South African taxpayers can't afford R1.1bn for political parties

There is not enough transparency and the funds would be better spent on health and education

- Lyse Comins

Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana is under fire for allocating an additional R1.1 billion to political parties over a three-year medium term, with critics questioning the wisdom of funnelling taxpayer money into political coffers while the country faces a fiscal cliff.

At the Electoral Commission of South Africa’s (IEC) recent inaugural symposium on political funding, Godongwana also proposed a shift towards fully public-funded parties, arguing that reliance on private donors undermines accountability.

Analysts have warned that this move could entrench the dominance of larger parties, stifle political competition and deepen public distrust in an already fragile democracy.

He told the conference that over the medium-term policy framework, which provides a three-year rolling budget plan, “an additional R1.1 billion in funding will be made available to political parties”.

“Mindful of next year’s local government elections, however, we are considering availing even further funding. In my view, political parties must be fully publicly funded.

“Political funding for political parties from the public purse carries obligations — there’s going to be accountability and transparency. The auditor general must be able to audit for that accountability.”

The finance minister’s vision of a fully state-funded system has raised critical questions about fiscal priorities, transparency and the potential for political manipulation in a country grappling with an economy projected to grow less than 1% this year, crumbling public services and a cost-of-living crisis fuelled by rising energy and food prices.

The move is a misallocation of scarce resources, University of KwaZulu-Natal political analyst Lubna Nadvi argued.

“Allocating additional funds to political parties, who should be sourcing their own funding for their activities, appears irresponsible given the other socioeconomic priorities South Africa has,” she said.