WEDNESDAY, 11 JUNE 2008 __

                PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
                                ____

The House met at 14:01.

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

ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS – see col 000.

                         APPROPRIATION BILL

Debate on Vote No 1 - The Presidency:

The PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC: Madam Speaker and Deputy Speaker, hon Deputy President, hon Ministers and Deputy Ministers, and hon members, thank you very much indeed for affording us this opportunity to address the National Assembly during the consideration of the Budget Vote of the Presidency. Let me also welcome and congratulate the deputy president of the ANC, the hon Kgalema Motlanthe on his admission as a member of the House. [Applause.] I’ll tell you that before he came in to be sworn in, he insisted that all of us must call him “honourable” … [Laughter.] … but I would like to assure you that he has always been honourable. Welcome. [Applause.]

In this Budget Vote debate, the Deputy President of the Republic will speak to the House on the important matters of the work she is doing on behalf of the Presidency, such as her role as the Leader of Government Business, and her work on the Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa, including interventions in the Second Economy, as well as the SA National Aids Council. The Minister in the Presidency will address the House on issues such as gender, children, youth and disability.

We are meeting during Youth Month, and five days before the nation marks the 32nd anniversary of the June 16 Soweto uprisings. Ideally, we should be observing this month focusing all our efforts on the work we continue to do further to advance the struggle of young people to attain a better life.

Although there is, during this month, the necessary attention to the various challenges facing the youth of our country, we however also had to concentrate our energies on both exogenous and endogenous factors that impact negatively upon, and pose a number of serious challenges to, our nation. I am referring here to challenges such as the high interest rates, the rates of inflation, the rising cost of fuel and food, the electricity emergency, and the criminal and callous attacks on nationals from other countries resident in South Africa by a minority whose outlook and sentiments clearly do not represent those of the overwhelming majority of South Africans. Undoubtedly, these cowardly attacks have shamed all of us and have soiled the good name of our country, which was earned through centuries of bitter and heroic struggles in pursuit of a humane and just society free of racism, sexism, xenophobia and other forms of intolerance.

This coming Saturday, a host of athletes from our country and other parts of the world, both young and old – or not so young, rather than old - will be pitting their powers of endurance against one another in the Comrades Marathon in the spirit of brotherhood and sisterhood. In a way, these athletes also communicate a message to our nation as a whole. That message is that our advance towards the achievement of the goal of a better life for all is a marathon that we must run together in unity, understanding that there will be steep inclines as there will be declines but that, if we persist, as we must, we will achieve our goal. We wish all the athletes success. [Applause.]

Seven years ago, in 2001, our country was given the rare privilege to host the United Nations World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance. We were chosen as a country not simply because of the attractions of our beautiful landscape, or our rich flora and fauna, but primarily because of what we as a nation had done to end racist rule and begin the process of building a nonracial society. Both through the struggle against apartheid, as well as in the manner in which we defied formidable odds to find a peaceful political solution, we gave hope that it was possible for the peoples of the world to be united in their diversity. Accordingly, many around the world made bold to declare South Africa a pilot project whose outcome should inform the global struggle against the demons of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerances.

However, events of the last few weeks – of criminal attacks against migrants – have impacted negatively on our collective standing as front troops in the global struggle for a humane and tolerant world. Even though these callous actions were carried out by a tiny minority among us, this should however make all of us look at ourselves in the mirror to find an answer to the question: What has happened to our age-old spirit of ubuntu that at all times enjoins every member of the community to act in solidarity with those in dire circumstances?

In 2001, we issued an Africa Day message published in the ANC Today, highlighting the complexity and multifaceted nature of this challenge and the urgent steps we needed to take as a nation. I will refer to this message at some length because the issues raised at that time are even more relevant today. We said, and I quote:

It is a matter of concern that our level of knowledge about our own continent is not as high as it should be. This is partly the result of the many years of the international isolation of South Africa and the fact that, historically, a significant part of our international relations has focused on interaction with the countries of the North, especially Europe.

Our mass media has also done very little to inform our population in general about the continent in a balanced way. As happens with news in general, what tends to get reported are the negative things that do, indeed, occur on our continent.

But the continent also has a very rich culture to which we are not exposed, except, perhaps, in the area of popular music.

