FRIDAY, 26 MAY 2000 __

                PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
                                ____

The House met at 09:03.

The Chairperson of Committees took the Chair and requested members to observe a moment of silence for prayers or meditation.

ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS see col 000.

                          NOTICES OF MOTION

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Chairperson, I give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the ANC:

That the House -

(1) notes the spurious allegations by Pieter Venter that there is chaos in the ANC about the situation in Zimbabwe;

(2) refutes these allegations in the strongest terms;

(3) recognises that there is maximum unity in the ANC on the situation in Zimbabwe;

(4) reiterates the point made in our motion on Tuesday that violence and intimidation in Zimbabwe do not contribute to creating an atmosphere for free and fair elections;

(5) supports the statement of President Mbeki in the USA on Wednesday that it is wrong for anybody to prejudge the situation in Zimbabwe, as some have done; and

(6) calls on all Zimbabweans to unite in creating conditions for free and fair elections.

[Interjections.] [Applause.]

Mr J SELFE: Chairperson, I give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the DP:

That the House -

(1) notes -

   (a)  the resignation yesterday from the ANC of the head of its
       parliamentary media office, Pieter Venter;

   (b)  his statement that the assertion by President Mbeki and Mr Tony
       Yengeni that free and fair elections in Zimbabwe could be held,
       were ``preposterous and bizarre'';

   (c)  his view that President Mbeki's so-called quiet diplomacy had
       failed and to continue with it was ``immoral'';

   (d)  Mr Tony Yengeni's clumsy attempt yesterday and today in
       Parliament to suggest there was no division in the ANC on the
       Zimbabwe issue; and

   (e)  with approval Pieter Venter's remark that he admired the work
       the DP had done on Zimbabwe and its defence of human rights in
       the region; and   (2) resolves to congratulate Pieter Venter for his courage and
   conspicuous placing of principle above party and conviction above
   career.

[Applause.]

Mr M F CASSIM: Mr Chairman, I give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move:

That the House -

(1) notes that -

   (a)  in 1995 the IFP introduced a Private Member's Bill outlining
       measures for integrated waste management;

   (b)  the department was agreeable to pursuing this matter further and
       to incorporating the provisions therein; and

   (c)  a cleaner and more beautiful South Africa is inherently
       important to us and also for substantially growing our
       burgeoning tourism industry; and

(2) enthusiastically welcomes the moves being made by the Government to rid South Africa of the blight of discarded plastic bags and to deal with pollution and the entire waste stream in the most thorough and dedicated manner ever by any government in this country.

Mr A C NEL: Chairperson, I give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the ANC:

That the House -

(1) notes -

   (a)  Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai's indication
       yesterday that his party, the Movement for Democratic Change,
       was going to participate fully in next month's national
       election; and

   (b)  that this announcement was made after the opposition succeeded
       in its efforts to win more time to nominate candidates for the
       parliamentary elections;

(2) recognises that the election in Zimbabwe can be free and fair; and

(3) calls on all parties to work actively towards entrenching democracy in Zimbabwe.

[Applause.]

Adv A H GAUM: Chairperson, I give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the New NP:

That the House -

(1) notes the resignation of Mr Pieter Venter from his position as head of the ANC media liaison department in Parliament and from the ANC;

(2) congratulates Venter for living up to his conscience and being honest by not being willing to deny, at a press conference, Dr Pallo Jordan’s motion on Tuesday that ``under the present conditions of political violence, intimidation, brutality and thuggery in Zimbabwe, free and fair elections are, at best, unlikely to occur’’;

(3) notes the ANC’s endeavours to hide from the public the existence of serious divisions at the highest levels of the ANC’s leadership on the Zimbabwe issue;

(4) approves of Venter’s view that President Mbeki’s strategy of silent diplomacy had not been successful, a view clearly shared by many more ANC caucus members; and

(5) condones Dr Pallo Jordan’s view, as reflected in his motion, that free and fair elections in Zimbabwe are virtually impossible at present.

[Interjections.]

Mr T ABRAHAMS: Mr Chairman, I give notice that at the next sitting of the House I shall move on behalf of the UDM:

That the House -

(1) notes the explosive situation which is developing in Khayelitsha on the Cape Flats;

(2) recognises that there are several factors involved in the transport conflict that is growing in the area;

(3) expresses concern for the fate of commuters who live in Khayelitsha and who are the people most directly affected by any dissension in the ranks of those who offer commuter services;

(4) notes with dismay the ill-advised direction taken by the provincial authorities in planning to close taxi ranks; and

(5) calls on Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane or any other religious leader of equivalent standing to offer to serve as mediator in a conference representative of all the stakeholders in a bid to stave off the conflict that must ensue if any high-handed action is taken at this delicate moment.

[Time expired.]

Mrs M S MAINE: Chairperson, I give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the ANC:

That the House -

(1) notes that -

   (a)  an 11-month old baby was allegedly buried alive by his father;
       and

   (b)  five days after the toddler was born, his mother attempted to
       kill the boy by dropping him into a storm drain;

(2) recognises that the mother was sentenced and the father was arrested; and

(3) recommends that the court deals appropriately with this issue and sends a clear signal to the public that crimes in respect of innocent children will not be tolerated.

[Applause.]

Mr I S MFUNDISI: Chairperson, I give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the UCDP:

That the House -

(1) notes that -

   (a)  the Letsatsing Primary School in Carletonville, Gauteng, is set
       to be the first in the country to benefit from the introduction
       of financial education;

   (b)  the programme is meant to introduce pupils to the basics of
       finance, personal finance, savings and investment in line with
       outcomes-based education; and

   (c)  the strategic partnership between the Government and the private
       sector is bearing fruit;

(2) commends the Minister of Education for the Tirisano initiative and Standard Bank for shouldering the cost of this exercise and hopes other business entities will take a leaf out of their book; and

(3) congratulates the Letsatsing Primary School on this achievement.

Mr E S MAGASHULE: Chairperson, I give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the ANC:

That the House -

(1) notes that the world economy is moving towards the delivery of services and production of ideas, resulting in an increase of commerce conducted over the Internet;

(2) believes that in order to meet the new global economic challenges, the majority of our people should be able to participate in and enjoy the economic and social benefits of e-commerce; and

(3) congratulates the Minister and the department on their efforts to improve access to e-commerce through multi-purpose community centres, public information terminals and the mass roll-out of telephone connections by Telkom.

[Applause.]

Mnr T D LEE: Mnr die Voorsitter, ek gee hiermee kennis dat ek op die volgende sittingsdag namens die DP sal voorstel:

Dat die Huis -

(1) kennis neem -

   (a)  van klagtes van korrupsie, wanadministrasie en wanorde in die
       sake van die plaaslike regering van Saron in die Wes-Kaap,
       insluitende sake soos infrastruktuur, gemeenskapsontwikkeling en
       onderwys; en

   (b)  dat binnegevegte in die ANC, wat die Saronraad beheer, grootliks
       hierdie wanorde veroorsaak;

(2) die ANC tot orde roep oor hul onvermoë of onwilligheid om hul eie raadslede te verplig om die belange van die gemeenskap bo hul eie belange te plaas;

(3) die ANC daarvoor veroordeel dat hul raadslede totaal onverantwoordelik optree;

(4) die ANC vra om hul raadslede tot orde te roep; en

(5) die Minister vir Provinsiale en Plaaslike Regering vra om ‘n kommissie aan te stel om klagtes van korrupsie en wanadministrasie teen Saron se raadslede te ondersoek.

[Tussenwerpsels.] (Translation of Afrikaans notice of motion follows.)

[Mr T D LEE: Mr Chairperson, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day I shall move on behalf of the DP:

That the House -

(1) notes -

   (a)  complaints of corruption, maladministration and disorder in the
       affairs of the local government of Saron in the Western Cape,
       including issues such as infrastructure, community development
       and education; and

   (b)  that in-fighting in the ANC, which controls the Saron Council,
       is largely responsible for this disorder;

(2) calls the ANC to order in respect of their inability or unwillingness to compel their own councillors to place the interests of the community above their own interests;

(3) censures the ANC for the fact that their councillors are behaving totally irresponsibly;

(4) requests the ANC to call their councillors to order; and

(5) requests the Minister for Provincial and Local Government to appoint a commission to investigate charges of corruption and maladministration against the councillors of Saron.

[Interjections.]]

Mr A M MPONTSHANE: Chairperson, I give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the IFP:

That the House -

(1) notes that many progressive measures were introduced since 1994 to enable a healthier relationship to develop between parents and educators on the one hand and educators and learners on the other;

(2) is shocked and devastated by news that an educator at Qoqisizwe High School in Pietermaritzburg was beaten to death by a group of learners;

(3) calls on the Ministers of Education and of Safety and Security to act quickly and decisively to bring the culprits to book in order that this brutish behaviour is nipped in the bud.

Mrs R R JOEMAT: Chairperson, I give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the ANC: That the House -

(1) notes that -

   (a)  Golden Arrow buses blockaded the N2 road to Cape Town yesterday;
       and

   (b)  taxis recently also blockaded the national road to Cape Town;

(2) recognises that ordinary people become victims of such incidents as they are left without transport to their areas of employment; and

(3) calls on the Western Cape government to exercise tough measures in respect of those who break the law.

[Applause.]

Mnr F BEUKMAN: Mnr die Voorsitter, ek gee kennis dat ek op die volgende sittingsdag namens die Nuwe NP sal voorstel:

Dat die Huis -

(1) sy skok en afkeur uitspreek oor die koelbloedige moord Woensdag, 24 Mei 2000, op twee joernaliste, Kurt Schork van Reuters en Miguel Morena van Associated Press, naby Freetown deur rebelle van Sierra Leone;

(2) sy simpatie betuig met die naasbestaandes van die twee joernaliste;

(3) dit betreur dat persvryheid en die media se reg om te rapporteer deur geweld en moord op die kontinent van Afrika voortdurend geskend word;

(4) ‘n beroep op die OEA doen om toe te sien dat sy lidstate, met spesifieke verwysing na Zimbabwe, hulle daartoe verbind dat die reg van joernaliste om sonder dwang, geweld en intimidasie te rapporteer, erken en nagekom word;

(5) die Suid-Afrikaanse Regering versoek om hulle aktief binne die strukture van die VN en die OEA te beywer dat die reg van joernaliste om hul professionele taak te verrig, bevorder word; en

(6) erken dat geen renaissance in Afrika kan plaasvind sonder dat die reg van die media om ongehinderd hul werk te doen, gerespekteer word nie.

[Tyd verstreke.] (Translation of Afrikaans notice of motion follows.)

[Mr F BEUKMAN: Mr Chairperson, I give notice that on the next sitting day I shall move on behalf of the New NP:

That the House -

(1) expresses its shock at and condemnation of the cold-blooded murder on Wednesday, 24 May 2000, of two journalists, Kurt Schork of Reuters and Miguel Morena of Associated Press, near Freetown by Sierra Leone rebels;

(2) expresses its sympathy with the next of kin of the two journalists;

(3) regrets the fact that freedom of the press and the right of the media to report is constantly being violated by violence and murder on the continent of Africa;

(4) appeals to the OAU to see to it that its member states, with specific reference to Zimbabwe, commit themselves to recognising and honouring the right of journalists to report without coercion, violence and intimidation;

(5) requests the South African Government to strive actively within the structures of the UN and the OAU to ensure that the right of journalists to perform their professional task is promoted; and

(6) recognises that the African renaissance cannot take place if the right of the media to do their work unhindered is not respected.

[Time expired.]]

Ms S K MNUMZANA: Chairperson, I give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the ANC:

That the House - (1) notes that -

   (a)  annual roadworthy tests for all vehicles older than three years
       will become compulsory in 2002; and

   (b)  taxi and bus drivers will have to take a test every two years,
       including annual medical tests, to renew their professional
       drivers' permits;

(2) recognises that these initiatives are part of a broader set of tough new measures to instil respect for the law among our road users; and

(3) calls on the Department of Transport to proceed with its plans to make our roads safer for all South Africans.

[Applause.]

                 GOOD WISHES TO SA U/23 SOCCER TEAM

                         (Draft Resolution)

Mr J DURAND: Chairperson, I move without notice:

That the House -

(1) notes the South African under-23 soccer side, better known as the Amaglug-glug, will be playing against New Zealand at Vosloorus on Saturday, 27 May 2000;

(2) congratulates the team on their victory in Auckland last week, where they beat the Kiwis by 3 goals to 2;

(3) recognises that a victory on Saturday will secure the Amaglug-glug team qualification for the Sydney Olympics later this year;

(4) expresses its unanimous support for the team and wishes them all the best for the match; and

(5) is confident that a victory on Saturday will bode well for South Africa’s bid to host the 2006 World Cup Soccer Tournament, showing the rest of the world the depth of soccer talent present in South Africa as well as our love for the sport.

Agreed to.

           ELECTION OF PRESIDING OFFICER FOR DAY'S SITTING

                         (Draft Resolution)

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Chairperson, I move the draft resolution printed in my name on the Order Paper, as follows:

That the House elects Ms G L Mahlangu to preside during today’s sitting of the House when requested by a presiding officer to do so.

Agreed to.

                         APPROPRIATION BILL

Debate on Vote No 26 - Public Works:

The MINISTER OF PUBLIC WORKS: Chairperson, hon members, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, it was from these seats six years ago that, through planning, our dearest wish to uplift the oppressed and the poor, particularly the poorest of the poor, came fully alive.

As President Mbeki said, history and circumstance provided us with an opportunity to turn the dreams of millions of our people into reality. The words of Peter Drucker also come to mind, and I quote:

Long-range planning does not deal with future decisions, but with the future of present decisions.

It was from these halls of Parliament that we vowed to bring dignity to our people, and to declare war on ignorance, debilitating diseases, crime and poverty. We have used legislation and other tools to give hope to our people.

Like an African pot, my department has three legs and three core functions. Firstly, we must ensure that the wheels of Government continue to turn by providing office and specialist functional accommodation and manage state property. Secondly, we must contribute directly to the Government-wide efforts to eradicate poverty and promote rural development. Thirdly, we must develop and promote the construction industry to ensure transformation and international best practice.

Given the youth of our democracy, South Africa has made significant progress in society and in relationships within itself. Where there was once oppression and suffering, there is transformation. We are moving from conflict to co-operation. Like a mountain climber, we believe that each step we take forward will finally lead us to the top of the mountain.

Today I present hon members with the Public Works Budget Vote for 2000-01. I have tabled today the annual report for 1999, along with a memorandum outlining details of the state’s capital expenditure on fixed property assets, as programmed for 2000/2001 by the Department of Public Works. The budget allocation for the Department of Public Works for 2000/2001 is R4,5 billion. This is an increase of 9,44% on the budget of the previous year. We only spent - and hon members must note this carefully - about 6,89% of the budget on personnel, excluding transfer payments. So 93,11% of the departmental allocation is utilised for productive delivery. [Applause.]

The budget for the national public works programme has increased by 36,52%. Administration has only increased by 10,16%. On the MTEF allocation, the overall budget for Public Works is, indicated, as I have said, R4,451 billion. This includes provision for the capital works of other departments. The confirmation of the MTEF enhances delivery, in particular, for community-based Public Works programmes as the unique planning needs of rural development have, in the past, been delayed for up to six months in order to obtain buy-in from local communities.

I would not be talking about Public Works if I did not refer to the needs of our clients. At the level of the maintenance backlog, a simple exercise reveals that if we were to allocate the maintenance budget that we have, each building would receive less than R3 000 per annum. At the same time, every year buildings depreciate. We need to find lasting solutions to these problems. The greatest challenge for Public Works, however, is to offer quality service to clients timeously, cost-effectively and in a flexible manner.

We are proud then to announce that as of October or November, a new facilities management initiative will be launched with the private sector to obviate complaints such as a leaking roof, walls falling down and work not being done timeously. This initiative will change the way our official buildings are run. It is the biggest initiative ever to be undertaken by the Government. This initiative’s key objectives are to be more responsive and improve our sensitivity to our clients; bring the Department of Public Works’ standards closer to the private sector and to the forefront of outsourced facilities management; take the Department of Public Works back to its core function; reduce costs; provide clients with a healthy, safe and productive workplace; establish an accurate and reliable management information system; and address the maintenance backlog.

Four pilot projects have been identified. These are Parliament and all the parliamentary residences, the Union Buildings and Bryntirion Estate, the Pretoria Magistrates’ Court and the Hennie de Wet complex in Cape Town for the SA Police Service. These will soon be run by a specialised industry and, without exaggeration, the impact of the transaction is going to be enormous. This includes reducing our current maintenance backlog, creating jobs, strengthening further partnerships between the public and private sector, holistically integrating services, transferring the risk from Government to the private sector, and raising the image of Public Works to its clients and the public in general.

We already have pilot projects worth R50 million which will be done with the Departments of Correctional Services and Defence. We have actually pooled our financial resources and those of a personnel kind with the Department of Correctional Services towards achieving high degrees of efficiency in delivering maintenance and capital works services. We have also decided to reintroduce annual maintenance contracts for day-to-day maintenance services. Client departments would then be able to contact the relevant contractors with regard to minor maintenance problems covered in the contracts.

The Department of Public Works is also developing a government-wide strategic asset management system, a maintenance management framework and a capital investment framework. It is our intention to ensure that in three years’ time the systems will be in place. This will allow for a much more systematic approach to the management of the state asset portfolio because it would be binding on all spheres of government. To build client service excellence, we have decided to introduce help desks in our head office and regional offices which will give online assistance and information to client departments covering the entire spectrum of our services.

It is natural that our coalition Government should believe that the root cause of the problem is the Department of Public Works, and that if they were to decentralise, or, even more boldly, if they were to take over the management of their own affairs, the conditions would improve. However, I can assure hon members that it takes more than five years to turn around the neglect and the almost total lack of maintenance of the past in state- owned buildings. I do not know whether they did that because they knew that we would be coming into power.   We finalised the local asset register in mid-1999 when a total of 131 078 properties and buildings were added to our data. Now my department is busy investigating properties that were acquired or sold through clandestine means and is considering legal prosecution of the perpetrators. This will run in parallel with the compilation of the foreign assets register, which will begin in June 2000.

My department is currently addressing the distant history of Public Works as a usurper of land and property rights from various communities. During the 1999/2000 financial year we have made available more than 384 hectares of free land to local authorities to meet their local socioeconomic objectives and, in particular, for low-cost housing. I am sure that next week we will be giving more land.

By mid-2000 we intend to dispose of all redundant state-owned houses which at the moment are being illegally occupied and vandalised. Cabinet has already approved the first set of residential properties to be disposed of. This consists of eight houses and 45 erven. In addition to this, five large- scale properties, currently underutilised and redundant military bases, will be released into the broader economy, a programme which will be expanded every year for the next four years. This will include large-scale properties like Nasrec near Soweto, 100 hectares in Midrand, south of the Development Bank, Waterkloof Heights in Pretoria, Silvermine in Cape Town, and various other large-scale properties throughout the country.

Previously disadvantaged groups still do not participate in the property industry owing to the skewed property ownership of fixed property, as was the case during apartheid days. My department has embarked on an empowerment programmme in order to address these problems. After consultation with various parties, we will formulate an appropriate economic empowerment policy for the acquisition, management and disposal of state fixed property.

The medium-term target of this project, ie two years from now, is to have 20% acquisition, management and disposal of state fixed property and related services benefiting previously disadvantaged groups and individuals. The long-term target is to have 35% of the above property benefiting the same group. We are also going to look at individuals who, through proactive donation of state fixed property, will be able to support the land reform programme of the Department of Land Affairs and the delivery of housing and community facilities by various provinces and local authorities.

Coming to reimaging, many Government buildings played a significant role in South African history, and history did not stop with apartheid. Our duty to posterity is to ensure that full expression of our diversity is incorporated in our built environment. The new coat of arms shows clearly that we have unity in diversity. Other examples that come easily to mind are the Palace of Justice, where many of the significant trials of the freedom struggle took place, and Vlakplaas, a place which painfully reminds South Africans of the atrocities that humans are capable of inflicting on fellow human beings. Bringing new African elements to the finishings and furnishings of these buildings, together with clearly displayed historical information, will reflect part of our reimaging. We do not intend to change the design and architecture of the buildings.

The Department of Public Works obtained funding from the World Bank in order to start the military base conversion programme. A grant of R6 million was given for this purpose. The study of eleven unutilised bases will be completed during August 2000, and the study of six underutilised bases will be completed during October. The objective of this project is to ensure optimal utilisation of these bases. Benefits that will accrue from these projects include job creation, empowerment of the previously disadvantaged and the upliftment of communities through meeting relevant socioeconomic demands.

Currently, there are duplications, inconsistencies and inefficiencies in how we deal with property. We thus intend to put before Parliament by the end of the year a Bill which will deal with property-related issues.

Turning to the integrated rural developments, the community-based public works programme is located squarely in the Government’s integrated rural development programme. The community-based public works programme focuses on poverty alleviation, employment creation and provision of community infrastructure for rural people. The programme has produces 944 community assets in the past three financial years alone.

We have completed 277 out of 348 projects that were identified and budgeted for in the 1998-99 financial year. A total of 23 808 jobs were created, of which 2 196 are sustainable, in the targeted three provinces. The social impact which was made was that 40% of the people employed were women and 38% were youth. We still have to do better with regard to the disabled because we only have 1%.

In the 1999-2000 financial year we extended our focus and allocated funds to the Free State, Mpumalanga, North West, Gauteng, the Northern Province and the Western Cape. A number of special projects are currently being implemented in partnership with other stakeholders. These include Clean and Green, in partnership with SA Breweries, Youth Working Towards Environmental Accessibility, in partnership with the National Youth Commission, and the Office on the Status of the Disabled and the Local Industrial Parks, in partnership with the Department of Trade and Industry.

