TAXPAYER SPENDS E118M ON EXTERNAL TRIPS

LOBAMBA – At least E118 million has been spent on external travel in the current financial year of government.

This is according to the performance report for the second quarter of the Ministry of Finance.Minister of Finance Neal Rijkenberg told Members of Parliament (MPs) yesterday that at least E375 million was a control item in the ministry’s budget, but E118 million had been spent so far. He was responding to a question from Kubuta MP Masiphula Mamba, who said the recurrent expenditure is very high and that the country should obey warnings by the International Monetary Fund.The minister then pointed to his ministry’s performance report, stating that E118 million had been spent so far in external travels.

“I must confess that the Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation travel was not captured correctly in the report,” he said. Meanwhile, the report states that the variance shows that travelling is at 26 per cent at this time of the year. “Due to the increasing number of external travels that occurred during the last month of the 2nd quarter, reallocations from various centres within the same head were done to facilitate the expenditure, thus the expenditure variance is still within the provisions made on the budget,” the report states.

Clarified

On another note, the minister clarified that the 33 per cent taxation on commercial entities is meant to boost businesses, so they can grow their businesses. He was responding to a question by Hhukwini MP Alec Lushaba. “When we reduce the tax from companies, it is so that they can be able to grow quicker and employ more people. You must understand that the company and the businessman who owns the company are two entities. When the businessman takes away the money from the company to spend, he pays 33 per cent.” The minister says this is also applicable when the businessman takes the money by way of dividends.

“We are trying to incentivise that business people should not take the money out, it means they are paying 33 per cent, but if they leave the money in the business, they are paying 25 per cent. This should stimulate the growth of companies in Eswatini and reduce poverty. He said the taxation is not necessarily in a high bracket because a similar tax in the neighbouring country is 45 per cent. He explained that the 33 per cent is applicable to those who earn over E250 000 per year.

“This means you are taxing people that can afford to pay the tax,” he said. The principle of tax is that you apply it to those who can afford to help those who cannot afford it,” he said. He said government has no intentions to increase the tax, and would also not reduce it.

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