And maybe sports, and soccer in particular.

Nevertheless, a better understanding of these cultures would help us greatly to understand both ourselves and the sister peoples of Africa, with whom we are bound by a common destiny …

It would therefore seem necessary that we pay some attention to improving teaching about Africa in our schools and institutions of higher learning. This should relate not only to such subjects as history and geography, but also to the matters to which we have referred, of culture and current political and socioeconomic activity as well as languages.

Our youth should grow up knowing that they are African first before they become citizens of the world. This should help further to strengthen the commitment of the new generations to active involvement in the promotion of friendly relations of co-operation and solidarity with the peoples of our continent and the achievement of the objectives of the African Renaissance …

Apart from anything else, our intimate relationship with the rest of our continent is illustrated by the significant numbers of fellow Africans who have sought to settle in South Africa since 1994. Undoubtedly, this trend will continue, adding a new richness to our own society …

I said then that -

Necessarily, we must continue to be vigilant against any evidence of xenophobia against the African immigrants. It is fundamentally wrong and unacceptable that we should treat people who come to us as friends as though they are our enemies …

To express the critical importance of Africa to ourselves, both black and white, we should say that we are either African or we are nothing. We can only succeed in the objectives we pursue if the rest of our continent also succeeds. We sink or swim together.

The challenge today is to move with speed to implement the measures we identified in the 2001 message so that all of us understand that, whatever we do, as Africans across the continent, we will indeed sink or swim together.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the many South Africans who have united across the country to take a strong stance against these attacks, thus affirming our ubuntu and Pan-African values that made our country worthy of hosting the UN conference against racism. I am also encouraged that some affected communities stood firm against the instigation of this violence and even went a step further to protect their immigrant neighbours. At the moment, the challenge is to create conditions for the displaced people to be integrated into our communities.

As the world prepares for the Geneva conference to be held next April to review progress in the implementation of what we had committed ourselves to in Durban in 2001 at the anti-racism conference of the United Nations, we should use this process not only to review our own progress in this area, but also to engage in a healing exercise that will ensure that never again in this country do we experience what we witnessed recently.

Government will play its role, but the best results will be achieved when we act together in our various formations and communities to make intolerance of any kind a thing that our country will not tolerate.

I have referred to the challenges of rising inflation, driven by fuel and food prices, as well as the electricity emergency. It was in this context that during the state of the nation address we called on all South Africans to engage these and other challenges with all hands on deck and in a spirit of “Business Unusual”. As government, we identified 24 Apex Priorities, the successful implementation of which would address both the long-term objectives of transformation and attainment of a better life for all as well as ensuring that we complete the popular mandate given to government in our third democratic elections in 2004.

I wish to report that government, in the spirit of “Business Unusual”, is hard at work to implement the programme of action we announced in this House some four months ago. In July of this year, Cabinet will conduct a mid-year review of our work and we will report more comprehensively after that lekgotla. I am certain that the Budget Votes by the Ministers over the past few weeks have given hon members an indication of the extent to which the Ministers and the public servants have put their shoulders to the wheel to meet our obligations to society.

In commending the budget of the Presidency, I will reflect on a few of the issues pertaining to the functions of this Office, some of which, as I said earlier, will be addressed by the Deputy President and the Minister in The Presidency, recognising that this Office is called upon to act as the strategic management centre of government.

As hon members are aware, in many of the past Budget Votes of the Presidency, we have consistently reported to Parliament on the ongoing work of government on the transformation of the state, principally aimed at ensuring that our democratic state is able effectively and efficiently to implement programmes that will have the effect of bettering the human condition in our country and, where possible, beyond our borders. This process of building a developmental state with the necessary capacity and a public service that is adequately skilled and driven by the principles of Batho Pele has happened simultaneously with social transformation.

Of course we are the first to admit that there are a number of challenges, especially on the need to further improve the performance of all state organs in providing services to the population, building economic and social infrastructure, progressively ensuring community safety and security, and contributing to the realisation of social progress across the board.

Part of this challenge further to improve the performance of the South African state relates to the need to improve integration beyond the formality of ministerial and director-general clusters and other such structures. It relates also to the need to acquire and retain skilled personnel. It applies as much to management in the headquarters of departments as it does to the proper running of educational, health and other agencies at the coalface of interaction with the public.

