Presenting his February budget, Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan talked about the need for action, not just words, and about the need for good governance and a public ethic of honesty and fairness. "In acting together, we can address declining confidence and the retreat of capital, and we can combat emerging patterns of predatory behaviour and corruption," he said. Eight months on, Gordhan is gearing up to table his medium-term budget on Wednesday in an environment not imaginable back then, in which he has found himself fighting a covert war against elements of the state hell-bent on his removal. The atmosphere is awash with details of predatory behaviour; investor confidence has continued to decline, as has confidence in SA’s ability to fix its ailing economy and tackle unemployment and inequality. The finance minister’s own position is under attack, with the ruling party and the Cabinet increasingly divided over Gordhan himself as well as over issues of governance and ethics. The q...
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