3 July 2025 | 10:15 CAT
3-minute read

Informal settlements like these remain a stark reminder of South Africa’s housing backlog and the urgent need for effective, well-funded human settlements policies that can deliver dignified homes to all. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko/File Photo

The 2025 Human Settlements Budget Vote, intended to advance the provision of housing and dignity to South Africans, has become a flashpoint in the country’s political arena. Instead of uniting leaders around a pressing social need, it has revealed deep fractures within the Government of National Unity (GNU), with key opposition parties rejecting the budget and raising serious concerns about governance, corruption, and the continued marginalisation of vulnerable communities.

The Democratic Alliance (DA), Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), and uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MK) have all refused to support the Human Settlements Budget, along with the Budget Vote for Higher Education. Their objections, while seemingly rooted in economic concerns, also signal deeper political manoeuvring within the GNU.

Speaking to Radio Islam International, Professor Ntsikilelo Breakfast, a political analyst, explained the DA’s contradictory stance.

“The DA is wearing two caps. On the one hand, it wants to be part of the GNU. On the other hand, it wants to play a role of an opposition.”

The DA’s rejection of the Human Settlements Budget is widely viewed as a strategic move to exert pressure on the African National Congress (ANC), particularly after the dismissal of one of the DA’s own ministers. The party’s criticisms also extend to the Minister of Higher Education, who faces allegations linked to the VBS Mutual Bank corruption scandal, adding fuel to an already volatile political environment.

While opposition parties have cited inflationary pressures as a key reason for their rejection of the budget, Professor Breakfast argued that the problem is far more systemic. He pointed to South Africa’s long-standing commitment to neoliberal economic policies that prioritise fiscal discipline over social spending.

“If you look at the houses that have been built by the ANC government since 1994, via the RDP policy, they are smaller than those ones that were built by the apartheid government,” he said, blaming this on the influence of international financial institutions like the IMF and the World Bank.

Professor Breakfast also highlighted the lingering spatial inequalities in South Africa, a remnant of apartheid-era planning that continues to force low-income residents to live far from economic hubs.

“Our people are staying far from CBDs. So, they are struggling to have access to their places of employment, to participate in economic activities, because those places are far from where they are staying.”

Housing activists and researchers have echoed these concerns. According to GroundUp, many government housing projects continue to be built on the peripheries of cities, exacerbating unemployment and poverty by isolating residents from jobs and services. Meanwhile, News24 reported that the Human Settlements Department has struggled to address backlogs and corruption, with incomplete and poorly constructed housing projects still plaguing communities.

Professor Breakfast noted that while opposition parties raised valid issues, their motivations may not be entirely altruistic.

“They are also taking a strategic advantage of these weaknesses by waging political battles to increase their own mileage, which doesn’t benefit us as citizens.”

The rejection of the budget has significant short-term consequences. Without budget approval, the department’s ability to deliver housing and related services comes to a standstill.

“You can’t [deliver] because the allocation of public goods must be aligned with the budget. Budget has to do with the mobilisation of resources to get the job done,” Breakfast warned.

As political battles continue, the human cost of stalled housing projects and unapproved budgets will likely fall on ordinary South Africans who remain in desperate need of adequate shelter and access to economic opportunity.

Listen to the full interview on Sabaahul Muslim with Moulana Sulaimaan Ravat.