Among the critical matters to which we have continued to pay attention is the challenge of monitoring and evaluation. We have over the past financial year improved the integration of monitoring and evaluation systems across national departments and in relation to the provinces.

Training programmes have been intensified and the system to monitor the implementation of the government programme of action has fully been placed on an electronic platform. In order to improve the executive management of national government, we have introduced an additional instrument aimed at assessing the functionality of departments and ministries.

In this context, we shall be better able to deal with poor, and at times corrupt, management of various aspects of service delivery, including instances of inadequate maintenance of infrastructure, disregard for public property, insensitive handling of citizens in government offices as well as health and other centres that deliver services to the people. Even though transgressors may be in the minority, the reality is that they dishonour the Public Service and lower the standing of government in the eyes of the public.

However, these weaknesses should not make us lose sight of the achievements of the past 14 years in many areas of the lives of South Africans, including provision of infrastructure and services in the face of huge backlogs inherited from the past. While we should acknowledge the weaknesses, we need to affirm that the South African state is not faced with a crisis of incapacity. Rather, we need to learn from the 14 years of experience further to improve the state’s capacity to meet its obligations.

The improving capacity of the state is reflected for instance in the progress in the fight against poverty and in building a better life for all. The SA Advertising Research Foundation reports that between 2000 and 2007 there was a significant decrease in the number of people in the poorest categories with regard to average monthly income and an increase in the growth of the middle strata.

Some of the significant interventions against poverty have been the expansion of social grants, employment creation, special interventions to ensure more participation of black people in the economy and support for SMMEs.

Further, to improve comprehensive social security, the War Room on Poverty announced in the state of the nation address has been established, led by the Deputy President.

While social assistance and the social wage are important, the challenge still remains with regard to reducing unemployment as well as the high levels of inequality between the rich and the poor, which in part is a function of another major challenge in South Africa today - the scarcity of skills, on which the Deputy President will elaborate.

Indeed, across most measures of human development, there is welcome progress in improving people’s quality of life. Hon members may recollect that during the course of 2007, the Presidency released a mid-term review publication, detailing trends in 72 human development indicators. We intended then to ensure that this data is updated on an annual basis, and we are happy to report that in the coming month, the 2008 update will be released. We do hope that hon members and the public at large will engage the information contained in this publication, so that our collective assessment of the state of our nation is based on fact rather than conjecture.

Of all the three spheres of government, local government is at the coalface of delivery and as such calls for ongoing efforts to refine it into an effective machinery to respond to the needs of communities. Last week, the Minister for Provincial and Local Government, the hon Sydney Mufamadi, informed the House about some of the progress made to improve the functioning of this sphere of government.

To achieve our objectives in this regard, we have in the past few years engaged actively with councillors, officials and the general public through the Izimbizo Programme, the better to understand the challenges faced by this sphere of government; to identify weaknesses that hamper delivery; to seek ways of strengthening important structures such as ward committees; and to solicit community views regarding various local challenges.

The Presidency has also been carrying out work to ensure alignment among the planning instruments across the spheres of government. Informed by the National Spatial Development Perspective, the harmonisation of provincial growth and development strategies and municipal integrated development plans continues, with 23 districts either completed or presently engaged, and 15 more being enrolled.

Currently, the Presidency is leading the preparatory processes for the July Cabinet lekgotla. Among the issues that will engage the mind of Cabinet in this regard are the Fifteen-Year Review and Scenario Planning, conducted by the Presidency with the support of the various clusters. At the same time, work is continuing to develop options for the setting up of long-term planning capacity, having, as government, come to the conclusion that South Africa needs this instrument to ensure integration of all strategic objectives, programmes and projects, including road, rail, electricity, human settlement and other infrastructure.

Improving the capacity of the state also implies strengthening supervision of activities of state-owned enterprises and alignment of these with the work of departments. While recognising that much of this work has ably been handled at line-function level, it was however deemed necessary that engagement across the line functions was critical to ensure effectiveness of service provision.

