By OBAKENG MAJE
20 March 2025- Even though the North West MEC for Finance, Kenetswe Mosenogi tabled a R55 billion provincial budget for 2025/2026 financial year, most of opposition parties in the North West Provincial Legislature (NWPL) said it does not resonate with what the North West Premier, Lazarus Mokgosi pronounced during his State of the Province Address (SOPA), a few weeks ago.
Mosenogi’s budget speech sparked intense discussions about its implications for the province’s economy, citizens and business.
The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) provincial spokesperson, Fanon Moema delved into the intricacies of the budget and its takeaways. Moema said only the Departments of Education and Health received enough.
“We are not convinced that the North West Provincial Government (NWPG) has a concrete turnaround strategy to address the elephant in the room, which is the high rate of unemployment.
“Mosenogi is still talking about creating 5500 temporary jobs, which is unsustainable and not enough. Also, the areas where these job opportunities are going to be created is a challenge. In most cases, those people are not remunerated on time and there is always a predicament,” he said.
Moema further said only R35 million budget is allocated for the resuscitation of Pilanesberg and Dr Dick Montshioa Airports, which is not enough. He added that, also, the money set aside for contingency is not enough.
“We are faced with a difficult paralysis when it comes to local government. We feel like more money needs to be injected in those areas apart from those being dealt with by conditional grants and equitable share.
“We still asking questions about whose interest Mosenogi allocates the budget for. We have a high rate of unemployment and people in the province continue to live below the poverty line,” said Moema.
He said portfolios such as the Department of Economic Development, Environment, Conservation and Tourism (DEDECT) should also receive more as they create job opportunities.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) Member of Provincial Legislature (MPL) in the North West, Wolfgang Wallhorn, shared the same sentiments. Wallhorn said in terms of the budget, they feel very strongly that it was an underwhelming budget because some of the things highlighted during the SOPA do not resonate with the budget.
“In terms of job creation, we are sitting in a situation where it is only temporary jobs. On the issue of housing, we are looking at a situation where the department can build 20 000 houses, yet only 3000 have been budgeted for this financial year.
“In terms of infrastructure, looking at the roads, we have experienced heavy rains in the province recently, and the budget for the North West Public Works and Roads, does not resonate with that,” he said.
The uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP) provincial leader in North West Provincial Legislature, Lerato Tsholo said: “The budget is overwhelmingly glaringly in the sense that, there is no connection between the pronouncement made Mokgosi during SOPA and what Mosenogi presented.
“You look at some basic issues such as job creation, there is nothing industrial that tells you that they will create permanent jobs. This means the province is still going to rely on EPWP programs for creation of job opportunities.”
Tsholo also questioned Mosenogi who alleged that the unemployment rate in the North West is sitting at 43%. She said she wonders where Mosenogi gets those figures because according to the Stats SA quarterly report, North West is sitting at 52%, which makes it the number one province with high rate of unemployment in the country.
The FF+ provincial leader in the North West Provincial Legislature (NWPL), Michal Groenewald said Mosenogi gave them big figures, but if one looks at them holistically, there is little money to address service delivery. Groenewald said most of the budget goes to salaries.
“We are becoming an employee institution,” he said.
Meanwhile, the ANC provincial secretary, Louis Diremelo said they welcome the Provincial Budget Speech for the 2025/26 financial year. Diremelo said the budget reflects their collective commitment to addressing the pressing needs of the communities and fostering sustainable development across the province.
“The ANC acknowledges the comprehensive approach taken by Mosenogi in outlining the budget priorities, which are aligned with the recent State of the Province Address (SOPA) delivered by Mokgosi.
“This is a set of realistic commitments as pronounced by a people-driven government in line with resolutions of recent North West ANC PEC Lekgotla that has consolidated a pact, which is aimed to drive our vision for a prosperous and equitable North West province towards the vision of the freedom charter,” he said.
Diremelo said the 2025/2026 budget is a reaffirmation of their commitment to all the set priorities of the 7th administration, which are to advance inclusive growth and job creation, reduce poverty and tackle the high cost of living, and build a capable, ethical and developmental state. He said notably, the provincial budget allocation grows to R56,352 billion in 2026/27 and R58,329 billion in the outer year of the 2025 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and this budget emphasizes key areas that are crucial for the growth and development of our province, including infrastructure development, healthcare services, education, skills development and economic recovery and job creation.
“We appreciate the fact that the budget has prioritized the filling of vacant and funded posts in the provincial government, coordinated by provincial treasury and the office of the premier, as unemployment remains the most concerning factor for the ANC in North West,” said Diremelo.
The Guardian 