Latest news with #RedBerets
Eyewitness News
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Eyewitness News
Malema slams Ramaphosa for painting SA as a crime hub during US visit
JOHANNESBURG - The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) said the picture of violent crime and lawlessness painted by the South African delegation at the White House in Washington DC last week could hinder much-needed foreign investment into the country. The leader of the Red Berets, Julius Malema, raised his concerns while addressing supporters in the Free State on Sunday ahead of Wednesday's by-elections in Kwakwatsi. ALSO READ: Trump, Ramaphosa engagement proof EFF remains 'major political force', says Malema The visit to the area is part of Malema's attempt to rally supporters during the by-election season. He said President Cyril Ramaphosa's failure to protect the country's image during his highly publicised engagement with United States (US) President Donald Trump set the wrong tone. 'The whole president said, in America, there is a crime in South Africa. Yes, we know that but why do you say it in America, because if you say it in America, they will no longer come to South Africa as tourists. Ramaphosa has killed the tourism of South Africa when he declared crime at the White House.'
Mail & Guardian
21-05-2025
- Business
- Mail & Guardian
Budget 3.0 tentatively accepted by some political parties
The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) led the charge against the latest version of the 2025 Budget, dismissing it as an 'austerity budget' that offers no meaningful relief to poor and working-class South Africans. Political parties remain divided over the revised Budget 3.0, tabled by Finance Minister The Speaking outside parliament, EFF leader Julius Malema said the ANC had failed to use the revision as an opportunity to steer the economy in a more equitable direction. 'The ANC is stuck. They cannot grow the economy,' Malema said. 'This is an austerity budget. They failed to increase the list of zero-rated goods. We don't accept this budget.' In a statement, the Red Berets said the revised fiscal plan was out of touch with the lived realities of millions of South Africans grappling with rising unemployment, poor public services and stagnant wages. They criticised the ANC government for ignoring proposals from opposition parties and civil society during the adjustment process. 'This is a budget that ignores the worsening unemployment crisis, fails to address poor economic growth and continues the failed orthodoxy that has plunged our country into austerity, despair and underdevelopment,' the party said. The EFF also accused the government of misleading the public about the reasons behind the dropping of the proposed VAT increase. According to the party, this was not the result of stakeholder consultation but rather the outcome of a legal challenge initiated by the Democratic Alliance (DA). 'Not a single alternative revenue-generation mechanism proposed by any political party is present in this third budget, proving once again that the VAT increases were scrapped solely due to court intervention,' the EFF said. The party has called on the government to increase corporate and land taxes as part of a progressive tax reform agenda. Malema also urged the strengthening of the South African Revenue Service to address tax avoidance and illicit financial flows. In sharp contrast, the DA's Mark Burke cautiously welcomed the revised budget, describing it as a 'turning of the tide' towards greater fiscal responsibility. The official opposition, which took the treasury to court over the VAT increase earlier this year, claimed a win in the decision to drop the proposed hike. 'It is a victory for all South Africans that the mooted VAT hike has now finally been removed from the minister's revenue proposals, after the DA court action in this regard,' Burke said. He added that the absence of new bailouts for struggling state-owned enterprises, along with the maintenance of the current VAT rate, signalled a shift away from reckless public spending. 'Overall, we see this budget speech as a turning of the tide toward growth and investment. It is turning away from unchecked government spending funded by South African taxpayers,' George said. The Freedom Front Plus echoed the DA's sentiment, with party MP Wouter Wessels describing the budget as 'progressive' and appropriate under the current fiscal constraints. ActionSA said it was disappointed that there was no additional funding for the National Prosecuting Authority. 'South Africans are tired of paying more while government corruption, mismanagement and waste continue unchecked,' the party said in a statement. The party also criticised Godongwana's proposed inflation-linked increases to the levy on petrol and diesel to help offset revenue lost from the scrapped VAT hike and to narrow the main budget deficit, which stands at 4.5% of GDP, adding that it was not a pro-poor budget. The ANC, for its part, has defended the revised budget as a balanced and responsible response to a complex economic environment. Party spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu said the adjustments made between the initial budget and the revised version reflect the government's commitment to fiscal sustainability and public consultation. The finance minister's latest budget is the third version presented this year, following a series of criticisms and a public backlash over the initial revenue proposals. The revised document includes shifts in spending priorities but remains anchored in the treasury's medium-term fiscal framework, which prioritises debt stabilisation and constrained expenditure growth.