We have shifted focus on how we deal with some of the community-based public works projects by coming up with a new concept which will ensure that we create economic notes and that there is sustainability. Thus we are moving forward and creating what is called community production centres and multipurpose centres. The concept of community production centres is focused on rehabilitating existing disused productive assets in rural areas in order to promote production activities for the market and food security for a large number of beneficiaries.

Three pilot projects are being implemented at Lambasi in the Eastern Cape, Makhathini Flats in KwaZulu-Natal and Veeplaas in the Northern Province. We are targeting between 56 000 and 200 000 beneficiaries per area and we are targeting communities who have long been neglected and who must take issues into their hands and make sure that they are in charge of their own destiny.

Mabangakakazwa, mabazenzele izinto ngokwabo. [Kwaqhwatywa.] [They should not be spoon-fed; they should do things themselves. [Applause.]]

We also have multipurpose centres which, as the motion that was made by one hon member said, will provide a one-stop service centre within rural areas for Government services to communities and, where possible, for cultural and heritage tourist attraction. The idea is to provide easy access to service rendering facilities such as the Post Office, pension paypoints, crèches, libraries, health services, arts and craft centres and tourist activities. This will be done in partnership with both the public and the private sectors. Projects will be initiated at Lusikisiki in the Eastern Cape, Bushbuckridge in the Northern Province and Ladysmith in KwaZulu- Natal.

The community-based public works programme is a direct attack on poverty. We have concluded negotiations with the European Union for technical and financial support in order to enhance capacity to deliver at even a greater pace in rural communities.

Procurement is a sore point. We continue to champion the transformation of Government’s procurement policies and procedures in order to ensure that previously disadvantaged individuals and affirmable business enterprises increase their participation in the mainstream construction economy.

The results obtained from the implementation of targeted procurement resource goal specifications are a 20% participation by ABEs as prime contractors on contracts between R1 million and R2 million. Overall ABE participation has improved from 4% in 1995, and we are at the level of 30% with regard to those people who were previously not part of what we do by way of Government contracts.

We have established an emerging contractor development programme to roll out both the targeted procurement methodology and the ECDP with the public sector. An analysis of this demonstrate that prime contractors are not winning access contracts above the R2 million mark. We have every reason to believe that we can collectively create large-scale black construction capacity.

We are therefore introducing a strategic empowerment programme as an extension of the targeted procurement strategy. The strategic empowerment programme will build on the initiative and the experience of the nine projects which have been successfully executed by prime black contractors.

Kulwakhiwo lwenkundla kamantyi yaseBochabelo sanikezela ngeshumi lezigidi zeerandi kwikontraki ezimnyama yaye ziqhuba kakuhle. [We voted R10 million towards contracting black building contractors for the building of the magistrates’ court at Bochabelo, and they are doing very well.]

At Kokstad we put up a R200 million project and it was done equally well. We believe that with encouragement and the bringing of these people into the mainstream of the industry, we shall begin to see our people showing their mark and showing that South Africa is made up of many a diverse people.

Let us now come to the construction industry. The construction industry is a national asset which is central to the delivery of infrastructure and the process of renewal in Southern Africa. Its full potential has yet to be realised. A number of structural problems and constraints retard the industry’s progress and require focused attention.

This year the Department of Public Works is placing legislation before Parliament that will establish a national agenda for reconstruction, growth and development of the construction industry. The first set of legislation regulates the built environment. The proposed legislation will establish an overarching council for the built environment professions, re-enact the laws on existing councils and establish new councils for the two professions, namely project and construction management and landscape architects.

The Portfolio Committee on Public Works will conduct public hearings on the proposed legislation on 6 and 7 June. Unlocking the potential of the construction industry as a whole must engage not only the professions, but also all service providers and public and private sector clients and investors who have a significant role to play in shaping the performance of this industry. For this reason, the department has published a draft Bill in order to establish a construction industry development board which will implement a national industry development strategy.

The construction industry development board must be a catalyst for change, promoting best practice by service providers and clients alike. It must ensure that our industry grows rapidly, that it reflects and delivers the aspirations of all South Africans, that it is increasingly representative, and embraces a culture of continuous innovation, and that it prospers in the regional and global economy. A framework plan for the CIDB, plans for a register of contractors and a business plan for the establishment of a new construction education and training authority are some of the key outputs achieved through a process of extensive industry participation.

Talking about the work of the Department of Public Works without pointing out its predisposition to corruption would be an oversight. Together with the provincial MECs for public works, we have adopted a five-point plan to address corruption in our area of work. We have made significant progress in identifying fraudsters and corrupt contractors and officials in the department. A number of arrests have been made and officials suspended. In turn, this has led to no less than 15 contractors being blacklisted so that they do not access work from other Government departments as well. A conference against corruption is planned for October this year which all departments of public works, nationally and provincially, will be expected to attend.

In conclusion, my department works with many players in the construction industry, property industry and rural communities. I would like to thank all those who have gone beyond the call of duty in the partnership we are building. I would, at this stage, like to thank Deputy Minister Buyi Nzimande for her support and competent contribution, and her hard work and singular ability to nail both problems and solutions head-on, which can sometimes be difficult. I thank her. [Applause.]

I also wish to thank my new team under the leadership of Tami Sokutu, senior managers and staff of the Department of Public Works, for their support and willingness to go the extra mile. I am pleased to mention that 11 months ago we had no top management in the department. It was like Hollywood - everyone was acting. [Interjections.] But I am pleased to mention that we now have top management in the department. We have a full complement of DDGs and we continue to build capacity in key areas of the department. We need, however, to tighten our financial controls. Plans are in place to improve on all of the areas which gave displeasure to the Auditor-General in his 1998-99 financial report.

Lastly, a special word of thanks to the staff in the Ministry for the long hours they sometimes have to work in order for us to achieve our goals. Thanks to my small family of a son, a daughter and four grandchildren for sparing me so I can be of service to the nation. [Applause.]

Mr J H MOMBERG: Especially the grandchildren!

Chief M W HLENGWA: Mr Chairperson and hon members of Parliament, first of all I wish to congratulate the hon the Minister Ms S Sigcau on her appointment to one of the most important departments, and that is the Department of Public Works. We wish the princess well. I also congratulate the Deputy Minister, Mrs B M Nzimande, on her second appointment. It is a known fact that the members of the executive are charged with the responsibility of discharging the business of government. Therefore business must be dealt with in a businesslike fashion. The Department of Public Works has been able to discharge its business because it understands that management is an organisational system or order designed for effective utilisation of human, material and financial resources in order to achieve preset objectives.

To this end, the hon the Minister has already indicated that the department facilitates delivery by other Government departments and manages the largest property portfolio in the southern hemisphere. The question of development delivery by the Department of Public Works is one of the core functions at this point in time, because we still have pockets of poverty in our communities and those pockets need to be alleviated. How? The question is being responded to by the programmes of Public Works that are in place: the national public works programme, the community-based public works programme and the community production centres.

The Department of Public Works has policies just as any other portfolio would be expected to have. I want to assure hon members of this House that there is always room for improvement, and I expect my colleagues who are going to speak to contribute towards the achievement of this goal.

My party, the IFP, is of the view that policy formulation is an exercise which is in constant evolution and which does not lend itself to a once-and- forever statement. However, the vision which is underpinned by the policies is one which is inspired and motivated through interactions that are meant to last for as long as integrity, freedom, democracy, cultural diversity, social security and economic prosperity remain matters of concern for the South African people.

I find it encouraging to work with the current members of the Portfolio committee on Public Works. Secondly, I would be failing in my duty if I did not emphasise the good working relationship we have with the officials of the department headed by Mr T Sokutu, in his capacity as director-general.

The portfolio committee comprises 15 members from different political parties, and our role is that of oversight, consideration of legislation, public hearings, fact-finding missions, etc. Flowing from what I have just said, the portfolio committee, employing its collective wisdom, undertook visits to three provinces during March 2000. I refer to the North West, Mpumalanga and the Northern Province. The aim of the visits was to assess the progress of projects and to meet and interact with role-players and communities that are receiving delivery. Let me not dwell on this topic since members are going to elaborate on the successes that were achieved. The report on those visits has been adopted by the portfolio committee.

I wish to place on record that we applaud the Department of Public Works for having stipulated in its community-based public works document the role played by traditional leaders - amakhosi - when it comes to the allocation of project sites in areas under their jurisdiction. This is an area which need not be tampered with - the status quo must prevail.

The Department of Public Works cannot afford to be seen as Father Christmas. Therefore a bottom-up approach will be of the essence in this regard, and the IFP believes that the reconstruction and social development policy will bring about social equity through the development and empowerment of human resources, optimisation of community participation in social development, and integration of the Reconstruction and Development Programme with social development and steady sustainable economic growth. We need to develop the mind-set of communities so that they will own projects and reduce the high rate of vandalism.

It is this department and this department alone that is able to utilise its resources and expertise to best look after and maintain the assets of our Government from one central point and be held accountable. Spreading this responsibility will be a step in the wrong direction.

I shall only hint at the state of the parliamentary villages. I have no intention to elaborate, save to applaud hon members for their patience and understanding. The regional office in Cape Town made a presentation to the portfolio committee and expressed its concern and preparedness to deal with this matter. The other point that was raised was the question of security, criminal elements and vandalism. This is a matter which we decided, as the portfolio committee, to take up with the Department of Safety and Security.

The portfolio committee has received a number of pieces of legislation to consider and these relate to the engineering professions. Public hearings have been scheduled in this regard. Finally, this department is a Government department representing Parliament, and I suggest that parties assist with constructive suggestions so as to improve the lives of the South African population and the policies of Government.

I want to conclude by saying that we welcome the increase in respect of this Vote, but it can never be sufficient, in the sense that it cannot satisfy the needs of the people out there. Secondly, any department such as this one can have roll-overs which are not deliberate, since we are aware that the implementers at grass-roots level are not yet gurus in this field.

I want to thank the chair of chairs, the hon Mr M J Mahlangu, for his motivation, our parliamentary officer Mr S Muanza, the committee section, the portfolio committee secretary, and, finally, the office of the Chief State Law Adviser for keeping us up to date about the process of legislation. The budget is supported. It is a justifiable thing to do. [Applause.] Mr K MOONSAMY: Comrade Chair, hon Ministers, hon members and comrades, before I make my statement, I wish to make a categorical statement that every decent-minded South African will acknowledge that the ANC Government has made great strides in the transformation of our country over the past six years. [Applause.] Secondly, the transformation has impacted on every aspect of our new society and democracy. Thirdly, the ravages caused by apartheid colonialism cannot be overcome in a short period of time. We should bear this in mind when we look at the future of South Africa. Now to the text of my statement.

The key challenges facing Government today are the redistribution of wealth in our country, ensuring sustainable job creation and a massive programme towards the eradication of poverty. These remain the foundations upon which our RDP was grounded. The Department of Public Works has a major responsibility in respect of achieving these objectives, on the one hand through the community-based public works programme, and on the other hand through the vehicle of affirmative procurement as it relates to the property and construction industries.

Public works initiatives form a comprehensive strategy to integrate previously disadvantaged individuals into the mainstream economy, working closely with construction and property industries, promote the creation of sustainable future employment through empowerment and training on infrastructure provision, maintenance, management and operation; stimulating economic activity and growth, particularly in rural areas; and contributing to social cohesion and development with the particular focus on women, the youth, the disabled and rural communities.

The construction industry development programme is an example of Public Works’ dedication. The White Paper for the construction industry, published in 1999, has equipped both Government and industry with a clear direction towards sustainable growth, development, transformation and enhanced delivery. The establishment and implementation of the emerging contractor development programme, yielding the results the hon the Minister has referred to, is encouraging and we should support the further roll-out of this programme.

Internationally public works programmes have been used extensively in the reconstruction of post-war Europe to provide employment, and social and economic infrastructure. This played a significant role in the reconstruction and economic revival of Europe. In the USA public works programmes were implemented during the Great Depression to provide short- term, and in some instances, long-term employment. Japan, in its own reconstruction after the war, also used public works programmes.

The construction industry remains a key player in the reconstruction of South Africa. Therefore the transformation of this industry is also key to attaining our Government’s stated objectives. Various aspects of this transformation are co-ordinated through focus groups where all stakeholders are represented. It includes a framework plan for the establishment of the construction industry development board, a national registrar of contractors, enhanced public delivery capacity, and construction education and training.

Legislation on the establishment of an overarching council for the building environment professions is in the pipeline. This council will deal with matters impacting on the building environment and will act as a vehicle of communication between Government and the professions. The council will manage co-ordination between the professions to support matters of national importance such as resource utilisation, human resource development, public safety, health and the environment. It will enable the recognition of new professions and will promote registration of different categories within the profession, effectively opening up the professions to wider access.

We see the establishment of the construction industry development board as a permanent vehicle to drive a common strategy for industry development. Critical to its success in promoting industry competitiveness will be its ability to retain and focus on sustainable customer satisfaction as a central driver of industry growth and development. A draft Bill to regulate each of the six building environment professions and establish a council for each of these professions will be subject to public hearings on 6 and 7 June 2000, after which it will be tabled. These six Bills are similar in nature and vary only to accommodate the specifics of each profession.

Considering the backlog in maintenance on state-owned buildings of more than R10 billion, the further need for infrastructure development and the emphasis we need to place on public-private partnerships, it is imperative that Public Works be adequately funded and this continued interaction enhanced. I am in support of the Public Works Vote and wish to congratulate the Minister and her team on their accomplishments thus far. We all believe in being at work, working together and building a better life for all. [Applause.]

Mr S E OPPERMAN: Mr Chairperson, the hon the Minister stated on 20 January 2000 that she had inherited a situation, obviously from the previous Minister, where the Standing Committee on Public Accounts concluded that Public Works was one of the three worst Government departments in terms of financial accountability.

This situation, as spelled out by the hon the Minister, was confirmed and reflected in some of the comments by the Auditor-General in his report for the year ending 31 March 1999. Amongst other things, he said that basic principles of financial management were not evident, internal control procedures and policies were not adhered to, there was overpayment of contracts and there was non-compliance with Treasury instructions, etc. The lack of adequately skilled people to do the required work is mentioned as one of the most important reasons for the unacceptable situation. Is dit te veel gevra om aan so ‘n basiese beginsel te voldoen? Die Minister bevestig ook in dieselfde toespraak haar voorneme om te verseker dat haar departement gesonde besigheidsbeginsels toepas, dat daar wat haar betref geen heilige koeie sal wees nie, dat sy indringende vrae sal stel indien enige aspek of situasie dit genoodsaak, dat sy openlik en eerlik enige medianavrae sal hanteer. So ‘n gesindheid, alhoewel dit van enige eerbare en verantwoordelike persoon verwag word, word verwelkom.

Die versekering wat ons ontvang het dat strenger maatreëls in plek is en die verwysing na die suksesse van die bedrog- en korrupsie-ondersoekeenheid in die dokument wat ons as voorbereiding vir hierdie debat ontvang het, verdien ook akklamasie. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraphs follows.)

[Is it asking too much to comply with such a basic principle? In the same speech the Minister also confirmed her intention to ensure that her department would apply sound business principles, that, as far as she was concerned, there would be no sacred cows, that she would ask incisive questions if any aspect or situation were to necessitate this, that she would be dealing openly and honestly with any enquiries from the media. An attitude such as this, although to be expected of any honourable and responsible person, is welcomed.

The assurance we received that stricter measures are in place, and the reference to the successes of the fraud and corruption investigation unit in the document we received in preparation for this debate, are also worthy of acclaim.]

Yesterday the Minister of Finance said that we must spend every cent wisely.

Daarom hoop ons dat ‘n man soos Trytsman, wat die belastingbetalers van Suid-Afrika ‘n skandalige bedrag van R558 000 vir ses weke se ondersoekwerk gekos het, nie deel van so ‘n ondersoekspan is nie. Dit is R13 000 per dag. Dit is heeltemal onaanvaarbaar. Dit is duidelik dat hierdie man betaal is om ook iemand anders te betaal, en dit sal interessant wees om die vloei van fondse uit sy rekening te moniteer. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraph follows.)

[For this reason we hope that a man like Trytsman, who cost the taxpayers of South Africa an outrageous R558 000 for an investigation lasting six weeks, will not be part of such an investigation team. That is R13 000 per day. It is totally unacceptable. It is evident that this man was paid to pay someone else as well, and it would be interesting to monitor the flow of funds from his account.]

Although there are still many shortcomings and areas that need serious attention and improvement, there can be no doubt that the Department of Public Works has contributed significantly to assisting with the alleviation of poverty through programmes in some rural areas of some of the provinces. We just hope that it will help to create the necessary environment for the private sector and big business to get involved in job creation.

Ons vertrou dat die armoedeverligting- en werkskeppingsprojekte wat aanvanklik in drie provinsies begin is, uiteindelik betekenisvol na al nege provinsies uitgebrei sal word sodat daar ook aan mense in dele soos die Klein Karoo en aan die karretjiemense van die Groot Karoo geleenthede en nuwe hoop en betekenis gegee kan word. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraph follows.)

[We trust that the projects for poverty relief and job creation which have been started initially in three provinces, will eventually be extended in a meaningful way to all nine provinces, so that opportunities and new hope and meaning can eventually be given to people in areas like the Little Karoo and to the ``karretjiemense’’ [donkey-cart people] of the Great Karoo.]

We do understand the findings of the pre-implementation task team, but there are pockets of serious poverty in every province.

Ons glo die Minister moes ten minste van die begin af proporsioneel fondse aan al nege provinsies toegeken het. Die klem val op die nood in landelike gebiede en dit is belangrik, maar ons mag nie die ernstige behoefte in stedelike gebiede onderskat nie. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraph follows.)

[We believe the Minister should at least have allocated proportional funds to all nine the provinces right from the start. The emphasis is on the need in rural areas, and that is important, but we dare not underestimate the serious penury in urban areas.]

More projects initiated through the … [Time expired.] Mr B A RADEBE: Mr Chairperson, hon Minister, comrades and compatriots, I support the Vote on Public Works. The reason I do that is that when one looks at a key mandate of the department, one can see that it is to ensure that our Government invests in properties that will enable other departments to deliver their mandates efficiently, cost-effectively and on appropriate premises. The other aspect of the Department of Public Works’ key mandate is to be the custodian of the state’s fixed properties, ensuring that the state receives good social returns and good financial returns from its property portfolio.

But I would like to ask a question. Has the state received good financial returns from its property portfolio? Prior to 1994, that was not the case. Why was that so? It is because one finds that, as happened overseas, in places such as New York, the properties were bought at prime rates but were sold for peanuts. The properties and farms which belonged to the state were given to families and friends. So one can see that there was rot in this department. It is not true that the Minister inherited the problems in this department from the previous Minister of Public Works. Actually, the problems started occurring from the time apartheid was institutionalised in 1948. So what did this department do to arrest this rot and eliminate it? It did not just sit back. It compiled an assets register, which enabled the department to add thousands of properties and buildings to its database. Next year, the department will compile an assets register for all state- owned property abroad. Parallel to this, an investigation of properties that were acquired or sold through clandestine means will be carried out. Let those people who, at this point in time, are still holding on to state property be warned that the anticorruption unit of the Government, the Scorpions, will take no prisoners when it returns state property to the Government.

Again, what is the Government doing in order to solve the other problems facing this department? The department is in the process of formulating a property Act. This Act will enable the department to provide leadership and direction on how various organs of the state and spheres of Government that deal with its property should approach the acquisition, management and disposal of fixed property. In order to address duplication, inconsistencies and inefficiencies in the acquisition, management and disposal of the state’s fixed assets by different organs of state, Public Works is formulating an overarching property Act. The first phase is the mobilisation of the national and provincial stakeholders for the initiation of the property Act.

Research on best international practice regarding the key aspects of the property Act is currently taking place. Legislation such as the Expropriation Act, State Land Disposal Act of 1961, the Land Affairs Act of 1987 and other key pieces of legislation will be reviewed and aligned to the requirements and priorities of the new democratic order and Constitution.

No decisions should be taken to keep or sell any property in Government ownership before the state knows exactly what it owns and what it needs. Now that the asset register is completed, the department is embarking on a drive to unlock the latent value of the state’s fixed properties, both those that have a current and future use, as well as those that are no longer required by the state. As the Financial Mail of 12 May 2000 stated:

The state property portfolio is an asset that could create billions in recurring income, from rents and new developments, which GDP helps develop communities, provide capital wealth creation and reinvigorate city centres, and much more.

It is laudable that the department will start the process of unloading the value of this massive portfolio, firstly, by the disposal of all redundant state-owned houses and residential sites, starting two weeks from now. In the longer term, more state-owned properties and redundant military bases will be released into the broader economy, as the Minister has indicated.

It is encouraging to note that although the department will be disposing of these properties, Public Works has not forgotten that it should also ensure that land reform and land restitution are accommodated within the process of disposing properties in its custody. The Congress of the People, in 1955, declared that: ``The land belongs to all who live on it.’’

Land reform is a key policy of our Government and is a key mandate of the Department of Land Affairs. However, because the Department of Public Works is the largest landowner in the southern hemisphere, its role in supporting land reform is crucial. I am proud to note that thousands of hectares have been made available by Public Works to facilitate the speedy settlement of many people under the land reform and land restitution initiatives, such as in Schoemansdrift in the Northern Cape and at Maluleke in the Kruger National Park, etc.

