The National Treasury says it is not responsible for any budget challenges experienced by the South African National Defence Force (SANDF).
In a statement, Treasury said it was concerned by the remarks made by the head of the navy, Admiral Monde Lobese, who accused Treasury of compromising the national security by not providing the defence force with resources.
Lobese made the comments during a joint standing committee on defence meeting in parliament on Friday.
Final approval is by parliament, and the National Treasury is then entrusted to ensure the implementation of parliament’s decisions
— Treasury
In response, Treasury said in line with the constitution, withdrawing funds from the National Revenue Fund can only be done through an Act of parliament.
“Final approval is by parliament, and the National Treasury is then entrusted to ensure the implementation of parliament’s decisions. It is therefore incorrect to suggest that the National Treasury is responsible for any budget challenges experienced by the SANDF."
Lobese told the joint committee on defence that it needs to take a stand against what he calls the sabotage of the defence force due to years of defunding. "National Treasury for a change needs to be patriotic in how they address the funding of the SANDF. National Treasury can’t be allowed to be a super department."
However, Treasury said in terms of section 6(1)(c) and (d) of thPublic Finance Management Act, the National Treasury is responsible for managing the budget process and exercising control over the implementation of the national budget.
"In other words, the National Treasury is responsible for the planning process that results in a cabinet decision reflecting trade-offs between various policy priorities. Final approval is by parliament, and the National Treasury is then entrusted to ensure the implementation of parliament’s decisions."
According to Treasury, the 2025/26 proposed allocation of R57.2bn in the appropriation bill was informed by government’s broader fiscal strategy, which aimed to stabilise public finances, reduce debt-service costs, and create space to invest in critical infrastructure and frontline services in support of higher growth.
"Within this constrained fiscal environment, the department of defence has been allocated an additional R4.3bn over the 2025 medium-term expenditure framework (MTEF) to support priority needs – most notably, the orderly and safe withdrawal of troops and mission equipment from the Democratic Republic of Congo, alongside other essential operational requirements," said Treasury.
Sowetan's sister publication TimesLive reported that minister of defence and military veterans Angie Motshekga said that better funding could have allowed the defence force to handle the repatriation of troops who were deployed to the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo as part of the Southern African Development Community Mission in the DRC, avoiding trauma and logistical chaos.
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