In this respect, the Presidency conducted the first such engagement during the course of last year. Beyond this, government highly values interactions with various social partners, as part of the endeavour to mobilise all of society in pursuit of our common objectives. Pursuant to this goal, we have in the Presidency continued to strengthen these engagements as well as those with friends from abroad, through the Presidential Working Groups and other forums.

As part of our ongoing efforts further to improve the performance of our economy, we have had several meetings with representatives of commercial agriculture, trade unions, big business, black business, BUSA and the joint working groups.

Through these meetings we continue to work together in a number of areas that are critical to the different sectors of our economy. These include the land and agricultural reform programme; food security, food prices and relief for the poor; disaster and emergency aid to farmers; land reform and the security of tenure of farm dwellers; collaboration between government departments and the private sector regarding the development of programmes aimed at addressing the needs of vulnerable communities; challenges around energy and the need to work together; partnerships in the fight against crime; the need for accelerated investment in skills development; addressing the challenge of investment in strategic sectors such as infrastructure, ICT and others; the need to broaden black people’s participation in the economy while expanding the base of the economy and ensuring economic growth, including reflection on the Broad-based Black Economic Empowerment Codes of Good Practice, preferential procurement, and monitoring of the implementation of employment equity; implementation of the commitments made at the Growth and Development Summit; and the review of SETAs so as to align them with the National Industrial Policy Framework.

In our engagement with the religious working group we agreed to ensure better co-ordination between all spheres of government, including the Department of Education and the religious community in the implementation of the Early Childhood Development Programme; to work together on social housing; to work in partnership so as to promote social cohesion; to collaborate on skills development; to co-ordinate our work on community and home-based care; and to build practical partnerships in various localities to strengthen the offensive against crime.

Further, in our engagement with the Working Group on Higher Education we emphasised the need for our education system to be responsive to the needs of both our developmental state as well as our economy.

The Presidency continued to engage with working groups on women, youth, as well as the leadership of provinces and Salga through the Presidential Co- ordinating Council. With regard to the youth in particular, we were able last Friday to complete the consultative process around the National Youth Policy. We are confident that, in the coming few weeks, this critical instrument to guide programmes for youth advancement will be formally adopted for immediate implementation. We are also proud that we will in the coming month submit to Parliament the African Youth Charter for ratification.

The Presidential Co-ordinating Council, the next meeting of which takes place in two days’ time, continues to offer us an important additional platform to monitor work done at both provincial and local spheres of government with regard to such important matters as delivery of infrastructure and services as well as the better utilisation of community development workers.

We have of course also benefited from the valuable advice from the Presidential Advisory Panel of Economists.

Again, during the course of the past financial year, we engaged our international friends on the best possible ways of growing the economy and increasing rates of investment in the country and improving the image of South Africa abroad.

In this regard, the meetings with the Presidential International Investment Council reflected on an overview of the economy. This included looking at broad macroeconomic developments; implementation of Asgisa and the Industrial Policy Action Plan; Second Economy initiatives; preparations for the 2010 Fifa Soccer World Cup; and other matters.

We also engaged the Presidential International Advisory Council on Information Society and Development. This working group continues to help us in our efforts to become a leading player in respect of building an inclusive information society. In this regard, we have agreed to strengthen the e-Skills Council so that it contributes to the objectives we have set ourselves.

The Presidency, on behalf of government and indeed our nation as a whole, had the opportunity to honour both South Africans and our friends from abroad who have contributed to our democracy as well as doing exceptional work to advance the objectives of our transformation.

These outstanding individuals have been honoured in the six categories of our National Orders, which are: The Order of the Baobab, the Order of Luthuli, the Order of Mendi for Bravery, the Order of Ikhamanga, the Order of Mapungubwe and the Order of the Companions of O R Tambo.

We have also continued to discharge our international obligations, especially with regard to the challenges on the African continent. We do this within the framework of the African Agenda, at the core of which is the renaissance of our continent.

Accordingly, we have worked to strengthen the New Partnership for Africa’s Development through financial and logistical support. We are happy that together with the Public Investment Corporation we have helped to launch the Pan-African Infrastructure Development Fund to mobilise resources for Africans to fund their own development.

We continuously do our best to ensure the success of the programmes of the African Union. One of the focus areas, in the past year, was the need for faster integration of the continent with the Grand Debate in Accra, Ghana, directing all of us to concentrate our efforts partly on regional integration as a necessary step towards greater unity.