In the same vein, the department has, in the recent past, also made available various properties for social projects and low-income housing, such as the Westlake development in Cape Town. Skewed ownership of fixed property and lack of participation in the property industry by previously disadvantaged groups in South Africa still remains as it was during apartheid days. The department has made a positive move by embarking on an empowerment programme to address this state of affairs, and we might have seen, in various newspapers during March this year, the invitation to the public to make inputs to inform this empowerment process to ensure that the people govern.

The Department of Public Works, in partnership with the Department of Finance, is looking at introducing more accountability in the handling of state property by all those who occupy it. Building blocks for the implementation of the user-pays initiative will be introduced. This initiative is aimed at ensuring that occupants in state buildings begin to pay a rental of sorts. The department has also put forward a proposal that a portion of the money that is derived from the sale of these properties be channelled into the maintenance and upgrading of the state’s fixed assets, which are currently in a state of disrepair.

This Government has done well. This department has done well. [Applause.]

Mnr A S VAN DER MERWE: Mnr die Voorsitter, agb Minister, agb Adjunkminister en kollegas, ek wil graag met die agb Minister oor een ding saamstem. Soos sy in haar vyfjaarplan vermeld het, is haar portefeulje groot en kompleks. Dit blyk ook dat sy van haar voorganger ‘n taamlik swak bestuurde Departement van Openbare Werke ontvang het. Dit bly vir my ironies dat die agb Ministers wat met die meeste arrogansie in die Raad optree se departemente baie keer die swakste bestuur word.

Die agb Minister en haar adjunk het egter gou die personeelsituasie getakel en die meeste senior poste is gevul. Ek wil ook vir haar dankie sê vir wat sy vanmôre hier aangekondig het. Dit gee ‘n mens moed dat sy haar taak met erns aanpak om hierdie swak bestuurde departement reg te ruk. Van die kant van die Nuwe NP wil ons mnr Thami Sokutu en sy adjunkdirekteur-generaal, me Lydia Bici, baie sterkte toewens met hulle taak. Hulle moet hierdie derde swaksbestuurde departement regruk, en ons hoop hulle sal die nodige resultate spoedig behaal.

Hoewel ek simpatie het met die agb Minister se probleme, sal ek my plig versuim as ek haar nie daaraan herinner nie dat die wyse waarop die huidige Regering vanaf 1994 regstellende optrede toegepas het, al hulle kundigheid in die staatsmasjienerie verdryf het. Die Nuwe NP is volkome ten gunste van regstellende optrede. Daar is egter heelwat maniere om regstellende optrede met dieselfde spoed toe te pas sonder om kundigheid prys te gee. Dit is baie nodig dat ons Suid-Afrika eerste stel en nie politieke doelwitte alleen vooropstel nie.

Die agb Minister het vanoggend na ‘n saak verwys, en ek wil dit net noem, wat by verskeie geleenthede in hierdie Huis geopper word. Op ‘n besoek van die Portefeuljekomitee oor Grondsake drie jaar gelede aan Kenia het die leier van die opposisie in Kenia die volgende aan die portefeuljekomitee gesê:

Julle in Suid-Afrika het die wonderlikste infrastruktuur in Afrika ontvang. Hou dit asseblief in stand. Moenie doen wat ons in Kenia gedoen het nie.

Dit klink vir my lynreg in teenstelling met die beeld wat deur die huidige Regering en dikwels die amptenare voorgehou word oor die swak Suid-Afrika wat hulle van die vorige regering geërf het. Kenia was byvoorbeeld ‘n landbou-uitvoerland, en vandag is dit ‘n landbou-invoerland. Ons moet kennis neem daarvan. Ek pleit by die agb Minister: laat ons ons land se bates ten minste in stand hou.

Sy het vanoggend ‘n paar mooi dinge aangekondig om daardie agterstand te probeer uitwis. Ons verwelkom dan ook die voorneme van die agb Minister om die agterstand in die instandhouding van geboue in die oorblywende vier jaar voor die volgende verkiesing met 25% te verminder. Die huidige agterstand beloop R10 miljard. In 2004 behoort dit dus R7,5 miljard te wees. Verstaan ek dit reg, of gaan hierdie agterstand net vergroot ten spyte van die 25%-besteding?

Die Nuwe NP verwelkom ook die agb Minister se aankondiging oor die verkoop van staatsgeboue en -grond. Indien dit uitgedruk kan word as ‘n persentasie van die totale randwaarde van die portefeulje sal dit baie meer sinvol wees. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraphs follows.)

[Mr A S VAN DER MERWE: Mr Chairperson, hon Minister, hon Deputy Minister and colleagues, I would like to agree with the hon the Minister on one thing. As she stated in her five-year plan, her portfolio is large and complex. It is also apparent that she inherited a fairly poorly managed Department of Public Works from her predecessor. It remains ironic to me that the departments whose hon Ministers behave with the most arrogance in the House are very often the most poorly managed.

However, the hon the Minister and her deputy tackled the staff situation quickly and most senior posts have been filled. I would also like to thank her for what she announced here this morning. It gives one hope that she is seriously tackling her task to get this poorly managed department in order. On behalf of the New NP we want to wish Mr Thami Sokutu and his deputy director-general, Ms Lydia Bici, everything of the best in their task. They must get this third most poorly managed department in order, and we hope that they will achieve the necessary results quickly.

Although I sympathise with the hon the Minister’s problems, I would be failing in my duty if I did not remind her that the manner in which the current Government has implemented affirmative action since 1994 has driven away all the expertise in the state machinery. The New NP is fully in favour of affirmative action. However, there are a number of ways to implement affirmative action at the same rate without sacrificing expertise. It is essential that we put South Africa first and do not only prioritise political objectives.

This morning the hon the Minister referred to a matter, and I would just like to mention it, which is raised on various occasions in this House. On a visit by the Portfolio Committee on Land Affairs to Kenya three years ago, the leader of the opposition in Kenya said the following to the portfolio committee.

You in South Africa have received the most wonderful infrastructure in Africa. Please maintain it. Do not do what we did in Kenya.

To me this appears to be in direct contrast with the image which is presented by the current Government and frequently by the officials as regards the poor South Africa which they inherited from the former government. For example, Kenya was a country that exported agricultural products, and today it is a country that imports agricultural products. We must take note of this. I appeal to the hon the Minister: Let us at least maintain our country’s assets.

This morning she announced a few good things to attempt to eradicate that backlog. We also welcome the intention of the hon the Minister to reduce the backlog in the maintenance of buildings by 25% in the remaining four years before the next election. The current backlog amounts to R10 billion. In 2004 it therefore ought to be R7,5 billion. Am I understanding this correctly, or is this backlog simply going to increase despite the 25% expenditure?

The New NP also welcomes the hon the Minister’s announcement about the sale of state-owned buildings and land. If this could be expressed as a percentage of the total rand value of the portfolio, it would be a great deal more meaningful.]

It seems more and more as if the ANC and its allies, namely the trade unions in South Africa, look to the Government to create jobs. This also seems to be a central feature of a department such as Public Works, which focuses on once-off employment projects that are unsustainable in the long run.

Government projects, while creating employment in the long term, invariably lead to less work and inefficient enterprises that are ultimately closed down or privatised. As a result of the public works programme, capital is taken out of the hands of the private sector, which has proved to be a more efficient indicator of economic resources, capital and labour than the state. Jobs created by such Government programmes detract from the fact that jobs were lost in the private sector, and that such jobs would have been part of a profit-making and taxpaying enterprise which does not rely on taxpayers to subsidise it.

It is, therefore, shocking to take note of the figures contained in the Gazette, which show that R226 million, allocated as a presidential Jobs Summit grant, was not spent. It is high time that the Government leaves the resources in the hands of the private sector, which is the only sector with the potential to create jobs in South Africa.

Die Nuwe NP stem saam met die Minister dat die departement se bestuur opgeknap moet word. Ons as party is ook bly daar is reeds opdrag gegee om ‘n bateregister vir oorsese geboue saam te stel.

Ons wil die Minister versoek om ook in dié geval van die sakewêreld se hulp gebruik te maak. Die Minister het vanoggend na die vennootskap met die sakewêreld verwys en ons is dankbaar dat sy dié vennootskap gaan benut om alle bates sinvol te verkoop. Indien dit nie gedoen word nie, gaan die agterstand met instandhouding buite beheer toeneem. Sulke kundigheid en vennootskappe sal die koste van duur konsultante bespaar.

Die Nuwe NP steun die beginsel om, deur middel van staatsgeboue, ons verskeidenheid gemeenskappe en kulture tot hul reg te laat kom. Ek sien die Parlementsgeboue val ook onder die Minister. Ek wil die Minister graag vra of dit beteken dat die Parlement nie gaan verskuif nie? Ek wil ook pleit dat die statigheid van die Unie-gebou en die Parlement nie geskaad sal word nie. [Tussenwerpsels.] Ek wil die agb Minister graag geluk wens met die pragtige werk wat die Erfenis Batebestuurafdeling verrig. Dit strek ons land tot eer. Kan daar nie êrens ‘n geldjie afgeknyp word om sy mannekrag te versterk nie?

Dit het tyd geword om die vorige presidente, naamlik President Mandela en President De Klerk, in ons Parlement te vereer vir die besonderse bydrae wat hulle gelewer het om die Nuwe Suid-Afrika tot stand te bring. [Tussenwerpsels.] (Translation of Afrikaans paragraphs follows.)

[The New NP agrees with the Minister that the management of the department must be improved. We as a party are also glad that instructions has already been issued to compile an assets register for foreign buildings.

We want to request the Minister also in this case to make use of the assistance of the business world. This morning the Minister referred to the partnership with the business world and we are grateful that she is going to utilise this partnership to sell all assets meaningfully. If this is not done, the backlog with regard to maintenance is going to increase out of control. Such expertise and partnerships will save the cost of expensive consultants.

The New NP supports the principle, by way of state buildings, to allow our diversity of communities and cultures to come into their own. I see that the parliamentary complex also falls under the Minister. I would like to ask the Minister whether this means that Parliament is not going to move.

I also want to appeal that the dignity of the Union Buildings and Parliament will not be harmed. [Interjections.] I would like to congratulate the Minister on the wonderful work done by the Heritage Asset Management section. It does our country credit. Is there no way to find a bit of money to increase its manpower?

The time has come to honour the former presidents, namely President Mandela and President De Klerk, in our Parliament for the exceptional contributions which they made to bring about the new South Africa. [Interjections.]]

Ms O R KASIENYANE: Chairperson, hon Minister and colleagues, the Department of Public Works is a catalyst in the development of our people’s skills and quality of life in the rural areas.

I support the Budget Vote, as this department has a crucial role to play in the upliftment and development of the people of South Africa, especially women in rural areas. Through the community programmes of the Department of Public Works, the department has created infrastructure and job opportunities for many people in the three provinces targeted for the implementation and fast-tracking of this programme. I realise that the department focuses on these areas to give immediate relief to the poorest of the poor and to ensure that a definite impact is made on the local economy. However, it was heart-warming to hear this morning that the programme will also be extended to other provinces.

The Department of Public Works has taken challenges and turned it into opportunities. It is my frank belief that this department is making an impact on the lives of our people. However, it is important that the department move even faster, because the long legacy of neglected development in the rural areas needs to be addressed. We need only look at the many villages and dwellings that hardly have any access roads, to appreciate the need. This department is an excellent vehicle to realise the dream of the President - ie that of integrated development - as it deals with the full spectrum of Government infrastructure and has devised mechanisms to obtain the participation of communities in their delivery.

Ka Setswana ra re: Tloga, tloga e tloga gale, modisa wa dinku o tswa natso.'' Re bone, re a bona. Lefapha le, le tsamaya mmogo le batho. [There is a Setswana saying which goes:Tloga, tloga e tloga gale, modisa wa dinku o tswa natso.’’ [A friend in need is a friend indeed.] This department walks together with people.]

We appreciate the efforts made by the hon the Minister to launch special projects focused on three provinces. We will, however, encourage her to ensure that MECs from the other six provinces work very hard, to ensure that our people feel the impact of Public Works.

We all realise that the infrastructure created through the community-based public works programme provides but a drop in an ocean of need. It is through the sustained operation and further spin-offs in the utilisation of the facilities created, that the real empowerment and economic participation will have maximum impact on alleviating poverty.

The development principles applied by the community-based public works programme are such that communities identify and initiate the nature of projects required. Once approval has been obtained and funds allocated to different projects, community members become involved through participation in the construction phase. Essential training and skills transfer are incorporated, equipping participants for future employment and further economic expansion.

In the local communities, rural development is a subject close to one’s heart, and that of the Department of Public Works working with all its partners in the delivery. These are the national and provincial governments, regional and local authorities, community structures and nongovernmental organisations, as well as established private-sector partners.

The hon the Minister has indicated, of course, her commitment to accelerated, integrated rural development, striving to improve the livelihood of previously marginalised households. We need to support her.

Mr J H VAN DER MERWE: The horrible Minister?

Ms O R KASIENYANE: Yes, she is the hon the Minister. We need to support this work, and encourage all the people to participate, learn and benefit through their contribution.   One of the main thrusts of creating infrastructure in poverty-ridden areas is, however, to spark economic light at all local, formerly economically inactive levels. [Interjections.] If only that hon member could listen, maybe he would understand what I am saying.

To optimise economic benefits to the communities, the community-based public works programme gives expression to integrated rural development in its implementation. This approach requires projects to complement each other, and benefit communities as integrated groups of development. For example, an access road should link arable land to markets and communities to services such as clinics, communication centres, pension paypoints, a post office, schools and a library. It should, thus, facilitate economic linkages at a local level.

The integrated rural development approach to rural development entails the promotion of improved access to trade, information, tourism and social services. The establishment of multipurpose centres and community production centres, as the Minister has indicated, will further add value to the communities involved, as it creates economic nodes around the development centre.

These types of infrastructure emphasise the integrated rural development approach, as many Government and other social activities, as well as facilities for training and product enhancement, are provided. These larger- scale projects can then benefit many people. It is important that these facilities be implemented in all the provinces as soon as possible. In every province there is a woman who has the skills, but just needs the space, the facility and the material to turn her skills into viable microeconomies.

The Department of Public Works can help to turn these dreams into a working reality by fast-tracking the community projects throughout the country. Where people have some produce, some entrepreneurship can be developed, and when these bigger development nodes are introduced, they will assist people to add value to local products, thereby stimulating the local economy and creating even more jobs.

The relevant training of the local people to operate and manage these facilities or some parts thereof, while they interact with other services and trades, is also beneficial. We do not and will not lose hope. We believe in the ability of this department, through the community-based public works programme, to address past shortcomings, for the best is yet to come. To the prophets of doom, I want to say that they write this department off at their own peril. This is not the end. This is not the beginning of the end. This is but the end of the beginning. [Applause.]

Mr S N SWART: Chairperson, hon Minister, the Department of Public Works facilitates delivery by other Government departments by providing accommodation, as well as managing the largest property portfolio in the Southern hemisphere. The ACDP is, however, gravely concerned over the R10 billion backlog in the maintenance of this vast property portfolio and calls for more urgent steps to be taken to address this situation. As other speakers have indicated, the Auditor-General’s report furthermore revealed a number of serious weaknesses in the internal control procedures, such as non-adherence to such procedures and policies, unintegrated financial systems, lack of management knowledge and capability. The department has advised in its report that it has instituted stringent control measures in these identified areas and we look forward to a more positive Auditor- General’s report for the ensuing financial year.

The department has also been adversely affected by the scourge of corruption. The ACDP welcomes the five-point anticorruption drive in its attempts to curb corruption. However, we call upon the department to widely educate all officials concerning the Protected Disclosures Act, the so- called whistle-blowing Act. This Act will provide both employees in this department, as well as employees in the private sector companies which contract with departments, protection from any form of prejudice after blowing the whistle on corruption once certain procedures have been followed.

The department is further to be complimented on finalising the domestic asset register, as well as its drive to unlock the latent value of the state’s fixed properties. We are, however, perturbed that the department is only this year embarking upon the compilation of the register of foreign assets. This aspect requires urgent attention, particularly in the light of the intended expansion of the Foreign Affairs missions with the concomitant purchasing and leasing of further foreign properties. [Time expired.]

Nkul C J MALULEKE-HLANEKI: Muchaviseki Mutshami wa Xitulu, na Yindlu ya wena leyo hlonipheka. Muchaviseki Holobye na Ndzawulo ya wena. Ndhambi leyi veke kona eDzongeni wa Afrika leyi sunguleke na lembe ra 2000, yi tile na ku getsela ka meno eka vaaka-tiko. Vaaka-tiko va tikeriwile hi vutomi, va vile na ku lahlekeriwa hi tinhundzu, vutomi ni vun’winyi bya swo tala ku fana na swirin’wa, swifuwo, miako yo fana na tindlu. Matiko-makelwana yo fana na Mozambiki, Botswana na Zimbabwe ni man’wana ya lahlekeriwile hikwalaho ka ndhambi leyi.

Namuntlha ndzi lava ku kongomisa mbulavulo wa mina eka nhlaselo lowu veke kona eAfrika Dzonga, nakambe ndzi kongomisa eka Xifundzankulu xa N’walungu (Northern Province). Leswi a swi vuli leswaku eka Swifundzankulu leswin’wana a swi khumbekanga eka ndhambi leyi, kambe a ndzo va na vuxokoxoko lebyo tala eka swona. Vanakulorhi lava nga na vuxokoxoko va ta vulavula hi swona. Nakambe ndzi nga boxa leswaku, Swifundzankulu swo fana na Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natala, N’walungu Vupeladyambu, na Free State, laha eka tindhawu to tala ku nga kala ku endliwa tindhawu ta makhombo. (Translation of Tsonga paragraphs follows.)

[Mr C J MALULEKE-HLANEKI: Chairperson, honourable House, hon Minister and your department, heavy torrential rains that fell in Southern Africa, which started at the beginning of the year 2000, caused a lot of disasters to the citizens of this region. Citizens lost their lives. There has been loss of property, life and ownership of a lot of things, such as field crops, domestic animals, structures, such as buildings. Our neighbouring countries, such as Mozambique, Botswana, Zimbabwe and others also suffered because of these heavy rains.

Today I wish to confine my speech to the disaster that took place in Southern Africa and again I would like to confine myself to the Northern Province. This does not mean that other provinces were not affected, I do not have detailed information in that regard. My colleagues with full information concerning other provinces will discuss this issue in detail. However, I would like to single out provinces like Mpumalanga, KwaZulu- Natal, the North West and the Free State, where disaster areas were proclaimed.]

As mentioned already, I will focus mostly on the Northern Province where most bridges and roads have either been washed away or were badly damaged, the worst affected area being the northern region of the province. The Department of Public Works, apart from its normal delivery both in terms of state accommodation provision and the national public works programme, is actively involved in addressing the plight of our people through the reconstruction of infrastructure. I therefore support the budget of this department.

Despite the magnitude and challenge of the Public Works portfolio, the hon the Minister has been entrusted with championing the reconstruction of infrastructure after the recent devastating floods. The involvement of Deputy Minister Sisulu from the Department of Home Affairs in heading the command centre is acknowledged, together with that of the technical team and its counterparts in the provinces. The fact that a substantial sector of the personnel of the command centre has been seconded from the Department of Public Works is proof of the hon the Minister’s commitment to serving the nation in its hour of need.

The preliminary work of the command centre was to collate all immediate emergency disaster damage information for assessment and reaction. The first response was to attend to areas where damage had been of emergency proportions, in terms of accessibility, where all links to resources, social services and even shelter had been destroyed. The command centre systematically categorised reported needs in terms of emergency interventions, critical short-term responses and medium-term to longer term reconstruction. The other emergency relief effort being addressed by the command centre is the provision of tents to displaced families. The field assessments of roads and bridges have been completed.

The National Roads Agency and the SA Defence Force have been supportive in their attention to national road repairs, for example on the N1 road and through the provision of temporary bridges and pedestrian crossings respectively. The provincial government of the Northern Province has erected a number of temporary river crossings where bridges had been swept away. The Department of Water Affairs and Forestry and the Department of Agriculture and Land Affairs have already responded with emergency services.

Although all work has not been completed, a number of roads and bridges have been prioritised for repairs, which should be put into action next week because, I am told, finance is now available. We have the assurance that Government’s affirmative procurement policy will be followed to ensure the employment of local labour.

The national Department of Public Works is also responding to the flood damage through its national public works programme. A number of community- based public works programme projects that were being implemented at the time were affected. The department is responding to these projects. The Department of Public Works allocated R2 019 700 million to the Northern Province to repair existing roads in Tshipise-Nzhelele, Dilokong, eastern Tubatse and Bushbuckridge clusters. This amount covers an erosion project in Dilokonga, a market stall in Bushbuckridge, a school road and sports facilities in Letsitele cluster and retrieving and drainage projects in eastern Tubatse. KwaZulu-Natal was allocated R1,5 million for road repairs in Mbazwane and in the KwaNgwanaze clusters. In Mpumalanga, R2,5 million was allocated to the Nsikazi cluster for the Gutshwa bridge project.

The intense storm damage has further resulted in many rural communities now having no food for winter as a result of their crops being washed away and the land being damaged by erosion. In response, the department, through the community-based public works programmes, has developed an emergency relief programme, the work-for-food programme, in order for devastated communities to access temporary jobs, and be able to buy food at least to survive for the winter.

At the same time, due consideration must be given to the relocation of communities to safer localities, where necessary, so as to avoid future displacement. In this regard, I want to call on the support of all involved. [Time expired.] [Applause.]

The CHAIRPERSON OF COMMITTEES: Order! Before I call the next speaker, my attention has been drawn to our visitors in the gallery. I therefore wish to recognise the Governor of Illinois, George Grine, and his entourage. They are in the gallery. [Applause.] May I add that I wish you a very good stay in South Africa. Listen to the debates taking place at the present moment in the Chamber. I also wish you a safe journey back home.

