Budget Speech 2017: South Africa protests on the streets & Twitter

Today, South Africa’s minister of finance Pravin Gordhan will deliver his annual Budget Speech to the nation. Although proceedings officially get underway at 2pm in Cape Town, citizens are already making their voices heard.

While South Africans are voicing concerns about a possible jump in personal income tax, an introduction of a sugar tax, and a higher national fuel levy, some are also finding time to practice their right to demonstrate.

South Africa’s finance minister Pravin Gordhan will deliver the 2017 Budget Speech at 2pm, 22 February

In Cape Town’s city centre, Nehawu (National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union) members are marching to parliament to hand over a memorandum to Gordhan detailing its demands of a higher minimum wage and the scrapping of eTolls in Gauteng.

NEHAWU march in full swing. @Fin24 pic.twitter.com/iL9AV1dWjm

— Liziwe Ndalana (@McNdalana) February 22, 2017

Nehawu is going to Parliament to ask Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan to stop austerity measures that are making their work difficult@News24 pic.twitter.com/uHo10WfUBn

— Jenni Evans (@itchybyte) February 22, 2017

#Nehawu march to parliament today, ahead of #Budgetspeech 2017 pic.twitter.com/Grz66A8I06

— Athi Mtongana (@Artii_M) February 22, 2017

Demonstrations opposing South Africa’s proposed nuclear power deal are also in full swing.

Protests have started in Cape Town outside parliament ahead of #Budget2017 #sabcnews R2K opposing the R1trillion nuclear deal pic.twitter.com/U1D6PYA9lA

— BlackBallPen (@dinanodamano) February 22, 2017

Six hours to go and #Budget2017 protests under way outside parliament – anti-nuke deal campaigners #PravinGordhan pic.twitter.com/HgEosv7B7N

— janet heard (@janetheard) February 22, 2017

#stopnucleardeal protestors at parly, says it’s a trillion Rand SA can’t afford #Budget2017 pic.twitter.com/3YVbtaFRHE

— Tania @ Al Jazeera (@taniapage) February 22, 2017

#Nehawu march now moving, en route to Parliament, to hand over a memorandum to finance Min. Gordhan #Budget2017 pic.twitter.com/qnkHDKuLN7

— Athi Mtongana (@Artii_M) February 22, 2017

On Twitter, the hashtag #HireAGraduate also began trending around 11am SAST, after pictures of protesting students from Eastern Cape’s Fort Hare University flooded social media.

RT- They’re expressing their frustration – Unemployment!There’s no violence just pure and peaceful demonstration #HireAGraduate #Budget2017 pic.twitter.com/ikDou3v3XI

— Siphamandla (@Speila) February 22, 2017

#HireAGraduate
24 years and doing my masters , where will i get 10 years experience ???? pic.twitter.com/QAc7vuPBD2

— #Hire_a_graduate (@anitamhlana) February 22, 2017

We have student loans to pay and lives to build #HireAGraduate

— NellyM (@nxanxar) February 22, 2017

Mom struggled to give us a Good Education ,Years Later, we stay home & watch her go to work still #HireAGraduate

— Thulaganyo (@MsToOLz) February 22, 2017

#OutSourcingMustFall — a hashtag that we’ve seen before on social media — also reemerged on Twitter today, with some protesters reportedly occupying Gauteng’s Provincial Legislature (housed in Johannesburg’s City Hall) this morning.

Outside Gauteng Legislature workers are about to occupy the building #Budget2017 #OutSourcingMustFall #EndOutSourcing pic.twitter.com/VWcoK1oWls

— OfficialFeesMustFall (@FeesMustFall2) February 22, 2017

Twitter users also voiced their opinions, hopes and fears regarding the budget speech’s possible additions and implications.

Six hours to go and #Budget2017 protests under way outside parliament – anti-nuke deal campaigners #PravinGordhan pic.twitter.com/HgEosv7B7N

— janet heard (@janetheard) February 22, 2017

#Budget2017 Wud love to see these 5 things prioritized. 1. Education 2. SME’s 3. Land Reorganization 4. Healthcare 5. Food Self-sufficiency

— Wandile Dumakude (@JustNdumiso) February 22, 2017

Same speech
Same lies#Budget2017

— Bongiwe (@Malia_Choc) February 22, 2017

#Budget2017 Since E-tolls haven’t yielded results how else can the road maintainance pocket be funded?

— I.G: Simphiwe Mavuso (@SimphiweMavuso) February 22, 2017

While #Budget2017 is currently the umbrella hashtag for the day’s events, expect to see a few more contentious issues and resultant hashtags surface on social media during and after Gordhan’s speech.

The budget speech itself will begin at 2pm today, and will be livestreamed on ParliamentTV. Watch it here.

Feature image: GovernmentZA via Flickr (CC 2.0, resized)