The DA says the budget increases costs for vulnerable residents while protecting elite networks.
While the City of Tshwane’s coalition partners celebrate the passing of its first fully funded budget since 2021 in council yesterday, the opposition has accused the city of using its residents as cash cows.
The coalition partners which included ANC, EFF, ActionSA, Good, DOP, ATM, PA, PAC and AIC said the budget represented a significant step toward restoring fiscal stability, advancing service delivery and meeting growing developmental needs of residents.
DA rejects budget as a betrayal of the poor
DA Tshwane spokesperson on finance Jacqui Uys however rejected the “farce that was the City of Tshwane’s budget”.
Uys said the ANC government disregarded Tshwane’s vulnerable communities because the watchman services budget was increased from R307 million in 2024 to R565 million.
“Tshwane’s budget, while promising to uplift and make life easier for the residents, is nothing but a protection of ANC patronage, while using residents as cash cows. The ANC has ignored opposition voices and included another punitive tax on residents.
“The plan is to tax every single resident who cannot afford to make use of the city’s rubbish collectors, at R500 per month, by forcing them to pay R200 per month in the form of a city cleansing levy,” she said.
ALSO READ: Tshwane’s R54.6bn budget draws mixed reactions
Private power plans and patronage concerns
Uys said the flawed budget was an exercise in protecting patronage networks with R20 million allocated to pay for an advisor that will facilitate transactions getting the Rooiwal and Pretoria West Power Stations operated privately, yet it was clear there is no plan to rid Tshwane of Eskom’s 93c/KwA wheeling tariff.
“No independent power producer will be able to sell electricity at a loss this tariff causes,” she said. Uys said it was clear that they wanted to keep Tshwane dependent on Eskom patronage.
“The deputy mayor in his budget speech celebrated that the water woes of Ikageng are over. Yet the taps are dry and water tankers can be found everywhere. This budget has almost doubled the water and sanitation department’s water tanker budget,” she said.
ActionSA hails budget as a major coalition victory
ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba said the passing of the 2025-26 Tshwane budget represented a major victory for all the city’s residents.
“It marks the first time that ActionSA mayor Nasiphi Moya and her multiparty coalition government have delivered from their own budget, an astonishing feat, given the changes already achieved in the city,” he said.
Mashaba said plans to reimagine customer care in the city were exciting, ensuring that residents receive timely, responsive service and clear feedback while issues were being resolved.
NOW READ: Here is how Tshwane will be spending its R54.6 billion budget