The DEPUTY MINISTER OF PUBLIC WORKS: Chairperson, hon Minister and hon members, the Department of Public Works is proud to act in the interest of our country, our citizens and the state, particularly in our role as custodian of state fixed property assets. We are making a contribution to the generation of sustainable economic growth and employment creation which inevitably raises the level of human resource development.

It gives immense pleasure to witness communities in far-flung areas empowered to take charge of their own destinies, generating self-confidence and optimism about the future. The hon the Minister has painted a clear picture of the various functions of our department.

Ikhulumile inkosazana yenkosi. Ngithi kuyo: Nyawuza! [The king’s daughter has spoken. To her I say ``you of Nyawuza’s descendants’’.]

Many of the measures taken within the national public works programme as well as the new integrated initiative, well-articulated by the Minister - the community production centres and multipurpose centres - deserve enthusiastic support and reoriented focus in public expenditure. I must say that my party applauds the Minister for this vision. This all-embracing new approach adds value to the foundation laid by the national public works programme in that it supports community-driven, low institutional capacity infrastructure projects in various communities. The co-operation with other departments as the Minister mentioned, indicated and stressed, through the clustering of services delivered, as well as in co-operation with provincial task teams in planning and execution of services, will go a long way in ensuring success in meeting the priority of this Government, which is poverty eradication.

Our department, indeed, carries a lot of responsibilities, including financial, practical, moral and social objectives in service delivery. I am going to illustrate our discharge of these responsibilities by one practical example amongst many - the Palace of Justice. Focused on our objectives of affirmative procurement, job creation, skills transfer, previously disadvantaged and women empowerment, as well as time, cost and quality service delivery, we have embarked upon restoration of the renowned Palace of Justice on Church Square in Pretoria. This architectural gem, as the Minister mentioned earlier, was the stage on which very important political trials were played out during the apartheid era.

Skills development on labour intensive work on this R38 million project has excelled in transforming previously disadvantaged individuals, who were mere labourers, into professional, sophisticated artisans. Three artisans that I can mention now, Victor Mongwe, Frans Mahlangu and David Tlabela, to mention just a few, found a niche in artistry by refining their work in tiling, plastering and carving respectively, showing that local talent can compare with the best in the world. Two women subcontracted to do specialist joinery work like court furniture, library bookcases, staircases and woodgraining of doors, and decorative painting on the walls, are a pride to witness at work.

We are proud of these extraordinary women and men who have achieved world- class work on this project, something that would not have been dreamed of just six years down the line. We will not merely hand over to our client a usable courtroom, but it will be a contribution to the empowerment, equalisation, upskilling and pride of our nation. It is, indeed, an example of building a new heritage. [Applause.]

We see similar trends when monitoring community-based public works projects

• excellent performance by individuals in the process of taking forward opportunities arising from Government investment in infrastructure. I invite members to visit our department’s exhibition today here in Parliament and see what women, in particular, are contributing from rural areas. Arts and crafts are just but one aspect of what is being exhibited.

Apart from the work we do in often sensitive environments such as Antarctica, Gough Island, Marion Island and other conservation or rural areas, we are confronted by the daily energy consumption from state-owned properties. Albeit a small burden on the taxpayer and industry, the vast majority of this energy consumed is from nonrenewable and limited sources. We are, therefore, promoting a culture and expertise to erect optimally energy-sufficient buildings within an environment conducive to the efficient use of energy in all sectors. It is a long-term programme, taking cognisance of factors, actions and modifications such as outside environments, expected life of the building, client requirements, power- factor correction, combustion process, where boilers are installed, light intensity, and implementation of a building management system, just to mention a few.

The Public Works energy conservation programme involves both the design of new buildings and energy management of new and existing buildings to rationalise and reduce the use of energy. The results from this programme have been quite remarkable, as, in some buildings, more than a 25% saving has been achieved. In total the saving for the Pretoria area alone, from 1990-1999 was R40 million, and for the Cape Town area, from 1997-1999, was R5 million. I believe this illustrates the achievement of our financial, moral and social objectives.

Coming to the emerging contractor development programme, I am happy to note here that representatives from the Guguletu Builders’ Association are in the gallery. [Applause.] Minister Sicgau has already contextualised the emerging contractor programme. More than 280 women are currently on the emerging contractor development programme database. This is a major achievement, considering the extensive obstacles in terms of tendering, financing, etc that had to be overcome.

In June 1999 the percentage of women that were registered with the emerging contractor development programme, ECDP, was a mere 7%. Women contractors registered with the programme in March 2000 showed a marked increase from 7% to 18%. About 27 women contractors are involved in real construction processes such as building, electrical work and plumbing. The remainder of women are still working at levels of labour dealing with site cleaning, general cleaning, horticulture and catering.

In terms of award values women total about R574 569 and men are at R16 223

1. This, as such, is indicative of the potential for women to grow within the building industry, even at the level of emerging constructors. This is an encouraging scenario, considering that gender is a key dimension of poverty. Research has proved that the poverty rate is 50% higher among female-headed households than those headed by men. Of course, a substantially higher unemployment rate is found among women, with heavy workloads devolving onto women, owing to lack of access to water and fuel.

The trend, I must mention, still persists where a greater value of contracts is still awarded to non-ECDP contractors. But this, of course, is the focus of our attention. Improvement, however, is noticeable as, in February this year and in all six regional offices, non-ECDP contractors got R5,3 million as opposed to R5 million for ECDP contractors. The difference is now quite minimal and we trust that the trend will be completely reversed in the further roll-out of this programme. In Johannesburg, Cape Town and Kimberley we have already succeeded in channelling a greater value of spending to ECDP contractors, as compared to non-ECDP contractors.

Working with officials of the department, I recently convened a preliminary meeting with some of the role-players in the materials supply sector. We are currently reaching out to more than 20 emerging materials suppliers in the Soweto area alone, half of which, I am pleased to say, are women. The department is also starting to reach out to the established materials manufacturers and suppliers in order to explore the potential of partnerships and empower black materials supply outlets, with a particular focus on women.

These preliminary meetings are beginning to formulate a concept, building on existing initiatives of the established sector, and one that seeks to reach into the rural areas through the department’s community-based public works programme. The department’s vision is that of a strategy which will ensure that all role-players benefit from this process and which fosters partnerships between the established sector, black materials distributors and small outlets, particularly women in the rural areas, especially in the most impoverished and deep rural areas.

Lastly, but in terms of my responsibility, most definitely not the least, allow me to refer to prestige accommodation. Again, I would like to assure hon members and everybody involved in the functions of the state that Public Works regards it as being in the national interest to provide and maintain the accommodation at members’ disposal at the highest possible standard. Still, I must say that we need to maintain the balance with affordability, sound investment, and management practices of a huge property portfolio, as the Minister indicated earlier.

Facilities’ management contracts will be applied to all prestige properties, and the envisaged national call centre - where all prestige complaints may be lodged and directly prioritised - will speed up the process of the response. The re-emerging of prestige properties will reflect the full artistic expression of our traditional African crafts and art. Improvements and services at Mahlamba Ndlovu, Bryntirion Estate and the Union Buildings are continuing in Gauteng. These have been extensively discussed before and I will not repeat them.

As an example of our gender awareness, we are currently employing 58 women contractors on a gardening service contract at the Union Buildings, to the value of R4,4 million. Fifteen more women, all registered with the ECDP programme, have been awarded works to the value of R2 million for services ranging from cleaning, fire service, building, electrical and painting. Land maintenance and refurbishing of specified areas are continuing at Kings House in Durban. And, proudly, a number of very contentious issues are now provided for in the budget and can be dealt with as such. These will include the piping in Acacia Park, as well as compliance with the fire protection regulations, the upgrading of the airconditioning system and the upgrading of lifts, all at 120 Plein Street, to mention but a few.

In total R5,7 million was allocated to Prestige Capital Works Services for the Western Cape. Projects already committed to will account for almost R1,3 million, leaving approximately R4,4 million to deal with 19 prioritised projects. These will then leave 20 more identified projects at an estimated total cost of more than R3,8 million for which additional funding is required.

In conclusion, I wish to thank my Minister, the hon Sigcau, for her guidance and trust in me, and for affording me various opportunities to handle diverse aspects of the work in the department. With her at the helm of the department, it can only grow from strength to strength. To the management team, the officials of the Department of Public Works and the stakeholders with whom we regularly interact, I would like to thank them for their contribution. I would also like to say to the staff in my office that they are the people who ensure that things do move, and I thank them. Thanks also to my three beautiful children, who are the inspiration that gives me the drive to walk the extra mile.

Nkskz A N SIGCAWU: Mhlalingaphambili, malungu ePalamente, le Ndlu iyayazi into yokuba uRhulumente wengcinezelo akazange akwazi ukuzakha iindlela eziqhagamshelisa iilali, izikolo kwakunye neeklinikhi. Singulo Rhulumente sijongene nokufundisa abantu kwanokubancedisa kumalinge abawenzayo ukuphucula ubomi babo.

Uphuhliso lwabantu beli lizwe luxanduva lwethu sonke singabantu balapha eMzantsi Afrika. Lufuna ukubambisana kwethu ekwakheni amathuba emisebenzi nasekufundiseni abantwana bethu. Sele liqalisile iSebe leMisebenzi yoLuntu ukuwenza umsebenzi walo eluntwini. Umzekelo, sesinezi projekti: iMagusheni sub-cluster project eFlagstaff, Umzimkhulu sub-cluster project, indlela eqhagamshelisa uluntu neendawo (access road) kuNtabankulu, zoqoqosho nezoncedo eMount Ayliff, naseMount Frere. Ndingabala ndithini? Zininzi izinto esele zenzelwe abantu.

Akukagqitywa; kusaqhutywa nenkqubo yeSebe leMisebenzi kaRhulumente. Kukho nezinye izicelo zabantu zokuba bancedwe kwiimfuno zabo, kwaye zifumana ingqwalasela. Umzekelo, kukho izicelo zabantu baseNtlanga eLusikisiki nabaseMount Ayliff zokuba bakhelwe iibhulorho. Sele kwenziwe uhlahlo lwabiwo-mali lokuba kwakhiwe indlela eqhagamshela iLusikisiki nePort St Johns nezinye iindlela.

Iminyaka yolawulo ngocalu-calulo yasishiya nesizwe esihlwempuzekileyo nesiphelelwe lithemba. Njengokuba i-ANC iluxhasa olu hlahlo lwabiwo-mali, ndiyawamema onke amalungu ukuba ayixhase. Ngokwenza njalo siya kuma kunye silwe ubuhlwempu.

Sazi mhlophe ukuba xa kwakuqulunqwa inkqubo yemisebenzi yoluntu neqhutywa luluntu ngokwalo, injongo yayikukulwa ubuhlwempu nokudalela abantu bamaphandle imisebenzi. Sesi sizathu ndisibekileyo esibangela ukuba ndimncome lo Rhulumente woluntu ngokuxhasa amaphandle angazange ahoywe. Olu phuhliso lujoliswe koomama, ulutsha nabakhubazekileyo. Loo nto yenza ukuba sicele umngeni kulo lonke uluntu oluzimanya nophuhliso novuselelo lwe- Afrika ukuba sibe mxhelo-mnye ekulweni ubuhlwempu, siyeke ukupolitika ngobuhlwempu lube uluntu lusifa. [Kwaqhwatywa.]

I-ANC iyaluxhasa olu hlahlo lwabiwo-mali, ngoko ndiyayimema nale Ndlu ukuba iyixhase, kuba olu hlahlo lwabiwo-mali luyazixhasa iimfuno zoluntu. [Kwaqhwatywa.] (Translation of Xhosa speech follows.)

[Mrs A N SIGCAWU: Chairperson and hon members, this House knows that the apartheid governments never bothered to build roads that would link villages, schools and clinics in the rural areas. As this Government, we are faced with the task of educating our people and assisting them in their initiatives to improve their quality of life.

The development of this country is the responsibility of all its citizens. It requires co-operation in initiatives that are aimed at creating employment opportunities and educating our children. The Department of Public Works has already started doing its work for communities. For example, we have the following projects already in progress: the Magusheni sub-cluster project at Flagstaff, the Umzimkhulu sub-cluster project, an access road at Ntabankulu, another one at Mount Ayliff and another one at Mount Frere. The list is endless. There are many things that have already been done for communities.

This is not the end; there is a lot that is still being done by the Department of Public Works. There are other requests that are still coming from people who would like to have their needs addressed, and these are being attended to. For instance, there are requests from the people of Ntlanga at Lusikisiki and from Mount Ayliff for the building of bridges in these communities. Funds have already been set aside for the building of the road between Lusikisiki and Port St Johns and other roads.

The years of apartheid rule left us with an impoverished and despairing society. As the ANC supports this Vote, I would like to call upon all hon members to support it too. By doing that we shall be able to stand together in the fight against poverty.

We know very well that when community projects were embarked upon and left to the people to run them themselves, the aim was to fight poverty and to create employment opportunities for people in the rural areas. It is for that reason that I applaud this people-centred Government for giving attention to rural communities which had never enjoyed government support before. This development focuses on women and disabled youth. It is for that reason that we call upon all those members of society who subscribe to the ideals of development and reconstruction in Africa to join us in the fight against poverty, so that we can stop playing politics with poverty while the people are dying out there. [Applause.]

The ANC supports this Vote, and so I call upon this House to support it too, because this Vote supports the needs of the people. [Applause.]]

Mr I S MFUNDISI: Mr Chairperson, hon Minister, hon Deputy Minister, hon members, the Department of Public Works is the custodian of all Government property and has to see to the upkeep of all buildings owned by the state.

The department has for some time been labour intensive. But because of the scarcity of funds, it is perceived to be wasteful as, in some instances, people go and report for work but spend the whole day without doing anything because there is no work. It may be that they are short of materials, as is the case where there was no paint. In some cases graders have remained parked because there was a lack of fuel. These incidents indicate a lack of management.

One could take the classical example of what is happening in KwaMhlanga in the former KwaNdebele. Hundreds of people spend months on end on Public Works premises without raising a sweat, and then go back home because there is nothing for them to do. While such people are, in the main, the responsibility of the Department of the Public Service and Administration, it is not acceptable that people should be left idling all day. Some work has to found for these people who are, after all, on the payroll of Public Works. We welcome, however, the extension of the community-based national public works programme to other provinces.

Poverty and joblessness are not only confined to the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu- Natal and the Northern Province. Job opportunities offered by the projects mounted during this exercise have been increasing in these provinces and no longer will other provinces be lagging behind in development. We do not deny that these provinces are impoverished, but our point is that poverty is all over and has to be ministered to.

The Northern Cape is a case in point. Its sparse population comprising even the remote Khoisan is a classical example. This does not in any way imply that other provinces do not need help. The department should be on the lookout for discrimination in awarding jobs in the community-based public works programme. The Deputy Minister was at pains to indicate how they are trying to ensure that women can be assisted. There are households that are headed by men where there is hardly a slice of bread to be put on the table. We only hope that consideration will also be given to the male- headed families.

We, however, commend the Ministry on its efforts to follow up all property that has been sold clandestinely. In the same breath, we hope the same report will give an account of how much was raised through rent by some members of the ANC who use former consulate offices as their constituency offices.

The desire to address the needs of the nation is noted and reflected in the increase in the budget. This is appreciated. We shall watch, all the way, to see who are being given the nod in all the contracts. [Time expired.]

Ms N M TWALA: Mr Chairperson, I want to express my support for the Public Works Vote. I specifically want to comment on the excellent work the Department of Public Works is doing in terms of procurement, and especially in respect of the development and empowerment of women.

Since 1994, the collective purchasing power, particularly in the construction industry, that the department exercises on behalf of national departments, has been an extremely large and powerful mechanism of procurement which provides our democratic Government with an effective empowerment tool. This policy implementation has led to the development of what the department calls targeted procurement. Targeted procurement is an empowerment strategy that utilises the spending power of Government to provide employment opportunities for previously marginalised individuals and communities.

Through applying affirmative procurement as an instrument of policy to broaden participation in the mainstream economy, Public Works ensures that the goods and services are delivered to Government in a fair, competitive and cost-effective way while, at the same time, achieving Government’s socioeconomic goals and objectives. The department keeps the portfolio committee informed on the applications of affirmative procurement, and also on the targeted procurement strategy. We have heard today that the participation by affirmable business enterprises has escalated to around 30% of all construction-related contracts awarded by the Department of Public Works. We know that the department is aware of, and is addressing, the problems and challenges faced in the implementation of targeted procurement. It is therefore important to ensure that, although fronting comes in many disguises, the tender procedure uncovers actual shareholding or equity information. Often, further work is required to address accreditation of consultants, management problems amongst affirmable business enterprises’ contractors, and to assist target groups or individuals who are unable to interpret information or complete the necessary documents.

It is laudable that penalties are imposed where tendered contract participation goals are not met. Intensified training of officials working on the targeted procurement programme is just one of the many ways the department has adopted to ensure that problems are sorted out. However, we must focus on the issue of the struggle for the emancipation of women. We must ensure that we have specific programmes in place to ensure the greatest possible involvement of women themselves in the process of transforming our country into a winning nation.

If we look at women participating in the contracts awarded, we realise that women still have a long way to go in the building environment. A special effort should be made to empower women through training and perhaps we need to look at increasing the weight of points awarded for participation by women on contracts tendered for, even if these could extend to full joint ventures where equity holding by women could be increased. This could be particularly applicable in the rural areas where we have many women seeking economic participation. It is important that women move into actual building activity, and not work as labour to clean the sites or provide catering.

Currently, contracts for R2 million and less are awarded on a point basis where 90% is allocated for price, 7,5% for affirmable business enterprise participation, and 2,5% for the inclusion of women and the disabled. Although this has led to many job opportunities for women across the country, I suggest that the point system for the inclusion of women in such contracts be increased, thus ensuring the development of a core of women contractors across the building and construction spheres. By giving more women the opportunity to participate on a bigger scale in smaller contracts, they will gain the experience and training needed to become fully-fledged partners in joint ventures for larger contracts.

The Department of Public Works’ new initiative to accelerate the growth and empowerment of black material-supply outlets, with a particular focus on women, shows that this department is committed in its efforts to create employment opportunities and economic growth for all in South Africa. Public Works has put in place programmes and is working on others to address the important issue of black empowerment and, in particular, the economic empowerment of women. These programmes will enable us to make whatever decisions are necessary to ensure that we continue to focus on the vital question of the development and emancipation of women, while continuing to integrate this issue into all Government programmes.

The department has taken on a mammoth task in the development and implementation of targeted procurement. I want to congratulate them on a job well done thus far, and trust that other departments will follow their example, especially where the development and training of women contractors are concerned.

Mrs G M BORMAN: Madam Chairperson, Minister Sigcau, hon members, the state of affairs in the Department of Public Works was highlighted by the dilemma confronting a disabled MP, Vincent Gore, yesterday, when the only lift in the Marks’ Building giving him access to his office was out of order. What was he supposed to do? We cannot even get it right at Parliament! What have we budgeted this year to have all our buildings accessible to people who are disabled?

According to Minister Radebe’s budget speech last year, maintenance was an area of concern. At the time, there was a maintenance backlog of R10 billion and, although the department had requested R1 billion to address this backlog, an additional amount of only R90 million was granted for the financial year 1999-2000. But the Minister was not deterred by the lack of budget. I quote from his speech: ... we in Public Works cannot simply sit still and complain about a lack of resources to deal with this maintenance backlog.'' He went on to say that it was their taskto provide innovative solutions to complex problems’’. At a briefing of the portfolio committee on 4 April, we were still addressing the maintenance backlog of R10 billion. It is clear that the ANC is more adept at making innovative promises than it is at delivering on-the-ground solutions.

Let me illustrate again what I mean. Again I refer to the Minister’s budget speech last year. I quote: ``Shortly I will be able to announce the 1999- 2000 grants for antipoverty programmes, and I can assure members that our plans to provide employment for another 120 000 people during this coming financial year will be fulfilled by the Community-Based Public Works Programme.’’ During her parliamentary media briefing, in February, almost a year later, Minister Sigcau revealed that just under 24 000 jobs had been created. What happened to the other 96 000 jobs? Were they just more of the empty promises for which this Government has become so renowned?

We have state assets totalling some 240 000 properties and valued at approximately R120 billion. We in the DP congratulate the Minister on completing the National Register of State Assets. ``What one cannot measure, one cannot manage,’’ as the Minister of Finance reminded us so aptly yesterday. We now know what we own and we should be in a much better position to manage it properly. However, buildings are underutilised. Departments rent buildings from the private sector whilst state property stands empty, usually in a poor state of repair. Even with the state assets register, nobody can tell me how many of these buildings are standing empty or are partially occupied. How much is this costing the taxpayer? Would the directors of a private enterprise tolerate this poor management?

I come back to the maintenance issue. The budget for the financial year 2000-2001 is some R566 million. If we were serious about maintenance, the budget would be in the region of R6 billion, based on the claims of the building industry that one needs to spend 5% of the value of the property per annum in order to maintain property adequately. The longer we delay the day-to-day maintenance, the more likely we are to end up having to effect large-scale repairs, and that is very short-sighted.

I now pose a question to the Minister: Do we need a Public Works department? The DP proposes that the functions of Public Works be delegated to individual departments. [Interjections.] They would then have overall responsibility for their own buildings. The CHAIRPERSON (Ms G L Mahlangu): Order! Hon member, your speaking time has expired.

Mrs G M BORMAN: This would cut down on democracy and red tape …. [Interjections.]

The CHAIRPERSON (Ms G L Mahlangu): Order!

