ANC demands answers as Alan Winde keeps US trip details private amid tariff squeeze

The ANC has demanded full disclosure from Western Cape Premier Alan Winde about a trip to the United States, pressing for details on who is funding the visit, who he is meeting and what the visit aims to achieve as US tariffs put pressure on the province’s farmers and exporters.

ANC calls for itinerary, costs and meeting details

The party’s provincial opposition leader, Khalid Sayed, said the ANC wanted Winde to publish his full itinerary and programme, name every government, political and business representative he met, and disclose who was travelling with him.

Sayed also demanded publication of the full cost of the visit and confirmation of whether any flights, accommodation or transport were being paid for or reimbursed by third parties.

“What business is Winde conducting in the US, on whose behalf, at whose expense, and with what intended benefit for the people of the Western Cape?”

Winde says meetings are with economic and investment partners

Winde has confirmed he was in the US but has not disclosed a full itinerary. His spokesperson, Regan Thaw, said the premier had travelled to meet “economic, trade, tourism and investment partners.” Thaw added:

“The US is the biggest source of foreign direct investment in the Western Cape, creating thousands of jobs across the province.”

Thaw said:

“Ensuring sustained economic growth and job creation is at the centre of this trip. We never disclose the Premier’s itinerary through the media.”

Winde said that if the ANC had questions about his trip, it should raise them through the normal parliamentary process.

Tariff context: US duty and exemptions

The United States has imposed a 12.5% tariff on most South African goods entering the country, with the US Trade Representative saying Pretoria had failed to ban and enforce a ban on imports made using forced labour.

National trade minister Parks Tau said in July that some goods the Western Cape sends to the US including oranges, limes, macadamia nuts and fruit juice were exempt. He also noted that cars, steel and aluminium already faced separate US tariffs. Tau said the national government would keep talking to the US with the aim of scrapping or cutting the tariff.

ANC warns of economic pressure on the province

Sayed said the tariffs had put pressure on agriculture, food processing and manufacturing in the Western Cape, affecting exports, investment and jobs, and demanded that Winde explain what discussions he was having on tariffs and how they affected the province.

The ANC warned it would use the mechanisms of the provincial legislature if Winde failed to give satisfactory answers.

“If Winde is in the US to defend the interests of Western Cape farmers, workers, exporters and businesses, he should have no difficulty putting his agenda and intended outcomes before the people of the province,”

Sayed said.