Mashatile's costly trip

TRAVEL: SPOTLIGHT ON R2.3 MILLION BILL

- Ryk van Niekerk

I got angry this week. The type of anger that makes you swear out loud and leads to snapping heads looking at you. It happened while reading an article detailing Deputy President Paul Mashatile's recent R2.3 million, four-day trip to Japan. Not because diplomatic relations don't matter—they do—but because it laid bare just how utterly disconnected South Africa's political leadership has become from the economic realities of the people they claim to serve.

This trip followed the farcical evolution of the national budget, where Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana first tabled a budget proposing a two-percentage-point VAT hike and no cost-cutting because "austerity doesn't work".

Godongwana eventually presented a third iteration without the VAT hike and without any meaningful austerity.

This will lead to higher debt that our children will one day have to repay—but trips like these emphasize that there are places where politicians can save money.

For those who missed the story...