Mrs G M BORMAN: … and speed up performance. [Interjections.]

The CHAIRPERSON (Ms G L Mahlangu): Order! Hon member, your speaking time has expired.

Mrs G M BORMAN: I want to refer to the hon member who referred to disaster management. [Interjections.]

The CHAIRPERSON (Ms G L Mahlangu): Order! Your time has expired, hon member. [Applause.]

Mr M M CHIKANE: Chairperson, like leopards, the DP will have to live with its spots. Theirs, as the President correctly summarised it, is to find fault and celebrate when they find it. Anybody who has just arrived in South Africa would believe that the DP only joined the Government in 1994, and that it was not party to the mistakes that were made by its cousins, the NP. They just came into being when we came into Parliament. They would abolish everything, including the Department of Public Works, as Mrs Borman has just said.

The problem is that we are dealing with an opposition party that has no programme of action. They do not do anything, and complain about everything. [Interjections.] One should ask them what their programme is, because previously there was no assets register and they did not complain about it. [Interjections.]

Our people in rural areas, where the DP now visits as tourists, had no water, no sanitation, no schools and no clinics. The ANC helped them. We have established all those facilities, and now the DP can visit there as tourists.

Mr D V BLOEM: Seremane! Seremane! [Laughter.]

Mr M M CHIKANE: They are now delivering their skewed criticism of the Ministry. All that the Minister has inherited is what the DP contributed to over all the years that it was in cahoots with the NP.

Let us look at the criticism from the hon Mr Opperman. He has suddenly found a theme for a speech after having read the Auditor-General’s report. We were not surprised. It is not the intention of the Ministry or the ANC to shy away from responsibilities. In their time, when they were still sitting with their cousins on the other side of the floor, the Auditor- General was treated as a spent force. He had no power, no independence, and he could not express his views on matters. Only the ANC has brought about this openness.

Mr Van der Merwe of the New NP complained about affirmative action. He suggested that if they were in charge - which I believe would never happen in the next 1 000 years, because over the 100 years that they were in power, they messed up this country - they would find ways to balance things in order to create equality. Experience and their track record leave much doubt of what they are asserting now. He also has problems with the unions, and he thinks that the unions’ job creation is not a laudable action taken by this Government, because, in their time, they had sweetheart associations that did not even expose the inefficiencies in the departments.

We are happy that, today, we, as the Government of the ANC, have criticism from within and from without. There is constructive criticism from our alliance partners and even from without, which is even from them. We can only be grateful, on this particular day, when we discuss the most important budget of the department that hosts all other departments. We can only be grateful that, at least, now the Government of South Africa has dominated all forums of the world. Many of our countrymen and women have ascended to bodies as a show of confidence and encouragement for all who have eyes and ears to see and to hear.

The drum of success continues to call us … [Time expired.] [Applause.]

The MINISTER OF PUBLIC WORKS: Mr Chairperson, there is nothing as wonderful as being given the power to listen, and I am rather surprised that the hon Borman, who spoke for the DP, just did not listen. She must have come with a prepared speech, which she could not change at all. She had come with a set mind, and even when matters were put forward, she just did not want to deviate. So, what do I do with a party that does not listen? Absolutely nothing.

This morning, we said that we were going to introduce facilities’ management. We are also going to have contracts to make sure that property is maintained better than before, and that we have business plans for that matter. Yet they are still asking what it is that we want to do, when we said so in clear terms, and we are speaking their language, English. [[Applause.]

NgesiXhosa, sibona kufanelekile okokuba sithethe kwaye sisebenzisane nosoosomashishini ukuze izakhiwo zikaRhulumente zigcinwe zisemgangathweni. Andinakugqitha ke apho. [In IsiXhosa, we see fit to talk to and co-operate with businesspeople so that Government buildings are kept in good condition.]

It also surprises me that people who have been in this Parliament for a number of years, prior to 1994, will pick up only a year’s experience. They know very well that, at some of the parliamentary villages, we inherited buildings which were in the worst condition of wear. Then they want the ANC Government to perform miracles. [Interjections.] They also know that they are a silent voice in this hall. They are just warming their seats and did not, at any time, make sure that a change was being made to allow for the disabled not to be inconvenienced. [Interjections.]

In this very debate, I said that work was going to be done, in all Government buildings, to ensure that we catered for the disabled.

Mna ne-ANC kwakunye ne-NP asifakanga mqhaphu (cotton wool) ezindlebeni zethu. Abantu abafake umqhaphu ezindlebeni yi-DP. [Uwele-wele.] [Kwaqhwatywa.] [The ANC and I, including the NP, have not stuffed cotton wool in our ears. The people who have stuffed cotton wool in their ears are the DP. [Interjections.] [Applause.]]

Coming back to the people who made comments, I should thank hon members for all their constructive comments. We are about to build a future, and we have got to build it together. If criticism is constructive, we accept it. We are happy that all parties, the IFP, the New NP and all the other parties that participated, see the light of what we are trying to achieve.

Ukuba umntu uthabatha isibane sakhe asifake phantsi kwetafile, uNomzamo kaSigcau akanangxaki ngaloo nto. [If one takes one’s lamp and puts it under the table, Nomzamo Sigcau has no problem with that.]

Coming back to some of the comments that were made, we shall never abandon the policy of affirming those who were previously disadvantaged. [Interjections.] [Applause.] However, what we are mindful of is that we should give them the necessary skills. We are in agreement with people who work with us - the people in construction - that a system of mentorship is important to ensure that they too acquire the requisite skills. However, what they do not want is a perpetuation of `madaka’ boys, abantu abaqhuba iikiriva: Abantu abaphatha umhlakulo … [the people who push the wheelbarrow: the people who work with the spade …]

… whereas they ought to be the people getting contracts in their own right. We shall open the gates for as long as the people in the construction industry are prepared to take people into their fold and mentor them. The sky is the limit for the disadvantaged.

Why do people want to discourage those who were formerly disadvantaged? Should they act as fronts? We abhor fronting; we abhor the showing of a face. We want people who will definitely be part and parcel of a joint venture in the true sense of the word. [Interjections.]

Sadinwa ngamagama ubani aye awafumane … [We have had it with the names one often finds …]

… at the bottom of any letter, kanti lawo ngamagama abantu nje abangena buso. [whereas those are just names of faceless people.]

When I spoke about women in construction, somebody in the department - who has since been converted - said: ``No, Minister, it will be rather difficult to get women in construction.’’ I answered that if this person, by way of a performance contract, could ensure that we have women in construction by the end of the year, that would be the best deed ever for the department. [Interjections.]

That is why, through the help of bodies like the IDT, who provide training, or other bodies who help us in various ways, we are proud that we have women in construction, as the Deputy Minister said. Of course they work together with men, because as far as we are concerned, we do not want to discriminate against anyone. [Interjections.]

Regarding state property, we have decided to deal first with local properties, and then foreign properties. This is because the property that is being vandalised, the property that is being illegally occupied, is right here at home. [Interjections.]

We have also said that we need to put our financial management in order. If a department does not have senior and proper management, that would have been next to impossible, but since we do have all those categories, we are positive that we are going to move forward and work as a department that does its work very well.

We are at a point where we say we do not want fragmentation of work. Can one imagine somebody coming from this side, saying there must be a mini Department of Public Works, a mini Department of Public Works, a mini Department of Public Works? Can one multiply those minis by the number of departments? And that coming from people who, though being the leading opposition party, think small! [Interjections.]

The other issue I want to talk about is this. What is important in dealing with what is public is to ascertain first-hand what the interests of the public are. Our approach is a bottom-up approach, so we do not want to impose, as did the system before in these Chambers. [Interjections.] We start with the people, we plan with the people and we implement with the people. We shall never deviate from that. [Applause.] And then too, we begin to want to understand who the people are that we deal with. We begin to understand who the people are and what their aspirations are. If one leaves and only sees people when there is going to be an election, and turns up to kiss babies and bring little parcels, then one can never plan for the people. They will see this strange person who comes once in a while and then disappears.

Chief Hlengwa said … [Time expired.] [Applause.]

Debate concluded.

                 STOCKHOLM DECLARATION ON HOLOCAUST

                         (Draft Resolution)

Mr J H MOMBERG: Chairperson, on behalf of the Chief Whip, I would like to move the motion printed in his name on the Order Paper, while, with your permission, laying particular emphasis on parts 2 and 3:

That the House -

(1) notes -

   (a)  that earlier this year the Prime Minister of Sweden hosted a
       "Forum on the Holocaust" in Stockholm attended by delegations
       from 46 countries, including 21 Heads of State, and that South
       Africa was represented at this important event which concluded
       with a declaration which, inter alia, stated that -


       (i)   the unprecedented character of the Holocaust, and the
              terrible suffering of the countless millions of Nazi
              victims, will always hold universal meaning which
              transcends race and religion;

       (ii)  the international community shares a common responsibility
              to fight the evils of genocide, ethnic cleansing, racism,
              prejudice, anti-semitism and xenophobia which still scar
              humanity;

       (iii) the delegates will continue to encourage the study of and
              education about the historical and moral dimensions of
              the Holocaust and to honour those who stood against it;

       (iv)  the delegates declare their commitment to plant the seeds
              of a better future amidst the soil of a bitter past; and

       (v)   the delegates reaffirm humanity's common aspiration for
              mutual understanding and justice; and


   (b)  the excellent work undertaken by the Cape Town Holocaust Centre
       in educating South Africans about the Holocaust and the
       universal importance of tolerance, mutual understanding, justice
       and the celebration of diversity in addressing the evils of
       racism, prejudice, abuse of power, apathy and indifference;

(2) acknowledges that those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it;

(3) resolves to support the work of those seeking to keep alive the memory of the victims and heroes of the Holocaust, believing that such education will -

   (a)  communicate an important message about the need to remember our
       own tragic past, in order to build a just and tolerant future;

   (b)  strengthen the fight against continuing racism, ethnocentrism,
       prejudice, anti-semitism, xenophobia and intolerance from
       whatever quarter in our young democracy; and

   (c)  reaffirm our commitment to plant the seeds of a better future
       amidst the soil of a bitter past in our country, our continent
       of Africa and the world.

Mr A J FEINSTEIN: Madam Chair, hon members and honoured guests, on 22 January 1943 my mother and her parents received at their home in Nazi- occupied Vienna this letter, from her 84-year-old grandfather. It reads in part:

My dearest children

I have received your letter and thank you for your best wishes on my journey, to which I am not at all looking forward. May God have mercy on the Jews and send us the long-hoped-for peace.

I pray daily that our dear God will protect you all and give you peace.

In my thoughts I embrace you and kiss you. May you all stay well.

Adieu, Adieu, Adieu. Your father

This was the last contact Samuel Pick had with his family. My great- grandfather’s journey to which he referred was undertaken squashed in a cattle truck on a train bound for Theresienstadt, a Nazi concentration camp, from where he never returned. In addition to her grandfather, 20 members of my mother’s immediate family died in Nazi death camps, mainly at Auschwitz.

By the end of the Second World War, the Nazis had murdered two out of three European Jews - 6 million men, women and children whose only crime was to be born Jewish. In addition, up to half a million gypsies, and at least a quarter of a million mentally or physically disabled people were murdered by the Nazis. Tens of thousands of Slavs perished and thousands of political and religious dissidents and others deemed antisocial, including communists, socialists, trade unionists and homosexuals, were persecuted for their beliefs and behaviour and many died as a result of maltreatment. About 350 000 individuals, deemed to be genetically inferior, were subject to forced sterilisation, including most of Germany’s 24 000-strong black community.

All this and much more was undertaken in the name of an ideology of racial purity, driven by irrational prejudice and deep-seated hatred of the other. This was an ideology to which millions of educated, sophisticated people subscribed, civilised people who actively participated in, or with a few exceptions, did not raise a finger against, mass murder on a scale the world never believed possible.

What is perhaps as tragic about the Holocaust for our generation is that the postwar period has been characterised by a number of other genocides, not on the same scale, but born of similar notions of difference, and of racial, ethnic, religious or class superiority. I refer here to the Gulags of Stalinist Russia, the killing fields of Cambodia, the mass slaughters of central Africa and the bloody ethnic cleansings of the former Yugoslavia. How can we claim to be a civilised world while this madness continues?

In this month of Holocaust remembrance, during this year when 46 countries met in a forum on the Holocaust in Stockholm, and at a time when racism and xenophobia are again rearing their heads close to home and in faraway lands, let us ensure that the Holocaust will always hold universal meaning which transcends race, religion or nationality.

This meaning is derived from the Holocaust’s demonstration of what the ultimate conclusion of racism, prejudice, antisemitism and xenophobia can be, especially when those attitudes are legitimised by the state. For while discrimination does not always lead to genocide, it does invariably precede it. The Holocaust further provides a context for exploring the dangers of remaining silent, apathetic or indifferent in the face of the oppression or victimisation of others.

However, the Holocaust has a special resonance in South Africa, given our tragic history, scarred so deeply by an ideology of racial superiority. There are clear parallels between the policies imposed on the Jews by the Nazis between 1933 and 1939 and those imposed on the majority of South Africans during the apartheid era. Nazi policy of those years was to deprive Jews of all civil and legal protection and rights, to exclude them from almost all spheres of economic, political and cultural life, and to secure their physical removal from Germany.

The Nuremberg laws which defined Jews as inferior and prohibited Jewish and non-Jewish marriage or sexual relations, echo apartheid’s Population Registration Act, the Immorality Act and the Mixed Marriages Act. Racial segregation in schools, job reservation, prohibitions against the use of public facilities and amenities, separate beaches and benches are all too familiar in our own not so distant history. Pictures of Jews having their noses measured merge in our consciousness with Africans having pencils inserted in their hair. The slain victims of the Kristallnacht pogrom ally with the massacred women of Sharpeville or the slain children of Soweto.

However, significant and important differences also emerge when we realise that from 1939 the Nazis embarked on the intentional mass murder of all the Jews of Europe, whereas in South Africa demographic reality and economic necessity meant that while the black majority was dehumanised in every single aspect of life, extermination was not in the interests of the ruling minority. But, despite these differences, the similarity of ideology and mindset and the common nature of deep psychological trauma suggest that in addressing our legacy and residue of the evils of racism, prejudice, abuse of power, apathy and indifference, we can draw on the universal lessons of the Holocaust, encapsulated in the inalienable importance of tolerance, mutual understanding, justice and the celebration of diversity.

Let us, therefore, as elected representatives, through the remarkable resource of the Cape Town Holocaust Centre, through our schools, word of mouth and the provision of accessible information to our communities, encourage the study of and education about the historical and moral dimensions of the Holocaust and to honour those who stood against it, including a survivor of the death camps who is with us here today, Ella Blumenthal and two people who survived the war in hiding, Irene Croll and my own mother. [Applause.]

Let us do this as we continue to teach each other about our own tragic past, as we honour the heroes who stood firm against the tidal wave of racial oppression that engulfed our beloved country for so long, and as we strive materially, psychologically and politically to overcome the wounds of the past. Let us thus commit ourselves to use our collective memory from far and near to plant the seeds of a better future amidst the soil of a bitter past. Let us reaffirm our common aspiration for mutual understanding and justice. Let us share a common responsibility to fight the evils of genocide, ethnic cleansing, racism, prejudice, antisemitism and xenophobia which still scar so much of humanity. As South Africans, let us focus on what unites us rather than on what divides us, as Jew and Muslim, white and black, Christian and agnostic, rich and poor. Let us focus on our similarities rather than our differences in building a nation in which greed, selfishness and status are replaced by service, sacrifice and commitment. Motivated by our common heritage of suffering and pain, let us build a nation, a continent and a world of which we can all be justly proud. [Applause.]

The LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION: Chairperson, colleagues, I think everyone in Parliament today was deeply moved by Mr Feinstein’s speech, and by the fact that he and the people in the gallery are here to bear witness to one of the most extraordinarily evil events in the history of humankind - and that is the Holocaust. I suppose that if there is any good that comes out of terrible evil, it is the fact that almost exactly the same number of Jews who were exterminated in Europe during the Second World War now live as free citizens in the state of Israel.

The 20th century was at once the most brilliant and the most terrible of humankind’s existence. As we know, there has been astonishing scientific and economic progress which we could only imagine, even at the beginning of our own lifetimes. But, on the other hand there was mass slaughter and the darkest, most dreadful ideologies ever to enslave human minds. It is recorded and true that communism under Stalin killed more people than Nazism under Hitler. [Interjections.] But, what makes the Nazi crime worse is that they killed people not for what they had done, but for what they were. The gas chambers, the ovens, the medical experiments on human beings, the use of human fat and human skin, the torture and working to death in slave camps of men, women and children, all done methodically and systematically, these atrocities, as Mr Feinstein so eloquently reminded us, like apartheid were born of racism.

If this debate and its content, the motion and the Stockholm declaration are to have any meaning, we have to ask a number of questions. Some of them incidentally are deeply uncomfortable, but they need to be asked and addressed here this morning. The first is: Why did it happen? Adolf Hitler could have been stopped by criticism, by judicial resistance to his overthrow of the rule of law, by public exposure in newspapers, by ridicule, by satire, by aggressive opposition. The German society of that time did not provide enough or any of these democratic checks to prevent his taking over all power. We should never forget that he came into power in the first place by democratic election, although once in power he ended all democracy. We can never be sure that it will not happen again and so we should forever be watchful for the symptoms of racism and authoritarianism. We should forever maintain the weapons of democracy, vigorous public criticism, a free press, independent judiciaries and strong opposition.

There have been other massacres, even genocides, as Mr Feinstein reminded us, on other continents and across all centuries of the millennia. But, the defining cross and the crowning grotesqueness of the Nazi Shoah against the Jews of Europe was its intended finality. It was not just the death of six million that the Nazi overlords sought. It was the extermination of an entire race which was at the genesis of the final solution. That is why it was almost more important for the SS to seek out from their wretched hiding places and wrench from their mothers’ arms the children and the babies. If one wants to exterminate an entire race, group or religion one must kill the young.

Now because the Holocaust was of such transcending evil - and this is really the second challenge for us here in my view - we must be very truthful and very accurate when we speak about Nazism. This, as Mr Feinstein and the motion and the Stockholm declaration remind us, is a very grim and serious subject. If we make light of it or lie about it, we dishonour the millions who perished and we exonerate the Nazis.

I regret to say that in this House, on occasion, I and other people who have opposed the ruling party have been called - it is in the Hansard - neo- Nazi and neo-Fascist by certain members of the ANC. This sort of macabre distortion might seem amusing or trivial to some people, but in fact it is a deadly serious and dangerous threat to our democracy. It is also fatal to the task of not forgetting, of bearing witness and of being true to memory.

One cannot have it both ways. One cannot be antiracist and racist at the same time. [Interjections.] One cannot be anti-Holocaust and antisemitic simultaneously. But for those of us who are the living, there is an overriding duty towards those who died: Remember them. We must never, never forget the Holocaust. And I said during the TRC and I say it again today: We must have exactly the same attitude towards the victims of apartheid. They must never be forgotten.

During the hearings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission we heard people saying it was time to forget about the past. It is actually never time to forget about the past. If we forget we dishonour those who suffered; if we forget we are preparing the way for those crimes to be repeated. [Applause.]

Dr R RABINOWITZ: Madam Speaker, ``Remember the past, live in the present and hope in the future,’’ is the farewell to visitors who visit the Museum of the Diaspora in Israel. Why should we remember the past and why, in South Africa specifically, the Holocaust? Not only because six million Jews were murdered to satisfy a misguided politician’s Utopian dream, but because it was a calculated and malicious genocide that flourished in a highly cultured land, and because it involved scientists, politicians, academics and ordinary people who not only turned a blind eye to the event, but, in many cases, used it as an opportunity to give vent to pent-up hatred, as they butchered and humiliated Jews, gypsies and so-called opponents in many parts of eastern Europe.

We remember it, because it is a symbol of humans’ capacity for inhumanity to their fellows. We also remember it because it tells us something about ourselves as human beings, and it reminds us that none of us is immune to racism, blood lust, intoxication with power, or brutal and insatiable tyranny. We therefore have a duty to always guard against them.

The Holocaust was not the only time people were killed on a mass scale in the name of somebody’s vision of Utopia - hundreds of millions have died in the name of some religion or other, an estimated 100 million died in the cause of Communism, and millions others died owing to ethnic fear or hatred. Our own history of apartheid has not yet fully been revealed.

We humans are contradictory and ambiguous as life itself. We have the capacity for unconditional love, for moving beyond our egotistical selves and for joining forces with others for the betterment of life on earth, but we also have the capacity to be selfishly cut off from all other living creatures, to delude ourselves about our motives and to derive perverse pleasure from hurting, humiliating and hounding fellow humans. The 46 countries that paid tribute to the victims of the Holocaust committed themselves to remembrance, education and research. Part of that education and research must be to fathom how to live and govern, so that we bequeath to our children, a world in which they become balanced individuals with a sense of self-worth and respect for one another, with integrity, creativity and meaningful life.

We must build individuals who see within themselves the seeds of life or the seeds of destruction, and who try to make a difference by subjecting themselves to a code of ethical and social values, so that they benefit others, as they benefit themselves. This is not an easy task in a society in which individual rights have become more important than obligations; in a society in which we have broken down the moral authority of of parents, teachers, traditional leaders and God; in a society in which we encourage people to break with the values of the past, and just do it; and in a society in which it is easier to excuse people for their criminal actions than to punish them or to reform their way of life.

It is especially significant that this declaration was signed at the beginning of the 21 century, in which the age of technology will be extended to the age of biotechnology, when machines and science will give individuals vast powers to exploit and hurt others. There is a danger that as we become more techno-competent, we will lose our capacity to bond compassionately as members of families and communities, to think deeply and to concern ourselves with anything other than material comfort and superficial pleasure.