For us in this region, the integration of the Southern African Development Community, SADC, is of paramount importance. South Africa will continue to do whatever is possible to accelerate this process, especially when we assume the chairpersonship of SADC in August this year.

Further, our work to strengthen democracy and post-conflict efforts in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of Burundi continues, as we continue to follow developments in Côte d’Ivoire.

Again, we have directed our efforts towards peace in Sudan, including the deployment of the hybrid force as well as capacity-building in the south of Sudan and the implementation of the comprehensive peace agreement.

With regard to Zimbabwe, our SADC mandate is still on track. In this regard, our facilitation helped to ensure, among other things, that the March 29 elections were generally adjudged to have been credible.

At the moment, we are doing whatever we can to ensure that we do not experience major problems in the presidential second-round elections set for 27 June. We are at one with SADC and most of the international community that the incidents of violence and reported disruption of electoral activities of some of the parties are a cause for serious concern and should be addressed with all urgency. SADC has also resolved to strengthen its observer mission in that country.

We do hope that friends of the people of Zimbabwe, who seek nothing more than freedom for the people of that country to elect a government of their choice and overcome the current socioeconomic crisis, will work together in pursuit of these objectives.

We have done what we could further to strengthen our South-South relations, including the India-Brazil-South Africa Forum.

We were privileged to have been afforded the opportunity to be a nonpermanent member of the UN Security Council, a tenure that ends in December this year, as well as chairing some of the Security Council’s sessions. At all times we sought to discharge our responsibilities in a principled manner and in accordance with the Charter of the UN as well as in the interests of our nation, of Africa and of the countries of the South.

In this regard, part of the work we are doing is to ensure that the UN Security Council works in collaboration with regional institutions as well as other bodies of the United Nations and that matters appropriately mandated to specific UN structures are handled by the relevant bodies.

Madam Speaker, to end, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Deputy President, the hon Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka; the Minister in the Presidency, the hon Dr Essop Pahad; the Director-General of the Presidency, Rev Frank Chikane; the Director-General for the Policy Co-ordination and Advisory Services, Joel Netshitenzhe; the Chief Operations Officer, Trevor Fowler; and the advisers and all the staff for executing their duties with dedication and commitment.

As South Africans work together to realise our collective aspirations – amid the difficulties that we have had to endure in the recent period – let us all remember that we are indeed running a marathon, which demands endurance, stamina, a refusal to be defeated even by the most difficult parts of the course, and the need always to keep our eyes on the noble goal we pursue.

Together, as the elected representatives of the people present here we should all say, in word and deed: Beyond serving our people, we have no other ambition. And with all hands on deck, we know we shall overcome!

I am honoured indeed to commend the budget of the Presidency to the House. Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. [Applause.] The MINISTER OF EDUCATION: Madam Speaker, I rise to support this Budget Vote and the well-thought-out objectives that are elaborated in the strategic plan of the Presidency for 2008-09.

I also hope, Mr President, to speak today for the invisible man, the invisible man that Ralph Ellison referred to in his classical novel Invisible Man, who described himself as follows:

I am an invisible man. No, I am not a spook like those who haunted Edgar Allen Poe, nor am I one of your Hollywood-movie ectoplasms. I am a man of substance, of flesh and bone, fibre and liquids - and I might even be said to possess a mind.

I am invisible, understand, simply because people refuse to see me. Like the bodiless heads you see sometimes in circus sideshows, it is as though I have been surrounded by mirrors of hard distorting glass. When they approach me they see only my surroundings, themselves or figments of their imagination - indeed, everything and anything except me.

The ANC referred in some way to this invisible man, when, at its conference in December, it challenged government as follows: That our government should work to build the strategic, organisational and technical capacities of government with a view to developing a democratic developmental state, one in which the poor are not the victims, but increasingly become participants in promoting and sustaining growth, where the poor are not invisible but visible to our society.

The ANC was not saying this because it believed in any way that government was not attending to these important issues. I think if we are all honest critics, we would all agree that looking back over the period of this government, the Presidency can be justly proud that we have created conditions for the longest expansion of the South African economy in recorded history; that we have, since 2004, created half a million jobs each year; that we have significantly reduced the level of severe poverty for millions of our people; and that we have achieved a level of macroeconomic stability not seen in South Africa for over four decades.

