The DA promised to cut ministries and save taxpayers R5 billion. After it joined the government, it was all forgotten.

The DA promised to cut the number of ministries and save taxpayers’ money if it got into power. However, since joining the government, it has been mum on this plan.

The DA unveiled its plan to slash the number of ministeries and cabinet positions a decade ago under former DA Leader, Mmusi Maimane.

Maimane detailed the DA’s Vision 2029 programme of action for a streamlined, service-delivery-oriented national government comprising 15 cabinet ministries.

“The DA has been working on a plan to streamline government to make it less costly and more efficient,” the party said.

“If elected to the national government, we would save R4.6 billion per year simply by reorganising the executive into a cabinet of 15 ministries.”

It championed this initiative under the banner of Operation Hlasela Mafutha, or Cut the Fat. It promoted it widely.

It lambasted the cabinet’s size and the money taxpayers spent on this bloated executive. “Let’s be honest: our cabinet has become obscene,” it said.

It pointed to the staff, bodyguards, luxury cars, first-class flights, food, office refurbishments, and five-star hotel stays.

“All status, no substance, and at the cost of billions of rands,” the DA said when it referred to South Africa’s large number of ministers.

In its 2024 Election Manifesto, the DA said the government has become bloated with little return on investment.

“Many cabinet positions are unnecessary and often used as political rewards rather than to serve an important function,” it said.

It proposed streamlining the number of ministries and cabinet appointments to reduce unnecessary state expenditure and provide greater value for money to taxpayers.

Things changed after the DA joined the government

After the 2024 national elections in South Africa, the DA joined forces with other parties and formed a government of national unity.

Being part of the government gave the DA the chance to campaign for a smaller executive and make good on its promise to voters.

However, there was no sign that it remained a priority for the DA after it began negotiating for ministerial positions.

Newsday asked the DA whether it still supported the initiative to reduce ministries and save taxpayers money.

However, the party ignored these requests for comment. It also refused to answer questions about the initiative this week.

What is particularly telling is that the party seemed to have removed content related to this initiative from its website.

Visiting the former Operation Hlasela Mafutha web page returns a ‘Page Not Found’ error, which typically indicates that the content has been removed.

Searching for “Operation Hlasela Mafutha” on the DA’s website also showed no results. It is as if it never existed.

However, there are numerous news reports and other sources, including the DA’s election manifestos, which reference this campaign.

The images below provide details about the DA’s promise to voters.

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What the DA used to show South Africans

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What South Africans see now

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