Our youth do not want to be burdened with the past. They have to deal with their own problems - they face Aids, broken families, drugs, and hooliganism. Two million children died in the Holocaust. The work done by the Holocaust Centre, in making past suffering relevant to students in the present, is important and commendable.

Here in South Africa we have an added obligation to keep the memory of apartheid alive, but it must not be by instruments that use people’s suffering for political ends. If we are paying genuine tribute to millions who have died in the 20th century owing to racism, ethnocentricism, antisemitism or intolerance for whatever reason, then we ourselves must have the integrity to guard against using any of these -isms for political ends. Remembering the Holocaust is as much about our remembering the monsters as about acknowledging the saints - people like Raoul Wallenberg and ordinary men and women who risked their lives to help others. It is individuals like these that we must continue to cultivate if we are to hope in the future.

I have addressed myself to remembering the past and hoping in the future, but what of living in the present? Much as we are products of the past, we have to live fully in the present, take responsibility for our actions and make choices not from reactions to the past, but based on our vision for a hopeful future. [Time expired.] [Applause.]

Dr B L GELDENHUYS: Chairperson, William Golding, a former British Nobel prizewinner, described the 20th century as follows:

I can’t help thinking that this has been the most violent century in human history.

So it was indeed. Not a single day has passed without one or another conflict raging somewhere on the globe. The most horrible and repugnant form of violence, however, was the so-called final solution to the Jewish question, in terms of which nearly 6 million Jewish people were systematically exterminated on the instruction of Adolf Hitler, despite recent efforts by the historian David Irving to deny that the Holocaust ever happened. The memory of the victims and heroes of the Holocaust should be kept alive as requested by the motion before the House, and it is an honour for the New NP to support it. [Applause.]

Allow me to point out that the gruesomeness of the Holocaust, described as a crime against humanity, was a unique and unprecedented event in human history, in that it was a state system aimed at wiping out every Jewish man, woman and child. Allow me to repeat this: The gruesomeness of the Holocaust was a unique and unprecedented event in human history. Therefore, typifying any other offence against humanity not of the magnitude of the Holocaust, as a crime against humanity, does the Holocaust an injustice.

The motion further calls for strengthening the fight, inter alia, against antisemitism. An appropriate place to start would be the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights which still calls for the elimination of Zionism in the preamble. Allow me to quote from the Charter: Conscious of their duty to achieve the total liberation of Africa, the peoples of which are still struggling for their dignity and genuine independence, and undertaking to eliminate colonialism, neocolonialism, apartheid and Zionism.

Zionism is still firmly embedded in the preamble of the Charter. I therefore urge the Minister of Foreign Affairs to implement a resolution by this House that the Organisation of African Unity be approached in order to delete ``Zionism’’ from the preamble in accordance with existing UN resolutions. This decision culminated from a recommendation by the Portfolio Committee on Foreign Affairs when South Africa’s accession to the Charter was discussed. A report was approved by the House and there is no reason why it should not be implemented.

The Cape Town Holocaust Centre is the first and only one of its kind in Africa, and on behalf of the New NP, I wish them well. [Applause.]

Mr S ABRAM: Madam Chair, I wish to congratulate the hon member Mr Feinstein on an extremely moving address in the House today. I wish to go into the history of this particular period, lest we forget.

The Shoah period commenced on 13 January 1933 when Adolf Hitler attained the chancellorship of Germany and lasted until May 1945 upon the conclusion of the war in Europe. Hitler called fresh elections in a calculated effort to get Nazi control of the Reichstag - the German Parliament - by utilising state apparatus to terrorise opposition parties by banning meetings and arresting leaders - something we became accustomed to in South Africa as well. His plan, the ultimate solution, was designed to annihilate and exterminate the entire Jewish population of Europe.

Jews in Europe were subjected to the harshest treatment possible, which resulted in the deaths of 6 million people, 25% of whom were innocent children, and destroyed at least 5 000 established Jewish communities. A third of the world’s Jewish population and two-thirds of European Jews died. Hitler and the Nazis took advantage of the political unrest in Germany and incited clashes, blaming the Jews for Germany’s ills.

Jews were blamed and labelled a misfortune. Cartoons featured Jews as hooked nosed and ape-like, and they were accused of corrupting pure German culture with their foreign and so-called mongrel cultural influence. Jews were portrayed as being evil and cowardly, and the Germans as hard-working, courageous and honest. Jews were well represented in those days in finance, commerce, the press, literature, theatre and the arts. The Nazis further claimed that Germany’s economy and culture had been weakened by Jews.

The government-supported propaganda machine created a racial antisemitism, inflaming anti-Jewish German sentiment. Jewish isolation was further promoted by the enacting of anti-Jewish legislation which formed a legal basis for the exclusion of Jews from German society and by the progressively restrictive anti-Jewish policies of the Germans. At this juncture, one is reminded of the enactment of the notorious Group Areas Act in South Africa, the scars of which are still to be seen all around us.

Distraught at the deportation of his family, Herschell Greinspann, a 17- year-old Jewish lad shot and killed Ernst Von Radt, the third secretary at the German embassy in Paris. This incident was seized upon by Nazi hooligans as an excuse, during the night of 9 and 10 November 1938, to start on a course of destruction. Homes and businesses were looted and burned. Even synagogues were not spared.

Jews were beaten on sight and killed, and over 30 000 Jews were incarcerated in concentration camps. Jews were forcibly deported from their homes to live in crowded ghettos, isolating them from the rest of society. Concentrating them in one location helped Nazis to deport Jews to death camps, subjecting them to lack of food, water, space and sanitary facilities required by so many living within a restricted space. Many died of deprivation and starvation.

On 20 January 1942, the Nazi government officials met officially to co- ordinate military and civilian branches of the Nazi system to organise and co-ordinate a system of mass murder of Jews. This meeting, called the Wannsee Conference, marked the start of a vicious extermination operation against Jews. Jews were given special treatment in the manner in which they were exterminated.

May we hope and pray that this sad saga in our history will inspire us to create a better future in this century of the African renaissance. [Time expired] [Applause.] Ms C DUDLEY: Madam Chairperson and colleagues -

Week after week, the whistle would blow. We dreaded the sound of those wheels because we knew that we would hear the cries of the Jews on their way to the death camps. Their screams tormented us. We say more loudly when we hear them `please God, forgive me. Forgive all of us who called ourselves Christians but did nothing to help those Jews.

A letter written by a German Christian, Ebenezer.

During the Holocaust, 6 million Jews, including 1,5 million children, were systematically murdered by the Nazis. The church was silent. This horrendous event was preceded by 1 700 years of antisemitic pronouncements and actions by the church that helped to pave the way for the Holocaust. Sadly, most Christians are unaware of this terrible legacy that has clouded the clear purpose of the church to bring hope and reconciliation. Although the past cannot be undone, the modern return of the Jewish people to their ancient homeland has been accompanied by an awakening in the church to play its part.

The Cape Town Holocaust Centre has joined hands to afford all of us the opportunity to understand something of this past, to learn from it, to see how we can help tangibly to mend some of the harm that has been done. The ACDP supports the motion tabled today on the Stockholm Declaration. We can only commit ourselves as a nation to a better future against a set of standards, adopted from certain tried and tested values. These are values of freedom and democracy, born out of a history of struggle against an oppressive system. The ACDP supports such values, as they are grounded in the Christian ethic, and calls on all of us in this House to commit to promoting these values tirelessly in our constituencies.

I refer to the declaration and quote:

… the international community shares a common responsibility to fight the evils of genocide, ethnic cleansing, racism, prejudice, anti-semitism and xenophobia which still scar humanity …

We agree to -

… continue to encourage the study of and education about the historical and moral dimensions of the Holocaust and to honour those who stood against it …

In South Africa 100 000 babies are annihilated before they have even taken their first breath, stripped of every right, even the right to life. The ACDP implores this House to stand against this holocaust and heinous crime against humanity. [Interjections.]

If one wants to exterminate a nation one must exterminate the young, said Tony Leon about the Nazis. How can South Africa embrace the hideous theology of murdering our unborn children, born out of a philosophy of Margaret Sanger, who embraced the Nazi theology? [Interjections.]

Dr C P MULDER: Mr Chairperson, I prepared two speeches for today, one if the debate dealt specifically with the Holocaust and a different one if it went beyond that. I will be using my second speech, the one that goes beyond the Holocaust. I thought the debate should have dealt specifically with the Holocaust.

People instinctively know what is right and what is wrong. It is precisely for this reason that humans react so strongly when we are confronted with cruelty or evil. It is not always easy to be a government, so what do governments sometimes do when they do not perform? They find someone or some minority group to blame. This normally works well the first time around and majorities support them, but later those same majorities, who now believe what they have been told, want to see effective action in dealing with the so-called problem that has been identified, very conveniently, earlier. This is exactly what happened in Germany when the Jewish minority was blamed for many things by Hitler. We all know what the end of that route was.

The motion before us today, quite correctly so, refers to the famous quote by Santayana who said that those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it''. But it is also true what was said by Churchill and I quote:We must learn the lessons of the past. We must not remember today the hatreds of yesterday.’’

The motion refers to the work being done by the Cape Town Holocaust Centre and stresses that this education will communicate an important message about the need to remember our own tragic past. As an Afrikaner whose family has been part of the Afrikaner’s quest for freedom, I can fully associate myself with this. From my perspective it was not the Nazis who invented the idea of concentration camps, but the British who did exactly this some 40 years previously in South Africa.

The Anglo-Boer War was not lost so much on the battlefields, but in the concentration camps. At the end of the war when the British started putting women and children in concentration camps, 27 900 of them died. This is seven times the number killed on the battlefield. The mortality rate for children under the age of 16 then was 509 per 1 000 per annum. If this mortality rate for July to December 1901 was continued for a further three years, not a single man, woman or child would have survived this genocide.

We in the FF support this motion today because of its specific wording and the fact that it deals specifically with the Holocaust and what happened in that situation, and condemns genocide, ethnic cleansing, racism, anti- semitism and xenophobia. We support that. It is unfortunate - and I agree with Dr Geldenhuys - that it does not do the concept and whole debate surrounding the Holocaust good, if, as happened today, we try to connect this issue with other issues such as apartheid, the Anglo-Boer War or other issues as such.

I said at the beginning that I had prepared two speeches. I would have preferred today to speak only on the Holocaust, but it was not made possible, because some of our members decided to take up other issues. So this is what happened.

We will support the motion.

Mr I S MFUNDISI: Madam Speaker, hon members, the Holocaust is the worst violation of human rights that took place in the 12 years spanning 1933 to

1. South Africa had a similar era when black people were kept out of mainstream politics and discriminated against through legislation.

The difference between suffering by the Jews at the hands of the Nazis, and that of black South Africans is that in the case of the latter, they were in the majority, yet suffered at the hands of a white minority. As if it was not enough for blacks in this country to have survived apartheid, the dawn of democracy brought with it suffering for some blacks, suffering which was reminiscent of the Holocaust.

As in the case of the Holocaust, intolerance reared its head in the late eighties up to the early nineties. People’s businesses were boycotted, some vandalised and others went up in smoke. As in the Holocaust, people were dismissed from government service, mainly for who they were, and not what they did wrong or did not do in their work. [Interjections.]

The holier-than-thou attitude of some of the people around here is what defiles our hard-won democracy. The less fortunate, those fewer in numbers and those who are unable to express themselves, should by no means be used as doormats by the fortunate ones and those who are in authority.

We have to accept that the Holocaust and apartheid have been a lesson to us all. It should not be repeated, even in the most benign manner. We should refuse to accept George Orwell’s argument that some pigs are more equal than others. Those who find themselves in leadership should take that as only being the first among equals.

If we should rise to the African renaissance goal, then we have to go to the basics. We should learn to be our brother’s keepers. We should love, respect, serve, consult with and tolerate humankind in all our endeavours. The need for a resolve against racism, ethnocentrism, xenophobia and intolerance could not have been put better by the writers of the interim Constitution of 1993 when they said:

There is a need for understanding, not for vengeance; a need for reparation, but not for retaliation; and a need for ubuntu, but not for victimisation.

We hope to strive for the highest good in all we do, so that we can be at peace with all others. [Applause.]

Dr S E M PHEKO: Madam Speaker, the PAC supports the motion stemming from the Stockholm Declaration. It condemns the Nazis for the suffering they caused to the Jewish community. But the PAC wants all holocausts recognised in history. One of the worst holocausts the world has ignored is the African holocaust caused by the transatlantic slave trade and colonialism.

Pope John Paul II is the only significant personality who has consistently pronounced on the African holocaust. Speaking in Dakar, Senegal, in February 1992, he pleaded with Africans to -

… forgive all those who, during those 500 years, have been the cause of pain and suffering for your ancestors and for yourselves.

Again, during his visit to Brazil on 2 October 1997, the Pope said:

We must not forget that there have been other holocausts in the world, and we must not forget these other holocausts.

It is estimated that 100 million Africans were taken into slavery for 500 years. About 20% of them died between the time of capture and embarkation. Today’s Ghana was forced to supply 5 000 to 6 000 slaves a year for 400 years. Congo became the private estate of King Leopold of Belgium. His brutality led to the African population there declining from 20 million to 9 million, according to Sir H Johnston. In South Africa the San people have been exterminated.

The Rev J H Soga, writing on the African holocaust, said:

Murder was the order of the day. Family on family were often completely swept away, not even an infant being spared; millions upon millions of sons and daughters of Africa were sent to destruction as if they had been wild animals.

Corroborating these facts, Stanton A Coblentz writes:

… villages had been left desolate and emptyn … children had been orphaned, mothers separated from their sons, sons from their mothers, husbands from their wives … for these strangers from across the waters were pitiless hunters of … men.

Justice must be done to all victims of holocausts. [Applause.]

Miss S RAJBALLY: Madam Chairperson, I wish to thank the hon Feinstein, his speech was most touching. If not to everybody’s, it certainly brought tears to my eyes. In 1976, I spent three and a half months in Israel, and was able to see, on a 24-hour slide, the suffering and the painful killing of the 6 million Jews. It was very sad.

The forum of the Holocaust on Stockholm is a global effort to discuss the political and ethical consequences of the Holocaust and whether we have or have not completed the diagnosis of its cause. What is immensely disappointing is that we have not achieved any hard and fast answers as to why such evil acts as genocide, ethnic cleansing, racism, antisemitism and xenophobia that were exercised by authoritarian leaders like Hitler and Idi Amin, were committed.

The world is caught in the transition period of global transformation from the 20th century to the 21st century. It is absolutely necessary that the new generation becomes involved with issues of the Holocaust since the surviving victims, who are the previous generation, are limited, and soon will no longer be with us to share their ordeal.

The fundamental issues that must be addressed by the world are: What can we learn from the Holocaust? How can the investigation of the Holocaust alert contemporary society to the dangers of antisemitism, racism, ethnic conflict and other expressions of hatred and discrimination? What can politicians and other significant forces in the community do to promote education, remembrance and research about the Holocaust?

Yad Vashem, in Israel, have responded to a real challenge in which an ambitious plan of growth and development was developed that includes the construction of a new international school, a new archive and a library facility that will include all relevant records of the Holocaust in one place, the innovative use of new technology which includes a project to collect some 3,5 million names of Jewish victims of the Holocaust on a computer database, and the construction of a new museum.

It took the UN 45 years to implement the convention on the prevention and punishment of the crime of genocide, even in part. It was only in 1993 that special courts were established to punish the crimes committed in Yugoslavia and later in Rwanda. It was not until 1993 that a permanent UN international criminal court was approved. However, in spite of the awareness of the genocide, the risk of the evil crime is still prevalent in many war-torn countries in the world.

No dictator or nation on earth … [Time expired.] [Applause.] Mr C AUCAMP: Chairperson, the AEB identifies itself wholeheartedly with the Stockholm Declaration, with each and every one of the eight paragraphs thereof.

The motion under discussion, good as it is, should be supported and I would like to do that. We must, however, read the motion within its context. The accompanying letter from hon Feinstein refers to the ``similarities and differences between the Holocaust and apartheid’’, as, inter alia, reflected by the Holocaust Centre.

I visited the centre yesterday. It was, indeed, remarkable. I was deeply moved. However, I have to draw the attention of the House to one aspect of the exhibition which also comes through between the lines of the motion and in the speeches today. From the very beginning, the visitor is confronted with the so-called ``South African experience’’. In vivid fashion, the similarities between the Holocaust and apartheid are shown, but not the differences.

Die uitstalling voer apartheid terug na die verskynsel van antisemitisme onder Afrikaners, na die Gryshemde en die Ossewabrandwag se antisemitisme. Dan, met ‘n foto van dr Verwoerd, kom dit by die oorgang na apartheid. Gister wys die gids na die foto van dr Verwoerd en vra betekenisvol aan die gehoor: ``And where did he study? In Germany, of course! And he brought back those ideologies to South Africa,’’ en een-twee-drie, siedaar, daar begin apartheid, met sy wortels in die antisemitisme, in die superieure ras en die gevolglike uitwissing van ander. Agb lede moet my nie verkeerd verstaan nie. Ek probeer apartheid nie hier goedpraat nie, maar dit is eenvoudig nie waar nie. Die Afrikaner kan nie daarvoor ook pa staan nie.

Die destydse aanklank onder sekere Afrikaners by Duitsland was nie gebore uit antisemitisme of rassehaat nie. Dit was vanweë die weerstand teen Brittanje. Die destydse NP het hom uitdruklik gedistansieer van die OB en sy lede geskors. Dr Malan was ‘n uitgesproke vyand van Nasionaal- sosialisme.

Daar word by hierdie uitstalling veel gewag gemaak van die ooreenkomste, maar wat van die verskille tussen apartheid en Naziïsme? Apartheid het nooit as ideologiese onderbou gehad die superioriteit van een ras bó ‘n ander nie, maar wel die oordrewe verabsolutering van die verskille. Apartheid is nie gebore uit ‘n ekspansionisties-imperialistiese drang na ‘n wêreldryk nie. Dit was die mislukte poging om die vryheid en selfregering van die Afrikaner, waarvoor baie offers gebring is, te beskerm. Apartheid het nooit etniese uitwissing ten doel gehad nie. Dit is veel eerder waar van die konsentrasiekampe en uitsprake soos ``one settler, one bullet!’’ (Translation of Afrikaans paragraphs follows.)

[The exhibition traces apartheid back to the phenomenon of antisemitism among Afrikaners, to the antisemitism of the Gryshemde and the Ossewabrandwag. Then, with a photograph of Dr Verwoerd, we come to the transition to apartheid.

Yesterday the guide pointed to the photograph of Dr Verwoerd and asked the audience a significant question: ``But where did he study? In Germany, of course! And he brought back those ideologies to South Africa,’’ and in the twinkling of an eye, lo and behold, apartheid came into being, rooted in antisemitism, in the superior race and the consequent extermination of others. Hon members must not misunderstand me. I am not trying to condone apartheid here, but statements such as these are simply not true. The Afrikaner cannot be held responsible for this as well.

The affinity which existed at that time between certain Afrikaners and Germany was not based on antisemitism or racial hatred. It can be attributed to opposition to Britain. The NP at the time expressly dissociated itself from the OB and suspended its members. Dr Malan was an outspoken enemy of National Socialism.

At this exhibition much mention is made of the similarities, but what about the differences between apartheid and Nazism? Apartheid was never based ideologically on the superiority of one race over another, but, in fact, on the exaggerated absolutisation of the differences. Apartheid did not arise out of an expansionistic, imperialistic desire to build a world empire. It was a failed attempt to protect the freedom and self-determination of the Afrikaner, for which many sacrifices had been made. Apartheid never had ethnic extermination as its objective. This is far rather true of the concentration camps and slogans such as ``one settler, one bullet’’.]

If we want to come to terms with our past, as the motion says, ``to plant the seeds of a better future amidst the soil of a bitter past’’, then we cannot apply selective morality. And, surely, we have to abide by the demands of a true and honest view on our history. The point of departure of the Holocaust exhibition and the context of this motion and some speeches gives a distorted picture of the complex and specific nature of our own past. This is not the soil for the seed of true reconciliation. Therefore, as much as I would have liked to, I cannot support this motion.

Mr M A MANGENA: Madam Chair, those of us in this House who are of a darker hue have seen with our own eyes and felt with our own bodies the sheer brutality and inhumanity of Godforsaken ideologies such as racism and antisemitism. We have seen open, naked and hostile discrimination. We have seen whole communities’ houses flattened by bulldozers; the livestock stolen or destroyed, the people forcibly loaded onto trucks and dumped in the open veld without a modicum of facilities, simply because those people were of the wrong colour.

Some of us know what it is like to be snatched from one’s bed in the middle of the night by the police, taken to a police station to be beaten, tortured and, if one is lucky, sent to prison, and, if one is not so lucky, murdered - this simply because one is of the wrong colour. Some of us have seen children being mowed down with automatic guns in Soweto, in Mamelodi, in Kwazakele, etc, by big, strong men in uniform simply because those children were of the wrong colour. Some of us have seen close friends, great human beings, immensely talented pals such as Steve Biko, Mapetla Mohapi, Mthwili kaShezi and others, needlessly murdered and wasted simply because they were of the wrong colour.

Our understanding, therefore, of the plight of the Jews, who were rounded up and murdered en masse all over Europe simply because they were of the wrong religion, cannot be anything but deep and intense. We know that the sheer scale of the Holocaust and the heinousness of the concentration camps and the gas chambers go far beyond our imagination. But still, we do understand the insanity of the ideologies that give rise to these barbaric acts against other human beings. Those of us, those societies, those countries, those races and religions that have experienced murderous persecution from the adherents of these, the foolish but dangerous ideologies of racism and antisemitism, understand why bigotry of any description must not be humoured.

