--- title: "VAT hike reversal process; takedown of Pagad; and why winter worsens colds" type: "NewsArticle" publisher: "Daily Maverick" site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za" section: "Articles" canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-05-03-vat-hike-reversal-process-takedown-of-pagad-and-why-winter-worsens-colds/" published: "2025-05-03T00:00:00" lang: "en-ZA" word_count: 788 --- # VAT hike reversal process; takedown of Pagad; and why winter worsens colds Published 3 May 2025, 02:00 SAST ## Content ## The Weekend Wrap What happens next in the Budget process, a takedown of Pagad, and why winter makes you more vulnerable to colds — all in this weekend’s wrap. ## [VAT hike reversal — what happens next in the Budget process?](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-04-29-vat-hike-reversal-what-happens-next-in-the-budget-process/) Budget 3.0 is in the works — more than two months after Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana’s first attempt at a Budget was supposed to have been tabled. By Victoria O’Regan ## [Petitions, statements and condemnation: Cape Town’s draft budget controversy explained](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-05-01-petitions-statements-and-condemnation-cape-towns-draft-budget-controversy-explained/) As the deadline looms for public comment on the City of Cape Town’s 2025/2026 draft budget, several questions have been raised over the proposed levies and increases. Daily Maverick explains what’s going on. By Suné Payne ## [Analysis — has the South African Reserve Bank gone rogue?](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-05-02-analysis-has-the-sa-reserve-bank-gone-rogue/) A form of ‘Trump derangement’ seems to have infected the South African Reserve Bank – at least when it comes to dealing with Steinhoff. By Sam Sole for amaBhungane ## The Weekend Wrap What happens next in the Budget process, a takedown of Pagad, and why winter makes you more vulnerable to colds — all in this weekend’s wrap. ![Budget 2025 is read by Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana](https://i0.wp.com/www.dailymaverick.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Enoch-Godongwana.jpg?fit=720%2C457&quality=89&ssl=1) ## [VAT hike reversal — what happens next in the Budget process?](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-04-29-vat-hike-reversal-what-happens-next-in-the-budget-process/) Budget 3.0 is in the works — more than two months after Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana’s first attempt at a Budget was supposed to have been tabled. By Victoria O’Regan ![municipal rates South African Property Owners’ Association](https://i0.wp.com/www.dailymaverick.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/BM-Ray-MuniRates-scaled.jpg?fit=720%2C360&quality=89&ssl=1) ## [Petitions, statements and condemnation: Cape Town’s draft budget controversy explained](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-05-01-petitions-statements-and-condemnation-cape-towns-draft-budget-controversy-explained/) As the deadline looms for public comment on the City of Cape Town’s 2025/2026 draft budget, several questions have been raised over the proposed levies and increases. Daily Maverick explains what’s going on. By Suné Payne ## [Analysis — has the South African Reserve Bank gone rogue?](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-05-02-analysis-has-the-sa-reserve-bank-gone-rogue/) A form of ‘Trump derangement’ seems to have infected the South African Reserve Bank – at least when it comes to dealing with Steinhoff. By Sam Sole for amaBhungane By Pieter-Louis Myburgh for Scorpio ![Reserve Bank SARB](https://i0.wp.com/www.dailymaverick.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/amaB-SARB-analysis.jpg?fit=720%2C389&quality=89&ssl=1) ![Image](https://i0.wp.com/www.dailymaverick.co.za/wp-content/uploads/Professor-Mark-Tomlinson.jpg?fit=720%2C720&quality=89&ssl=1) ## [The grotesque consumerism, greed and social impunity of those with extreme wealth](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/opinionista/2025-04-30-the-grotesque-consumerism-greed-and-social-impunity-of-those-with-extreme-wealth/) Donald Trump is trying to make the richest country that has ever existed even richer. The United States is so rich that one state, California, would be the fourth-richest country in the world, if it were a country. By Mark Tomlinson ## Cape Town’s accusation collision – JP Smith, gang boss accused Ralph Stanfield and the cops A raid on Cape Town’s city offices, a high-stakes investigation, and political accusations. Is it a criminal probe or a political attack? At the heart: murders with suspected ties to the notorious 28s gang. Daily Maverick’s Caryn Dolley explains. Reporting by: Caryn Dolley ## [The 2025 Masters Tournament — a lesson in self-leadership](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-04-29-the-2025-masters-tournament-a-lesson-in-self-leadership/) It wasn’t just about golf — it was about resilience, redemption and the weight of long-held dreams. By Bryan Hattingh ## [The takedown of a terror group destabilising SA’s new democracy](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-04-29-takedown-of-pagad-terror-group-destabilising-sas-new-democracy/) David Africa describes in a tell-all book how Pagad, the violent vigilante group, was taken down. By Marianne Thamm ![pagad takedown](https://i0.wp.com/www.dailymaverick.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/PAGAD-2-scaled.jpg?fit=720%2C364&quality=89&ssl=1) ## [Antibiotic resistance is putting South Africa’s newborns at risk](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-04-29-antibiotic-resistance-is-putting-south-africas-newborns-at-risk/) Experts say bacterial infections are responsible for more infant deaths than is generally recognised, and things may get worse as more of the bugs become resistant to commonly used antibiotics. Spotlight asked local experts about this growing threat to newborns. By Sue Segar ## [Revitalising Braamfontein: A vision for a safe, vibrant, and walkable urban oasis](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-04-29-revitalising-braamfontein-a-vision-for-a-safe-vibrant-and-walkable-urban-oasis/) Precinct manager Kelvin Tshabalala is not only a man with a plan, but one who can make it happen. By Bridget Hilton-Barber ## [Why winter makes you more vulnerable to colds – a public health nurse explains the science behind the season](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-04-30-why-winter-makes-you-more-vulnerable-to-colds-a-public-health-nurse-explains-the-science-behind-the-season/) Cold and flu viruses often circulate more in the fall and winter, but there are some time-tested strategies for avoiding them, such as vaccines, handwashing and staying active. By Libby Richards ## [From beaches to baboons, Shark Spotters brings holistic approach to human-wildlife conflict management](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-04-25-baboons-shark-spotters-human-wildlife-conflict/) For more than two decades, Shark Spotters has watched Cape Town’s ocean from above. Now, Shark Spotters, led by Sarah Waries, is looking to the mountains and suburbs of the southern Peninsula as it leads a new holistic approach to managing some of the city’s most controversial residents — baboons. By Kristin Engel ![Image](https://i0.wp.com/www.dailymaverick.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/2023_04_24_CROSSWORDS-GIF-TEST3-1.gif?fit=400%2C217&ssl=1) ## [Daily Mini Crossword Quickie](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/mini-crosswords/) [Play here.](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/mini-crosswords/) ## [A new age for the Victorian village on the edge of the universe](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-05-02-a-new-age-for-the-victorian-village-on-the-edge-of-the-universe/) The widening of the N1 at Matjiesfontein is evidence of space-age change coming to the old Victorian village. Life on ‘the other side of the tracks’ may never be the same again. Meanwhile, the lamb chops across the road are as good as ever. By Tony Jackman [Subscribe to First Thing](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/edit-my-profile/) to receive the Weekend Wrap in your inbox every Sunday morning. If you value the work our journalists do and want to support Daily Maverick, consider becoming a Maverick Insider. [Support DM](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/insider/)