IOL News
29-04-2025
- Business
- IOL News
Malema calls for resignation of Godongwana over VAT increase
EFF president Julius Malema has joined the chorus calling for Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana along with his Director-General, Duncan Pieterse, to resign over the VAT battle. The Red Berets leader made the call during a media briefing on Monday, after the Western Cape High Court's full bench set aside the adopted 2025 Fiscal Framework and Revenue Proposals and suspended the implementation of the 0.5 percentage point VAT increase which was set to come into effect on May 1. The EFF and the DA had approached the court to have the VAT increase announcement by Godongwana as well the adoption of the finance committees' report by both Houses set aside. After the matter was argued, the Finance Minister announced that the VAT increase would not be implemented. However, the court matter continued as the DA said the court must specifically issue an order to stop the VAT increase, on the basis that the Fiscal Framework was unlawfully adopted in the both the Finance Portfolio Committee and Parliament itself. The order was granted by consent of all parties.
The Guardian
15-03-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Tensions mount in Serbia as protesters converge on Belgrade
Tens of thousands of people from across Serbia are expected to join an anti-corruption rally in Belgrade, in what is seen as a culmination of months of protest that have shaken the grip of the country's autocratic president, Aleksandar Vučić. Tensions are running high, as the president's supporters have begun setting up camp in a park in front of the presidential palace. Earlier this week, Vučić warned that security officers would use force against people at the rally, planned for Saturday. Vučić, who has dominated Serbian politics since becoming prime minister in 2014 and then president in 2017, said the demonstrators would never force him to stand down. 'You will have to kill me if you want to replace me,' he said. Authorities have faced near-daily protests since last November when a station roof collapsed killing 14 people in Novi Sad, Serbia's second city. Many blamed rampant corruption for the disaster at the station, which was inaugurated by Vučić in 2022 after renovations. The leaderless protest movement has been largely peaceful, but Vučić has claimed that protesters 'will try to achieve something with violence and that will be the end' and predicted that 'many will end up behind bars' on Saturday. Agence France-Presse reported that known ultranationalists, including members of a former militia linked to the assassination of then prime minister, Zoran Djindjicn in 2003, have been seen among the group of activists camped near the presidential palace. Djindjic, who led street protests that deposed Slobodan Milošević in 2000, was assassinated 22 years ago this week by a paramilitary police group known by its unofficial name, the Red Berets. Vučić 'has mobilised criminals, thugs and Red Beret members, bringing people from Kosovo and stationing them in Pionirski Park, knowing hundreds of thousands will gather there on Saturday,' Dragan Djilas, the leader of the opposition Freedom and Justice party, wrote on X. Vučić and his Serbian Progressive party, which has successfully marginalised the official opposition, have been thrown off balance by the student protests, a leaderless movement that is seeking root and branch reform but without a clear plan for democratic change. Protesters are demanding accountability for the disaster at Novi Sad, as well as transparent institutions, based on the rule of law. More than a dozen people have been charged in relation to the deadly roof canopy collapse. The then prime minister, Miloš Vučević, a former mayor of Novi Sad when renovation of the station began, resigned in January, as did the serving mayor. Vučić, widely seen to have sacrificed his prime minister to protect his position, has ruled out forming a transitional government and holding elections in six months. Echoing Russian narratives, he has described the protests as a western-orchestrated ploy to oust him from power and destroy Serbia. Dušan Spasojević, a professor at the University of Belgrade's political science faculty, told AFP that the government's use of provocative language was likely to be an attempt to discourage people from joining the demonstration. Vučić was probably 'hoping that protesters will spark some violence, giving the police justification to intervene and causing most people to withdraw from the protests', Spasojević said. Foreign observers are increasingly concerned about violence against demonstrators, after incidents where cars drove into protesters and some anti-corruption protesters were hospitalised. 'Serbia's response to these protests will be a decisive test of its commitment to EU standards,' a cross-party group of members of the European parliament wrote in a letter to the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, this week. Serbia has been an EU candidate country since 2012, but progress has stalled under Vučić's leadership and its pro-Russian stance over the war in Ukraine. The MEPs, spanning conservatives to radical left-wingers, argue that the EU has been 'too lenient and indulgent' towards Serbia's government. The group urges von der Leyen to ensure Serbia has 'free and fair elections, an independent judiciary, pluralistic media, and the rule of law' before releasing any EU funds. Serbia is due to receive €1.5bn (£1.26bn) in grants and cheap loans under an EU 'growth plan' between 2024 and 2027. Organisers have vowed that the protests will continue after Saturday. 'We are not taking the final steps – we are making tectonic changes. If our demands are not met, we will remain on the streets, in blockades, in the fight until justice is served,' they wrote on Instagram.