We should ensure that these evils never return to haunt us and that we build a fair, just, tolerant and open society where inhumanity to others is not allowed. We should quickly correct the legacy of oppression of the past and at the same time ensure that we ourselves oppress no one, that the victims never become villains. Azapo supports this motion. [Applause.]

Debate concluded.

Motion agreed to.

CONSIDERATION OF REPORT OF PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SERVICE AND
ADMINISTRATION - DRAFT CODE OF ETHICS FOR MEMBERS OF THE CABINET AND
                    MEMBERS OF EXECUTIVE COUNCILS

The MINISTER OF EDUCATION: Madam Chairperson, as Shakespeare ended Hamlet, Fortinbras said: The rest is silence.'' The rest ought to be silence, but we cannot afford that silence. I invoke Milan Kundera, a great writer who says:The debate that took place was a triumph of memory over forgetting, and the memory over forgetting is a great triumph for the human spirit.’’

What I am going to introduce now is not unrelated to the remarkable richness of most of the participants’ in this debate. On behalf of the President, I am pleased to introduce the debate to this House, on the draft code of ethics for executive members at the national and provincial levels of Government. In terms of clause 8.4 of the Draft Code, it will be called the Executive Ethics Code.

This code has its origin in our own social contract, the basis of our liberties, the Constitution. Sections 96 and 136 require that members of the Cabinet and Deputy Ministers as well as members of Provincial Executive Councils ``must act in accordance with the code of ethics prescribed by national legislation’’.

In line with the Constitution, the Executive Members’ Ethics Act, 1998, requires that the President must, after consultation with Parliament, by proclamation in the Gazette, publish a code of ethics prescribing standards and rules aimed at promoting open, democratic and accountable government, with which Cabinet members, Deputy Ministers and MECs must comply in performing their official responsibilities.

Consultations are already taking place in the National Council of Provinces, which unanimously assented to this code. The Portfolio Committee for Public Service and Administration, in this House, also gave the code systematic and careful consideration. A report of the deliberation will be prepared for this House.

Since 1994, we have been engaged in the important task of building a new framework for accountability in ethics, in public life. The ultimate goal is a society in which the intrinsic values of honesty, decency and good ethical conduct hold sway. This new code is a further important staging post along the way.

I am proud of the fact that I am a member of this House, which, in 1995, led the way with the decision to create a ground-breaking code of conduct for members of Parliament. That code, formulated in 1996 - and many of the members participated in that - is the code of conduct in regard to financial interest. It was more recently incorporated in the Rules of Parliament and set a particularly high standard. It has been described as one of the most stringent sets of rules for elected officials anywhere in the world, notwithstanding claims from certain quarters, that we should be following the Canadian code of ethics. ``Why not the Mongolian code of ethics?’’ I say.

This is a uniquely South African solution to suit our own arrangements and our own democratic dispensation. It has been replicated in the sphere of local government, as part of the Local Government: Municipal Structures Act, 1998, in a rather unique fashion, because very few countries have translated this into the local government sphere. The concept that underpins it, namely transparency in relation to potential conflicts between the public duty and the private interest, has informed the Public Service Commission as it began the immense task of developing a new culture of accountability within the extensive ranks of the Public Service.

At the time when Parliament was designing its own code, I said these words: Let it be understood that if we follow the mores of the alley cat and elevate it to the level of Parliament on questions of personal and public ethics, this will set the tone throughout society. It impacts on our country’s economic performance, business efficiency, race relations and attitudes generally. It will undoubtedly have the disastrous effect of confirming the Afro-pessimists’ view that nothing good can come out of Africa.

We should not have to be dragooned into setting high standards in public life. We should willingly seek maximum openness about what our public representatives do and receive. While I believe that the national parliamentary code of conduct was instrumental in equipping this House to set and maintain high standards of conduct, as it has done, I also believe that the words I said in 1996 are as pertinent now as they were then.

I recall a slogan I heard in Britain while I was a student there, which was circulated by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and which said, ``A dog is for life and not just for Christmas’’. In a similar sense, there are no laurels to be rested on. High standards in public life are an on-going, never-ending pursuit. This new executive code is an extension of the bridge that has been established by the parliamentary code.

It covers all members of the national Cabinet, including the President, all the Deputy Ministers and all members of provincial executives, including all premiers. It brings within the fold of the national parliamentary code, therefore, the most senior elected provincial officers. This is because the Act of Parliament from which the executive code derives, ie the Executive Members’ Ethics Act of 1998, wisely uses the parliamentary code as a floor or a basic standard above which the executive code must rise.

In doing so, it recognises that it is within the executive that the most acute conflicts of interest may arise, and also states some very clear general standards of conduct. It is for that that reason that the code requires members of the executive to adhere to four additional constraints upon their private conduct.

Firstly, not only is a member of the executive required, under the code, to declare any personal financial or business interest before the Cabinet or executive council, or the committee on which the member serves, or an area in which the member is required to take an executive decision, but, where it is relevant, and not trivial, they must withdraw from the proceedings or the decision-making process.

Secondly, where a member holds a financial or business interest which may - not shall'', referring to an actual conflict of interests, but the strongermay’’, meaning a potential conflict of interests - give rise to a conflict of interests in the performance of that member’s functions as a member of the executive, the member must either dispose of the interest or place it in what other countries have loosely called a ``blind trust’’, over which the member has no control.

This is a far-reaching and more stringent extension of the parliamentary code since, for example, as a mandatory compulsory disclosure, it extends to the financial interests of a member’s spouse or permanent companion, as the case may be, and dependent children. This is a compulsory obligation, not optional as is the case in the parliamentary code.

Thirdly, the code states that members of the executive may not receive remuneration for any work or service other than for the performance of their functions as members of the executive.

Fourthly, the code is explicit in recognising that public officials accept gifts at their peril. Therefore a member of the executive may not accept a gift or benefit where it constitutes improper influence on the member or an attempt to influence the member in the performance of the member’s duties. The code wisely requires that the recipient of a gift worth more than R1 000 obtain permission from either the President or the premier, as the case may be, to keep the gift, or else return or decline the gift or donate it to the state.

As is the case in the parliamentary code, the public section of the disclosures made to the Secretary of the Cabinet or provincial executive council will be available for public scrutiny. Transparency is to private interests and public life what safe sex is to HIV/Aids. [Laughter.] Transparency prevents rather than cures. That is why it is a mistake to overestimate the value of such a code. It is also why it is a mistake to underestimate the value of such a measure.

More than anything else, it sets standards for leadership. South Africa is a newborn country, learning new deeds and new habits. Whatever our differences, I am confident that we have a common goal for that society in which good governance and public life will be matched by good governance and corporate life and, indeed, in all walks of life.

At the agenda-setting anticorruption summit held in November 1998, the then Deputy President Mbeki laid down the challenge, and I quote:

Public servants are under a heavy obligation to weigh their discretionary powers against their effectiveness in meeting the moral imperative, that is, serving the public with integrity. This will necessitate the re- examination of the soul of the public sector and the quest for a philosophy of service where human interdependence would replace selfish pursuit, not only in our thinking, but in the way we institutionalise conduct.

Virtue and good ethical behaviour in the public sector is not inherently resident in the minds of public officials. The lure of the lap of luxury at state expense may be perennially interrogated through codes of ethics.

In his speech last week, the President of the Constitutional Court, Judge Chaskalson, reminded us of our responsibilities to the Constitution and to each other. In this context it is worthwhile to note that the birth of the draft code before the House is a constitutional prescription laid down in our social contract. So this code is not an optional extra, but a constitutional duty we must perform. As Judge Chaskalson says, the Constitution offers a vision for the future:

A society in which there will be social justice and respect for human rights, a society in which the basic needs of all of our people will be met, in which we all live together in harmony, showing respect and concern for one another.

Courageously, he suggests that we may be in danger of not realising this vision, even though we are capable of doing so, and that too many of us are concerned about what we can get from the new society, and too few with what is needed for the realisation of the goals of the Constitution. So, as leaders, we must demonstrate in words and deeds our commitment to the Constitution. This code, constructed carefully and diligently on the back of earlier initiatives, as I have said, provides us with an opportunity to do so.

Those of us who have the honour to have been elected to representative service and appointed to executive office, have the right and the duty to impose rigorous standards on those who serve us as well as those whom we serve in terms of our ethical conduct, by our lawmaking, of our executive decisions and through our public pronouncements. But they in turn, like the servant in Troilus and Cressida to Pandarus’s question, Do you not follow the young Lord Paris?'' have the right to respond,Ay, sir, when he goes before me.’’ If our house is in order, then we have a more credible case to ask better things of others.

So, this code will help achieve this, and represents - along with other recent legislative developments which this House has passed: the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act, the Promotion of Access to Information Act and the Protected Disclosures Bill that is soon to reach the statute book - a further piece in the multidimensional matrix that must be constructed.

I urge members to note the portfolio committee’s worthy recommendation that Parliament adopt a similar code for its nonexecutive members by the end of this year. I note also the public discussion that such codes must be implanted in the entire Public Service. As I have said before in this House, the private sector must have more than the King Report on governance. The private sector must must live up to their aspirations. So, with the Executive Ethics Code in place we, the most senior members of Government, can stand tall and say to our country: We have set a standard, now follow! It is for these considerations that I commend this code to the House and invite hon members’ comments for consideration by the President. [Applause.]

Sister N Z NCUBE: Madam Chair and the House, in response to the second democratic election, President Mbeki said that the people had spoken. Yes, millions of people, irrespective of the political parties that they voted for, showed their confidence and trust in us, their elected representatives. It is incumbent on us to maintain the trust and the confidence shown in us by our people.

It is with this in mind that this Government has made it a priority to eradicate the scourge of corruption. However, we must be clear that this code of conduct is not about corruption, which is adequately addressed in other legislation. This code is about eliciting the highest standards of behaviour, honesty and integrity, from those who serve in the highest offices of our country. The code entrenches the one principle that all of us in public office must adhere to, that is, in every circumstance, we must place public interest before our own financial gain.

It is for this reason that I am pleased to support this stringent code of conduct for members of the Cabinet and MECs, as an important step in the right direction. This code gives direction to the executive on what behaviour we expect from them. In brief, we require them to act with integrity, honesty and transparency. The code prevents Cabinet members and MECs from using their office for private gain, and ensures that they always act in the public interest.

The code sets new standards for accountability, even beyond those set by the present Code for Members of Parliament, in respect of financial disclosure. The Cabinet members and the MECs must disclose their liabilities along with their assets, and as said by the Minister, Cabinet and the MECs may only accept gifts worth more than R1 000 with the permission of the President. All other gifts must either be declined or handed over to the state.

This code also illustrates that nobody in the public sphere should be allowed to pursue financial gain at the state’s expense, and that the highest offices are subject to close scrutiny. It is important to note that the Cabinet members and the MECs have voluntarily submitted themselves to such scrutiny. We note that, in other countries, governments usually respond only after public exposure of corruption. I congratulate the Cabinet for setting an example to all in the Public Service, and urge all elected representatives at all levels of government to follow this example.

Obviously, codes of conduct alone cannot ensure that ethical conduct will be maintained. It is generally accepted that there are eight elements that contribute to ethical conduct. They are: a democratically elected government that has accountability mechanisms for government activities, codes of conduct, socialisation mechanisms to entrench ethical conduct, appropriate service conditions, an ethics co-ordinating body, an active civil society and a legal framework for ethics. I think that we have gone a long way, at national level, in achieving this mix.

Building a culture of ethical behaviour is the task of every single member in this House. From the side of the Government, we must respect the mandate that we received from our people. From the opposition, we would welcome constructive criticism, and hope that they will fulfil their obligation as the opposition of Government. However, in these last few months, one has noted, with regret, that members use their parliamentary privilege to make fictitious and unfounded allegations against other members, sometimes to the detriment of the country as a whole.

I urge members not to use ethics as a political tool. Cultivating a lack of respect … [Time expired.] [Applause.]

Mr G A J GROBLER: Chairperson, in terms of the Constitution, the national Cabinet is accountable, collectively and individually, to Parliament for the exercise of its powers and the performance of its functions. Members of the Cabinet are further required to act in accordance with the Constitution and must provide Parliament with full and regular reports concerning matters under their control, as mentioned in section 92. Members of an executive council of a province are similarly accountable.

The Constitution contains several instructions requiring Parliament to pass legislation to give effect to its provisions. Members will still recall, as the Minister said, that previously Bills were passed in terms of the three- year deadline imposed in terms of the transitional arrangements. But no such deadline was in place for the Executive Members’ Ethics Act which was passed by Parliament, assented to by the President and commenced on 20 October 1998. In terms of the Act, complaints are to be investigated by the Public Protector at various governmental levels.

The Public Protector noted in reports that no general code of conduct for members of Parliament was in place. Only a code of conduct regarding their financial interests was in place, and he urged for the speeding up of this process. Now, several actions of politicians in the recent past further enhanced the need for a code of ethics which was a major concern, as I said, according to the report of the Public Protector. Actions and statements of the following senior politicians served as a perfect example of why we need a code of ethics: Jessie Duarte from Gauteng, Pat Matosa from the Free State, Vax Mayekiso from the Free State, Ace Magashule from the Free State, Steve Mabona from Mpumalanga and the statements by the Premier of Mpumalanga last year, just to name a few. I have not got time to go through the whole list. [Interjections.]

Because of the many cases, the Office of the Public Protector, with its limited financial and personnel resources, cannot cope with this workload. We must rather work, on the contrary, so that he is without a job. But, we must then create a situation where politicians can remain within the boundaries set by the code of ethics.

It has been proved in 18 countries, where the best codes of ethics are embedded in legislation, that the success of any code of ethics depends on the commitment of the political office bearers. We need a commitment from our people to make a success of this code of ethics. A paradigm shift has to be made by everybody, from those in the Public Service right up to the most senior politicians in South Africa.

As already stated, it does not help to have the best code of ethics if people are not committed to it. It must be in the hearts of people.

‘n Gedragskode is gebaseer op die etiese morele norme wat geldend is in ‘n samelewing. ‘n Gedragskode word voorgehou aan die bekleërs van senior poste in ‘n instansie, in hierdie geval die Regering. Hoë standaarde moet gestel word aan die lede van die uitvoerende gesag. Politici op alle vlakke sowel as staatsamptenare moet te alle tye in hulle optrede ‘n standaard stel wat navolgenswaardig is.

Negatiewe publisiteit soos ons nou weer beleef het ten opsigte van senior amptenare wat daarvan beskuldig word dat hulle opvoedkundige kwalifikasies vervals om senior poste te beklee stuur geensins ‘n positiewe boodskap uit nie. Dit is baie belangrik om daaraan aandag te gee. Die optrede van die amptenare is misdadigheid. Ministers moet optree teen die skuldiges om enigsins ‘n bietjie geloofwaardigheid aan die stelsel te verleen, anders het ons ‘n siek regeringsvorm, en ons kan dit nie bekostig nie.

‘n Etiese kode is soos ‘n wet wat ‘n bepaalde verantwoordelikheid van ‘n mens eis, maar etiese optrede moet deel wees van ‘n persoon se innerlike ingesteldheid om sekere morele standaarde te handhaaf. Politici wat daagliks in die openbare oog is, het des te meer ‘n verantwoordelikheid, veral op die senior uitvoerende vlak, om inherent ‘n behoefte te hê om eties te lééf. Ons moet eintlik nie eens ‘n etiese kode vir hulle hê nie. Daardie mense moet dit inherent in hulle hê om so te leef. Hierdie dokument is ‘n baie goeie begin. Daar is sekere aspekte wat miskien aandag kan geniet, en daarom steun ons dit in elk geval in hierdie stadium. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraphs follows.)

[A code of conduct is based on the ethical and moral norms which apply in a community. A code of conduct is impressed upon the incumbents of senior positions in an institution, in this case the Government. High standards must be set for members of the executive. Politicians at all levels, as well as government officials, must at all times set a standard of conduct which is worthy of emulation. Negative publicity such as we have just experienced in respect of senior officials who are accused of falsifying their educational qualifications in order to fill senior positions by no means sends out a positive message. It is very important to give attention to this. The actions of officials are tantamount to crimes. Ministers must take action against the guilty parties to lend some measure of credibility to the system, otherwise we will have a sick form of government, and we cannot afford that.

A code of ethics is like a law which demands a certain responsibility of one, but ethical behaviour must be part of a person’s inner disposition to maintain certain moral standards. Politicians who are in the public eye on a daily basis have an even greater responsibility, especially at the senior executive level, to display an inherent need to live ethically. We should actually not even have a code of ethics for them. These people should inherently have it in them to live in this manner. This document is a very good start. There are certain aspects which should possibly receive attention, and therefore we support it at this stage.]

In conclusion, I want to use the example of a person such as Helen Suzman, who represented high ethical standards for many years in South African politics, a person respected by her colleagues and opponents for those exact reasons, a person who was always admired for her fighting spirit against the cruel laws of the past, a person whom I can only describe as a perfect example of someone in the South African political scenario whom we can proudly call Madam Ethics of South African politics.

Mrs S A SEATON: Chairperson, hon members, this code of ethics is long overdue, as it was 18 months ago that Parliament passed the Executive Members’ Ethics Act in November 1998. We would support the chairperson of the parliamentary ethics committee in congratulating Cabinet members who have subjected themselves voluntarily to this code. We, in the IFP, support transparent, accountable government by our country’s highest ranking democratically elected representatives. If that is what the code of ethics seeks to ensure, then we support it.

However, there are some issues on which we must raise some concerns. Firstly, the Minister has actually alluded to the fact that the Cabinet member does include the President. However, whilst in the definitions of the Executive Members’ Ethics Act a Cabinet member specifically includes the President, in the definitions under the draft code of ethics it does not. We really would want to see that this is, in fact, put in there, so that there is no doubt in anybody’s mind that all parties are in fact under this code, and that would apply to premiers of provinces as well.

We would have preferred to have had provinces decide for themselves the kind of code of ethics that they would want, but we realise that they now, too, fall under this. We realise and would appreciate that the premiers too should automatically be incorporated in the definitions. Government should not really be dictating to provinces, but we accept the situation for what it is at the present moment.

We also point out our concern that the code does not make it clear to whom the President and premiers are accountable, and this is considered by us to be a serious flaw. The people are not the ones who are going to sanction. We believe that to ensure accountable governance it is essential that the interests and actions not allowed by executive members should be more clearly specified in the code.

The code also falls short of pronouncing sanctions to be imposed against the person who has contravened the code. What use is a code of ethics if there are no sanctions? We are of the opinion that a code of ethics without sanctions has no teeth and would not achieve the goals of open, transparent or accountable government, nor would it provide the people of South Africa with the confidence and assurance that this is in fact a government that they can trust.

We suggest that to give the code some teeth an independent tribunal should be set up to hear all allegations of transgressions of the code against members of the executive, that it investigate the allegations fully and then make a decision as to whether or not the allegations have any substance and require further pursuance, whereafter the tribunal would continue with the process of investigation that would lead to recommendations for sanctions. Such tribunal, we believe, should commence immediately after the code has been approved and must in all respects conduct its work in a speedy and open manner.

We believe that there should be more onerous disclosures and I accept that there are more onerous obligations, but there are not more onerous disclosures with regard to financial interests in the code of ethics proposed for Cabinet members than there are in the parliamentary one. In fact, one wonders why it is actually necessary to provide that in the Cabinet’s code of ethics when, in fact, members are in any event obliged to make the disclosures to Parliament. I accept that the Minister said it was not compulsory, but it has been made compulsory by the mere fact that it is advertised that if a member does not make that declaration, then he or she must be put in the press, so it is, in fact, compulsory.

I would suggest that this needs further attention and should be amended to provide for more onerous disclosures, for example gifts. In many countries members of parliament are not expected to disclose items under the value that a Cabinet member is expected to. Having made these comments, we support the requirements of our Constitution that require the President to promulgate a code of ethics by proclamation in the Gazette after consultation with Parliament.

But we would want to a see a substantial code of conduct, one with teeth and one that really will ensure accountable, transparent government, not merely a code of conduct for the sake of complying with the requirements of the Constitution, that, in the end, may just as well not have been written. We plead that the Minister and the President take into account our concerns and proposals and incorporate these within the code of ethics for members of the Cabinet and members of the executive councils.

Mr A BLAAS: Chairperson, the New NP supports this code of ethics for members of the executive and members of the executive councils. This code is but one building block in a composite of actions to ensure and promote open, democratic and accountable government.

These actions must ensure transparency and openness, define nonacceptable conduct, set norms and standards, define accountability and prescribe sanctions. One calls to mind, amongst others, the members’ code, the Public Finance Management Act, the whistle-blowers Bill, our Constitution and various other guidelines and procedures that have been set; and a lot has been mentioned here already. These actions in general, and this code specifically, do not, however, replace the norms and standards set by our own consciences. Our conscience is the first and most supreme code that we should adhere to. Our conscience sets the norms and guidelines through our firm belief in God and the respect that one should have for one’s neighbours and one’s fellow citizens.

The origin of this code has been eloquently described already by the hon the Minister, and although the New NP endorses this code, there are clarifications, more than comments, that I would like to add. Firstly, the code is not very clear as to whether it applies to members of the Cabinet who are appointed by the President in terms of section 91(3)(c) of the Constitution. I will grant that one can argue that the definitions do imply this. Would it not be better if they are specifically referred to either in the Act or in the code?