Our government has done a great deal to build a solid foundation for future growth. [Interjections.] Madam Speaker, there is a man to my left who should remain invisible, who makes a great deal of empty noise. [Laughter.] Yet, there remains much more to be done. Our Presidency should build on the potential that exists in the Expanded Public Works Programme to grow opportunities for work and local development.

In the area of foreign relations, our President and his team in the Presidency have maintained our strategic foreign relations and developed these into a platform for development in Africa and in the world. The burgeoning relations between China and Africa, the strategic collaboration between South Africa, India and Brazil, the closer ties between developing countries and the G8 forum are all initiatives that arise from the work of this President and this Presidency. These efforts have retained, grown and expanded foreign direct investment in South Africa and supported the resilience of our economy. A phantom has emerged to my left! I wish it would go and haunt somewhere else. [Laughter.]

Our President must be supported by this Parliament in executing this important international economic network in the interests of South Africa and our continent. Our President has also played a key role in giving shape to Nepad and its main programmes. It is our belief that Nepad must be re- energized and developed into a full partnership that gives practical effect to the strategies set out in the Nepad founding documents.

The need for increased progress in co-ordinated African development arises from the challenges posed by the fuel price increases that the President has referred to, the high oil prices, and the rising food prices that exist in the entire world. In order to build on the success of our past decade, we must attend to these matters. We therefore urge the Presidency and the President to initiate a focused Africa-wide deliberation on the threats to economic progress and transformation that arise from the current challenges.

The initiatives that President Mbeki has promoted must reach full fruition urgently. We should see greater integration in the SADC region, on the economic plane and in a range of social matters. Each of our countries on the continent needs to work hard at identifying, both in the region and continent-wide, our economic strengths, and agree that these should form the basis for future economic and trade co-operation. We should look at strategies that go well beyond regional economic strengths.

Energy is a major challenge for many of our countries on the continent. Is it possible that there are countries with oil supplies which could in fact provide greater energy resources for us as Africans? Might they earn increased foreign revenue from South Africa and other African countries?

A further matter is that of co-ordination of the responses that we have in government. Sadly, I think we still haven’t solidified this need to avoid the work in silos and to work as a fully integrated government. I think we tend to have pet projects that do not necessarily speak to the entire good and it is indeed an area that must be addressed. However, the success we have seen through the Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa, as well as the intensive focus on poverty alleviation, are testimonies that a co-ordinating function can be to the good of South Africa.

The emphasis of Asgisa on human capital development, on infrastructure renewal and investment, on encouraging entrepreneurship, on increasing foreign investment, on ensuring implementation of our industrial policy – all of these are policy imperatives that we fully endorse and recognise as having the potential of ensuring that growth on the African continent will be sustained in the long term. It is very important that, as Africa, we do avoid the worst impact of the global turndown. The first months of this year have been marked by signs of very serious economic gloom. Many of the causes fall well beyond the control of our country and several other countries of the world, but all of us stand at the precipice.

We’ve seen a decade of a great deal of progress in economic terms on the African continent. Africa has begun to reap economic benefits that it has not seen for decades. These have come due to increased peace on the continent, the emergence of viable democracies and a growing confident implementation of agreed African programmes and other strategic initiatives of the African Union. The recent World Economic Forum debated these challenges and proposed a number of possible solutions. Speaking at the forum, our President expressed a wish that Africa should use her immense natural resources to better effect for the benefit of the people of Africa.

What then, Madam Speaker, Mr President, should be done to ensure that the poor are not forced just to bear their invisibility; are not forced to bear the burden of the negative effect of the global downturn? The Presidency, as Mr President has indicated, has given attention, and continues to do so, to the alleviation of poverty in our country. One of the more important ANC economic transformation resolutions in December 2007 stated that a developmental state must ensure that our natural resource endowments, including land, water, minerals and marine resources, are exploited effectively to maximise the growth, development and employment potential embedded in such national assets and not purely for profit maximisation.

