Johannesburg - Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene got the balance between the needs of the poor and state expenditure right, the African National Congress said on Wednesday.
"I think that balance has been very, very important," party treasurer Zweli Mkhize said outside Parliament reacting to Nene's 2014 mini budget.
"Having looked at what the minister could have done, I think they have been able to give a very frank picture of the difficult economic situation for South Africans, and that's what we need."
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South Africans needed a finance minister who was honest about the difficult current economic situation.
"Having said so, also to acknowledge that there is a large global economic crisis, that also our own issues, that we need to sort out internally as a country," Mkhize said.
"I think that the focus on saying that government personal expenditure at different levels needs to be contained. I think that's a good one and also a culture of fiscal discipline has to be part of what he must preach."
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