Secondly, clause 2.1 describes certain behaviour expected from the members. It is not very clear, nor does it specifically state that they should be loyal and describe any loyalty. We would suggest that we add another subclause to clause 2.1 that specifically indicates that they should be loyal to South Africa and its people. We may take it for granted, but it can be added.

Thirdly, clause 2.3 describes what a member may not do. Again, it is quite misleading to the public. We would also recommend that the further subclause be added that reads: ``… may not wilfully mislead the public’’. It could just prevent future uncertainty.

Fourthly, it is not clear why a new set of definitions was used in the code, while the Act is very clear and specific on this. We would recommend that the same definitions that are used in the Act be used in the code. This will also prevent confusion and uncertainty.

Fifthly, clause 3 of the Act is very clear on the procedures that should be followed when there is misconduct by a member. It clearly indicates what the Public Prosecutor should do. It gives timeframes and what the President or a premier should do when a member breaches a contract. But there is one deficiency or openness, that is, what will happen if the President breaches the code? Our suggestion is that maybe we should, after the Public Prosecutor has looked at it, refer it to the Constitutional Court and, from there, to Parliament.

The establishment of this code of ethics for political executives is an international practice, and South Africa should also adhere to this. One accepts the fact that the procedure of establishing a code of this nature is a dynamic process. In future, there will be additions, changes and alterations. We can only move forward from what we have on the table now, and build on this. The New NP is in support of this code. [Applause.]

Mr T ABRAHAMS: Madam Chair, may I say firstly that you sit your Chair well. Besides being keenly in favour of the adoption of a code of ethics for members of the executive and others, the UDM supports an ongoing revision and updating of such a code.

Some of us would argue that the minute a rule is made and written in a rule book of any sort, an army of legal experts arises to find ways around this rule. For every rule made, there are lawyers available for hire to find loopholes, even in South Africa, and especially in South Africa.

The UDM argues, however, that while it agrees that the mere compilation of rules of conduct cannot suffice to serve the original intention, a code of conduct becomes meaningful and positive if the members who are bound by it are willing to accept it as the minimum measure of acceptable conduct - if leaders are committed to serving the public with integrity and honesty.

There is also always the possibility of a moral rearmament of South African society to the point at which a widespread and profound sense of morality will obviate the need to have written rules of conduct at all. Such an Utopian situation is one that we must keep in our collective mind’s eye.

We live, however, in the real world, a world of rogues, tricksters, misfits and other clever people. Worse still, we live in South Africa, a country whose society has endured the immorality of apartheid. The moral values of this society crumbled under the system of immorality. I was referring there to what was said in an article by Barney Mthombothi in the Financial Mail of 14 April 2000. He was writing, by the way, on the Hansie Cronjé episode. He says:

It may sound like a cliché to blame our societal ills on apartheid, but the truth is we really did lose our sense of right and wrong during those dark days.

I cannot agree more. He continues:

Apartheid was institutionalised, legalised corruption. It was a corruption of reality to say somebody was either inferior or superior because of skin colour. That corruption infected the minds of generations and the scriptures were hauled out to justify it.

It would be foolish to pretend that the defeat of apartheid has revived moral values. Indeed, corruption and wrongdoing seem to be on the increase. However, this consequence of the breakdown in moral values should have been expected. Otherwise, what did we expect? The recognition of this very reality must have been the force that motivated our unique model of moral rectitude, and that motivated the former President, Dr Nelson Mandela, to call for an RDP of the soul.

In supporting the report of the committee, the UDM therefore urges all members as leaders of people to embrace individually the code of ethics.

Mr L M GREEN: Chairperson, hon Minister and members, the ACDP welcomes and supports the code of ethics for the executive. A special report on Africa by The Economist, dated 6 to 8 May, states that Africa’s biggest problems stem from the conduct of its present leaders in that ``by personalising power, African leaders have undermined rather than boosted national institutions’’.

On our doorstep we have Zimbabwe’s President Mugabe who is included on President Mbeki’s team on the Commonwealth and who is expected to monitor persistent violations of principles of good governance, in other words, the defenders of good public conduct. The same President Mugabe is deceiving other statesmen into believing that his current despotic actions ought to be legitimated by historical factors. Our own President, with his reticent, quiet diplomacy or diplomatic methods and inexcusable, compromising disposition towards Mugabe must be called to account for abetting the continuous undemocratic practices in Zimbabwe.

The present struggle in Zimbabwe is all about democratic change, and our President ought to know that. Mugabe uses force and deceit to maintain tyrannical control. Why does the ANC, with a history of struggle against undemocratic forces, not draw this to the attention of our President? Why do they dismiss an official who speaks the truth or who has a different political opinion?

According to the ACDP the code of ethics, especially at executive level, should cover more than just declaring what gifts one should or should not disclose. In fact any gifts received by the President of the USA are stored in the White House museum as public property. The former President of South Africa, Mr Mandela - for whom the ACDP has the highest regard - was setting a very high moral standard when he denounced African dictators who want to cling to power.

We cannot go on embracing despots and dictators, wooing them with soft diplomacy. This is setting a wrong precedent for future governing elites. The people of Africa continue to suffer merciless torture and deprivation, because of weak interventions from states like South Africa. [Interjections.]

The ACDP supports the code of ethics. It will, however, remain a toothless watchdog if a director-general threatens journalists with murder if they reveal details of his irregular activities, and the relevant Minister allows him to stay on in his post. [Interjections.]

Genl C L VILJOEN: Mevrou die Voorsitter, die VF steun die beginsel om onderling ooreen te kom oor sekere gedragskodes as minimum norme vir die lede van die Parlement en ook die lede van die uitvoerende gesag. Ons kan oor die inhoud argumenteer en dit kan nog verander. Maar dat ons so iets moet hê, is verseker.

Dit is goed vir baie redes. Ek noem net ‘n paar. Eerstens is ons land ‘n diverse een wat uit baie kultuurgroepe bestaan en hulle het almal verskillende agtergronde. Die verteenwoordigers wat hier sit, het almal verskillende benaderings and uiteenlopende norme en gebruike. Nou bind hierdie kode ons saam om sekere minimum gedragslyne te volg en dit is goed.

Tweedens sal die kode hopelik vertroue in die Parlement by ondersteunerskorpse verstewig. Ons as verteenwoordigers se gedrag moet hierdie mense se vertroue waardig wees en die riglyne van hierdie kode sal baie help.

Derdens is dit belangrik dat ons as verteenwoordigers van die mense daar buite ‘n voorbeeld stel deur te streef na uitnemendheid. Selfverbetering is vanselfsprekend ‘n noodsaaklikheid, veral in die nuwe situasie wat die volle demokrasie ná 1994 vir ons meegebring het. Nou word minimum standaarde vir ons neergelê en ons kan daarop verbeter.

Die uitbreiding van die kode soos vervat in aanbevelings 4 en 5 word dus gesteun. Daar is ‘n Engelse spreekwoord wat sê ``The road to hell is paved with good intentions.’’

Die VF onderneem om hierdie kode na te streef met toewyding en entoesiasme. Die kode moet dus nie vergete raak nie, en veral nadat dit in werking gestel is, moet dit lewendig gehou word. Die lede moet voortdurend bewus gemaak word daarvan. Die komitee is dus ‘n belangrike instrument en daarom is ons ook tevrede en aanvaar ons aanbevelings 2 en 3 wat sê dat hierdie saak verwys word na die komitee.

Die VF wil egter graag oor die bepalings wat gaan oor die samestelling van die komitee oor etiek en ledebelange daarop wys dat, soos dit tans bepaal is, dit nie noodwendig ‘n ANC-meerderheid in die komitee voorskryf nie. Etiek is ‘n onderwerp op sy eie en dit behoort nie meerderheids- of minderheidspartygebonde te wees nie. Ons behoort die komitee saam te stel uit wyse mense wat die waghond oor hierdie belangrike kode sal wees. (Translation of Afrikaans speech follows.)

[Gen C L VILJOEN: Madam Chair, the FF supports the principle of mutual agreement in respect of certain codes of conduct as minimum norms for members of Parliament as well as members of the executive. We can argue about the contents and this can still change. But we certainly need to have something like that. It is a good thing for many reasons. I will mention a few. Firstly, our country is a diverse one consisting of many cultural groups and they all have different backgrounds. The representatives sitting here all have different approaches and divergent norms and customs. Now this code commits us all to follow certain minimum rules of conduct and this is good.

Secondly, the code will hopefully strengthen confidence in Parliament among supporters. Our conduct as representatives must be worthy of the confidence of these people and the guidelines of this code will be a great help.

Thirdly, it is important that we as representatives of the people out there set an example by striving for excellence. Self-improvement is, of course, essential, especially in the new situation which was brought about by full democracy after 1994. Now minimum standards are being laid down for us and we can improve on that.

The extension of the code, as contained in recommendations 4 and 5, is therefore supported. There is an English proverb that goes: ``The road to hell is paved with good intentions.’’ The FF undertakes to pursue this code with commitment and enthusiasm. The code should therefore not be forgotten, and especially after it has come into operation, it should be kept alive. Members should be made aware of it constantly. The committee is therefore an important instrument and that is why we are also satisfied and why we accept recommendations 2 and 3, which state that this matter is being referred to the committee.

However, the FF would like to point out, in respect of the provisions concerning the composition of the committee on ethics and members’ interests, that as it stands now it does not necessarily prescribe an ANC majority. Ethics is a subject on its own and should not be confined to a minority or a majority party. We should compose the committee of wise people who will be the watchdog of this important code.]

Mr I S MFUNDISI: Madam Chair, hon Minister and hon members, the code of ethics is a constitutional dictate, and the hope is that it should not be seen and accepted only as that without putting it into practice. The liberating of this code should be seen and accepted as a measure of seeing to it that members of Cabinet and the executive councils perform their duties and exercise their powers diligently and honestly. There should be no suspicion of indolence or dishonesty on the part of a member of the Cabinet. This would constitute a breach of this code.

The code prescribes that the President or the premier, as the case may be, must take into account the promotion of an open, democratic and accountable government. Gone should be the days when people say some matters are only for internal investigation and that they will back come to us and it never surfaces. No member of the Cabinet or an executive council may wilfully mislead the President, the premier or even the legislature to which they are accountable. It is only expected and hoped that Ministers and MECs would be saying things that would place them above board.

The code foresees a situation where Ministers and MECs will readily resign, I suppose, if caught up in a wrangle that can bring governance into disrepute. This brings to mind that on 22 October 1999, on the occasion of the handing over of the election results atlas, President Mbeki referred to the uneasiness he always felt when noticing how Ministers conducted themselves in the Chamber and how easily they got away with it. This surely was an indication that something needed to be done.

While the code of conduct does not use the word nepotism'', it is implied in that it is stated that office bearers should not use their positions to enrich or improperly benefit themselves or any other person. The state does enough to remunerate members of the executive, and there is therefore no need for them to keep taking or grabbing more or even having companies that survive on money from Government. Following the words of the President to the effect that teachers must teach and managers must manage, it is incumbent upon Ministers of state to govern the country and minister to the needs of the nation. The biblical injunction is:Seek ye first the kingdom of God and all things will be given unto you.’’ My advice would be this: Ministers must first govern the country and take charge of their departments and all shall be given to them. [Time expired.]

Miss S RAJBALLY: Malibongwe! Viva! Chairperson, a code of conduct or code of ethics for parliamentarians is an effective mechanism to ensure that parliamentarians are characterised by integrity, dedication, boldness and the ability to acquire skills. The present framework of ethics for members of Parliament and members of the executive councils clearly spells out that parliamentarians are not merely information stations, but that they represent the will of the people. Parliamentarians are not just debaters and legislators, but also society partners. Every single vote cast by individuals in a society is an investment in the South African future.

Development in South Africa indicates its prosperity. Prosperity signifies growth and expansion, which assist in determining the position of prominence the country holds in the international arena. Effective parliamentary action at international and national levels can only be achieved if the South African Parliament is firmly established within the boundaries of the code of ethics.

A parliamentarian will never fear being transparent and accountable if the individual has nothing to hide. Parliamentarians cannot be forced to obey the code of ethics, but it does obligate them to set an exemplary example to the people who have placed them on the pedestal to lead the country.

Life is a challenge, and they must meet it with dignity and strength. Parliamentarians’ opinions and behaviour matter to the voters. Their actions and decisions are realistic. They shape the course of history. Therefore the role of parliamentarians is to try to cultivate the intellectual and moral solidarity of the human race.

Mr N P NHLEKO: Madam Chair, I think a number of the concerns that have been raised could just as well be addressed by an attempt by some of us to understand the code itself, and to also study it in conjunction with the Constitution, the Executive Members’ Ethics Act, and so on.

However, I think today’s debate bears testimony to one thing, and that is that ethics is a branch of politics. It is the duty of a democratic state, in transforming society, to create an environment for citizenry to behave in a particular acceptable manner - all of us, as human beings. That is why sometimes the problem could be that if we argue this point around the question of ethics, we cannot only see ethics as a governmental issue, but rather broadly as a societal issue, precisely because all of us, as human beings, are striving to do good. I suppose that is basically what we are looking for. It is for this reason that the fundamental transformation of our society must be based on ethics, and that the state must be at the centre to model the example.

The good is that at which all things are aimed, and this particular desire is given expression today through this Draft Code of Ethics for Members of the Cabinet and Members of Executive Councils. It is through this particular understanding that the Portfolio Committee on the Public Service and Administration puts forward recommendations for consideration by this Parliament.

Firstly, that the National Assembly endorses the draft code as tabled by the Committee of Ministers. Secondly, that the Joint Subcommittee on Ethics and Members Interests conducts a review, as outlined above, one year after the promulgation of the draft code. Thirdly, that the House refers to Joint Rules Committee the proposal that Parliament, specifically the Joint Subcommittee on Ethics and Members’ Interests, assume responsibility for the production of an information pamphlet for the general public on the ways in which the public can hold the executive members accountable for their conduct, and the kind of sanctions which may be applied by the relevant executive head and the relevant legislature.

Fourthly, that Parliament extends the application of the code to all members of Parliament with such modifications as may be appropriate, and that such code be adopted by the Joint Rules Committee of Parliament by the end of the year 2000. Fifthly, that the House recommends that provincial legislatures, through their appropriate structures, similarly extend the application of the code to all members of provincial legislatures with such modifications as may be appropriate by the end of the year 2000.

Sixthly, that the House recommends that a code of conduct for local government employees be put into place by 1 January 2001 in accordance with the earlier recommendation of the portfolio committee in this regard. Seventhly, that the Department of Public Service and Administration and the Public Service Commission be requested to report to the committee on progress made in respect of the development of an assets register for senior civil servants during the third quarter of the year 2000. [Applause.]

The MINISTER OF EDUCATION: Madam Chair, I want to thank all the hon members who have made spirited contributions to the debate - when they should really be catching their plane to go and do their constituency work, starting on Monday - on this Draft Code of Ethics for Members of the Cabinet and Members of Executive Councils.

Taken as a whole, I believe that we have done our duty on this important subject. We started to grasp the notion that codes such is this, together with the legislation and the Constitution, centre around our democracy, particularly our maturing democratic system in South Africa. Therefore, it is not a partisan approach.

I will respond to some of the matters raised, not in a partisan way, but to clarify the issues here. Let us first of all begin by saying that this is part of that process of developing real accountability. So, this is part of the process. The executive will review it in any case, as I will report to the President. That is the first stage.

Secondly, it is not part of international practice … As a Minister, I cannot mention those countries where, after the presidents have died, there were enormous, immature democracies; enormous disclosures about corruption, self seeking and breaches of duty. And these come from mature democracies, which largely tie up the old notion of good governance with aid or trade.

We separate the issue of good governance, because we cannot here give lectures to other countries until we have our own house in order. That is the first rule of interstate relations and it is also the first rule of ethics, unless one comes from a tradition in which the clergy lays down the law for everybody else but does not follow its own injunctions very much.

So, we have to be very careful and that is why we are setting the standard. It is not because they have it in Europe. I can actually tell members that many European countries do not have a code of ethics for the executive. And so, we are doing our own, crafting our own.

This is a response also to some of the issues raised; but I did respond to some of the observations made. Both Sister Ncube and Gen Viljoen - I am sorry he is not here - got to the heart of the matter. Particularly, Gen Viljoen’s contributions were enormously important. But what we are trying to do is to inject a kind of conscience into our country as well as good behaviour. One speaker, hon Mr Blaas, mentioned that it a matter of conscience. The trouble is that conscience is a very flexible matter, a very elastic matter, for some individuals. That is why one has to have minimum ground rules. I agree that, in the end, conscience drives us. But those who are venal and corrupt and those who take short cuts do not rely on their conscience. That is why we need the minimal code that we have here.

As far as the hon Mr Grobler is concerned, that this is the first code in place, well it is not so. In 1991, the ANC adopted a code of conduct which went beyond the disclosure, it was a condition for taking part in elections in 1994. And they subscribe to that code of conduct. And we have, in fact, as chairperson of the disciplinary committee, as far as I know, we have implemented that code of conduct against individuals and in some cases parliamentarians, in a way that Parliament cannot do. The ANC as the political movement has expelled people who have breached our code of conduct.

Coming particularly to Mrs Seaton, I must say I am a little amused by Mrs Seaton’s point about this being long overdue and being a toothless wonder. I sat for one year with Mrs Seaton in helping to draft the disclosure rules. [Interjections.] Now I have spent two years, as I have been reminded, I do not know whether Mrs Seaton was speaking on behalf of our party then or now. I created nearly every obstacle in that process of having a code of conduct. So I am prepared to accept that all of us have grown in this, all of us have developed.

I should remind her that three senior IFP members, who were members of the Cabinet, were very enthusiastic about the code as it emerged from the Cabinet. [Interjections.] So, I do not think we should quibble. We should accept this in the spirit of Gen Viljoen, that this is part of that process of strengthening a democratic order and part of that process means that we should accept the Constitution as a basis.

It is quite clear that the President is a member of the Cabinet. If one likes to say so, as the lawyers have said, out of an abundance of caution: I would advise the President to put his name there. But I do not think it is necessary, with great respect, and whoever gave her that legal advice is wrong. The President is a member of the Cabinet, the premier is a member of the Executive Council. But, not because of her legal advice, but for the general good of the code, I will advise the President that his name should be included. In the same way, I do not think we can insist that there should be enforcement of that condition now.

The whole question is who guards the guardians. If one has pedantic legal instruments, and we have enough instruments to protect the Constitution, then, in fact, one is going to frustrate this situation. I myself believe that the best instruments of protection and guardianship are the political instruments and the force of public opinion, and, in particular, a free press. And, therefore, the disclosure comes with a combination of events, with the free press, civil society, active members of Parliament, the active members of the executive, I should also say being aware of this, but, at the same time, we have to take into account that, at the end of the day, the solution will be a political one.

I now come to Mr Blaas’s point, in relation to section 91. Let me assure him that the two members that the President can appoint from outside Parliament are covered by the code. But, again, out of an abundance of caution, I will advise the President, in the unlikely event that he appoints people from outside Parliament, to include them.

There are other matters, too, which I will contest with members of Parliament and discuss with them, but I think the spirit of this debate has been very much in the spirit of the previous debate. We must improve the ethical conduct of all public representatives. When hon members are setting off for their homes by air, I shall be meeting the first professor of ethics, the Unilever professor of ethics, from the University of Natal to discuss the role of ethics in education. [Applause.]

Debate concluded.

AMENDMENTS TO REPORT ON DRAFT CODE OF ETHICS FOR MEMBERS OF THE CABINET AND OF EXECUTIVE COUNCILS

                         (Draft Resolution)

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Chairperson, I move without notice:

That the Report be adopted with the recommendations of the Committee amended to read as follows -

(1) That the National Assembly endorses the Draft Code tabled by the Committee of Ministers.

(2) That the Joint Subcommittee on Ethics and Members’ Interests conduct a review, as outlined above, one year after the promulgation of the Draft Code.

(3) That the House refers to the Joint Rules Committee the proposal that Parliament, specifically the Joint Subcommittee on Ethics and Members’ Interests, assume responsibility for the production of an information pamphlet for the general public on the ways in which the public can hold executive members accountable for their conduct, and the kinds of sanctions which may be applied by the relevant executive head and the relevant legislature.

(4) That Parliament extends the application of the Code to all members of Parliament, with such modifications as may be appropriate, and that such Code be adopted by the Joint Rules Committee of Parliament by the end of the year. (5) That the House recommends that provincial legislatures, through their appropriate structures, similarly extend the application of the Code to all members of provincial legislatures, with such modifications as may be appropriate, by the end of the year.

(6) That the House recommends that a Code of Conduct for local government employees be put in place by 1 January 2001, in accordance with the earlier recommendation of the Committee in this regard.

(7) That the Department of Public Service and Administration and the Public Service Commission be requested to report to the Committee on progress made in respect of the development of an asset register for senior civil servants during the third quarter of 2000.

Report, as amended, adopted.

The CHAIRPERSON (Ms G L Mahlangu): Order! Hon members, the Minister of Public Works wishes to invite you all to a function in the Marks Building. [Applause.] The House adjourned at 13:24. ____

            ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces:

1. The Speaker and the Chairperson:

 (1)    Assent by the President of the Republic in respect of the
     following Bill:



     i  Competition Amendment Bill [B 10D - 2000] - Act No 15 of 2000
         (assented to and signed by President on 24 May 2000).

TABLINGS:

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces:

Papers:

1. The Minister of Public Works:

 (1)    Report of the Department of Public Works for 1999-2000 [RP 100-
     2000].

 (2)    Memorandum by the Minister of Public Works setting out
     particulars of the Building Programme for 2000-2001 in respect of
     Programme 2: Provision of Land and Accommodation of Vote 26 of the
     State Account [RP 93-2000].