By Kouthar Sambo
Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana presented the national budget on Wednesday, 21 May 2025, without implementing an increase to value-added tax (VAT).
However, early reports indicate that the South African Revenue Service (SARS) has expressed its readiness to take on the responsibility of closing the revenue gap in the national budget.
According to Godongwana, this revenue-raising mandate could enable SARS to generate an additional R20 to R50 billion per year.
Speaking on VOC’s PM Drive show, political economist Khaya Sithole said the minister appeared to be facing a “credibility problem.”
His comment followed the minister’s earlier proposal of a 2% VAT increase in February 2025, when Godongwana insisted there were no other viable options and that the National Treasury had exhausted all alternatives.
“When the proposed VAT hike got rejected, he came back saying there was no other way, convincing the public that taxes had to be raised for him to balance the books — that was rejected, and then he comes back and claims that he was able to balance the books without the options he said were non-negotiable,” explained Sithole.
*Listen to the full audio here.
Photo: PresidencyZA/X [screenshot]
