'I serve at the president's pleasure'

The finance minister says his U-turn on a VAT hike was a collective decision of the government of national unity

- Mandisa Nyathi

Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana has defended his position in the wake of mounting calls for his resignation, saying that the decision about his future lies with President Cyril Ramaphosa.

"I serve at the pleasure of the president," Godongwana told journalists this week, adding that the decision to reverse a hotly contested 0.5 percentage point VAT hike was a collective one made by the government of national unity.

"That decision does not lie with me, it lies with the president. I am mindful that the president has been participating in these processes and understands the nature of the challenges we have been experiencing in dealing with this problem."

In an announcement shortly after midnight last week, the treasury said the VAT rate will remain at 15%, bringing to an end a two-month political battle over the unpopular tax.

Days later, the Western Cape high court also ruled against the VAT hike in an application brought by the Democratic Alliance (DA), with the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) being an intervening party.

Opposition parties, including uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) and the EFF, have pounced on the VAT U-turn, accusing Godongwana of fiscal mismanagement and demanding his removal from the cabinet.

Former ANC president Jacob Zuma's MK party filed a motion of no confidence, denouncing Godongwana's "regressive VAT hike" and arguing that "the finance ministry cannot be entrusted to individuals who disregard the socioeconomic realities faced by our people".