Who benefits from the budget war?
As we piece together the fallout from a chaotic week, we have to ask ourselves — who benefits?
There is a perverse irony in the answer.
The budget war has been fought in the name of the South African people.
The Democratic Alliance’s (DA) original casus belli was the assault on consumers that a substantial VAT increase would have been.
Parties have since been wrangling over what would benefit the country and those living in it.
With the government of national unity (GNU) at breaking point, and uncertainty about the country’s future, it’s clear that no one benefits — least of all the South African people.
We are once more the victims of self-motivated political actors. The failure of the GNU would be an indictment of everyone in it.
At its inception, we dedicated much editorial space to celebrating the rare maturity rushing through the halls of power.
For the first time in recent memory, there was a palpable sense that the government was functioning as intended and in service of those who elected it.
We all felt a cautious tingling of optimism — a feeling that had become foreign to us during the lost Zuma years and the tepid first term of his successor.
That enthusiasm has been well and truly stomped out. We have seen a return to the zero-sum-game politics that have plagued us for so long: an environment where chicanery flourishes and cooperation is secondary.
To finger-point here would only further perpetuate this game, but suffice to say that no one can hold up their head in pride, from the DA, which declared victory after the aborted budget in February, to the ANC, which would rather return to backroom dealing than work with its partners.
And even us, the electorate.
The GNU is a product of our design. Voter turnout is tumbling. Unless we find a way to mobilise as a society and reverse this apathetic trend, how long is it until South Africa’s elected governments are no longer legitimate?
Our present debacle could not happen at a worse time. We are in the crosshairs of the most powerful man on earth. At the time of writing, we are still contemplating the devastating effects that his new tariff hike will have.
This is a moment that calls for strong leaders and a united nation. Right now, we don’t have either.