC not having the majority in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature (GPL), Maile decided to consult all political parties except the second biggest party in Gauteng, the Democratic Alliance (DA). The ANC’s unrepentant, unchanged and arrogant attitude has and continues to undermine the service delivery needs of Gauteng residents. One would’ve thought that they would have learnt a lesson by now, but clearly, they have not."

Paine said the party remains unconvinced of Maile’s budget priorities, adding that vague statements will not help the country's economic hub move away from its many fiscal challenges.

"Build One South Africa (BOSA) remains unconvinced that the measures outlined will bring about meaningful change for the people of Gauteng. While MEC Maile acknowledged the need to address corruption, specifically in supply chain management, he failed to provide any substantive details on how he intends to “strengthen consequence management.”

"Vague statements without clear plans or accountability mechanisms do not inspire the confidence that the people of Gauteng deserve. Once again, the MEC alluded to the need to tackle under-spending, but like previous statements, he did not outline concrete strategies on how this issue will be addressed," she said.

On the issue of service providers and contractors who defraud the province and many of its entities of billions of rands, Paine said more transparency is needed to uncover corruption and fraud that continues to cripple the province's service delivery priorities.

"The announcement that service providers who fail to deliver on government contracts will be blacklisted is welcomed in principle, but it falls short of the necessary action. BOSA has long called for a forensic investigation into the relationship between Family Tree Holdings and the Department of Economic Development (GDED), as recommended by the Gauteng Provincial Legislature's Economic Development Committee Report in the 6th Legislature. GDED, under MEC Maile’s leadership, has repeatedly sought to avoid this investigation, which raises serious concerns about the integrity of its operations," she added.

Reacting to the budget, Goolam Ballim, Chief Economist at Standard Bank Group said transparency is the key issue in building trust with citizens who are already feeling the pinch of the recent VAT hike.

"Taxpayers are already burdened by the recent VAT hike, so they want to see where the money goes. The province must also find new revenue sources to complement the budget."

siyabonga.sithole@inl.co.za

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