The Leader of Opposition (LOO), Dumelang Saleshando has said weak oversight and political interference continue to enable waste, corruption and poor service delivery.
Responding to Finance Minister Ndaba Gaolathe’s Budget Speech, Saleshando said the country’s fiscal challenges are not driven solely by revenue constraints, but by how public funds are managed or mismanaged. Parliamentary oversight, he argued, lacks enforcement power, while development plans are not legally binding on the executive.
“Governance without legal teeth is merely administration,” the LOO said.
Saleshando called for a legally enforceable Budget Act, an independent parliamentary budget office and enhanced powers for the Public Accounts Committee. Without such reforms, he said, budget commitments remain vulnerable to discretionary deviation.
He pointed to politically influenced appointments in state-owned enterprises, ministerial overrides of board decisions and unresolved financial scandals in which senior officials remain on the public payroll despite mounting losses.
Saleshando called for a legally enforceable Budget Act, an independent parliamentary budget office and enhanced powers for the Public Accounts Committee. Without such reforms, he said, budget commitments remain vulnerable to discretionary deviation.
He also criticized the limited transparency in public procurement, urging full implementation of electronic procurement systems and public disclosure of contract and beneficial ownership information. Emergency and special-fund spending, he said, should be subject to continuous forensic audits.
While the government has acknowledged governance challenges and highlighteThe 2026 budget accused of breaking faith with youth and the poor