We are a country that is endowed with a great deal of natural wealth and yet we also have huge inequalities that result from the wide difference between the earnings of the rich and that of the poor in our country. The harsh reality facing many of our communities today is that of hunger. The Presidency needs to consider urgent measures to assist the most vulnerable. We thus welcome government’s work to refine and improve our poverty targeting interventions.

One of the more serious challenges is that of child poverty and it is one that we must attend to if we are to develop our youth to their fullest potential. Our statistics indicate that about 12 million children live in households with an income of less than R1 200 per month. More than 70% of our children live in households with a combined income less than that, with only 2,8% of white children making up this number. Therefore, African children, who make up more than 75% of the poorest, need our attention. We must do more to address their circumstances. We say this, knowing that this government has done more than any other previous government of South Africa to address poverty. [Applause.] The facts are well known to all honest members of this House. Those of course who are dishonest will seek to propound another story. [Interjections.] Especially the phantom which is invisible to my left. [Laughter.]

The Presidency has a vital role to play in ameliorating the impact of high oil prices, rising food scarcity … [Interjections.] I always know when I am saying something that makes sense, as the invisible man will rise. [Laughter.] Greater access to economic opportunities, and greater focus on small and medium business development are absolutely vital – thank goodness for that! They, these small businessmen and -women, are the builders of a new tomorrow and they deserve the President’s full attention and the President’s support. The man to the left, who could not stand the heat of the growing support of the ANC, is back today to mouth empty threats and really quite inadequate comments. [Interjections.] You should tell us about Zimbabwe, since you were party to colonising it. Thank you. [Applause.]

The LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION: Madam Speaker, Mr President, Deputy President, hon colleague Motlanthe – are you here “on appro” or have they given you a permanent seat? [Laughter.] Welcome.

The past year has proved to be a tumultuous period of shock and uncertainty for all of us. However, we have shown in the past that we have the resilience to overcome each and every obstacle, and we in the DA believe we can do so again, provided we confront the challenges of governing a modern state with the necessary humility and passion and avoid dissipating our energies in factional fighting for sectional victories - fiddling, so to speak, while our townships burn.

With the opening of this, the third democratic Parliament, in 2004, we agreed that the Presidency should be committed to ensuring that South Africa is moved forward decisively. Together we supported the Presidency at its own request with championing the eradication of poverty and underdevelopment and improving the quality of life for South Africans in many critical areas of social existence, particularly in respect of health and combating crime. We agreed that the Presidency should be instrumental in driving the facilitation of the growth and development of our economy to ensure that it becomes more inclusive and that it creates more jobs.

We applauded the President for saying that our public sector should be enabled with skilled staff, with a special focus on strengthening the local government system to ensure an improved response to the needs of the less fortunate.

We concurred that the Presidency should promote public-private partnerships for improved job creation and improved co-operation between government and civil society in the interests of all the peoples of South Africa, but especially to address the plight of the poor and issues such as HIV/Aids. We listened approvingly when the President expressed his determination to continue working towards the regeneration of Africa.

We also recognised the crucial need for the Presidency to lead the charge in promoting enhanced levels of social cohesion, regenerating the moral fibre of our people and building a sense of national unity, united action and a new patriotism.

These are the key points that we agreed should inform every action by the Presidency and I believe that this agreement remains as relevant now as it was then.

We now have the fifth Budget Vote of the third Presidency before us, the last such debate before the next elections and a most opportune moment to ask: Did we get the kind of Presidency we deserved?

Dit sou oneerlik wees om te sê dat die Presidensie geen sukses behaal het oor die laaste vier jaar nie, maar ons het nodig om ewe sober te kyk na wat wel behaal is en wat heel moontlik agterweë gebly het. Daar is geen twyfel dat hierdie Presidensie Suid-Afrika se oorgang na ’n moderne staat met ’n indrukwekkende groeikoers teen sterk interne teenstand ingelei het nie, en dat dit vir Suid-Afrika ’n plek op die wêreldplatforms verseker het. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraph follows.)

[It would be dishonest to say that the Presidency has not attained any success over the past four years, but we need to look with equal austerity at what has been attained and what may well have failed to materialise. There is no doubt that this Presidency ushered in South Africa’s transformation into a modern state with an impressive growth rate against strong internal opposition, and that this ensured South Africa’s position on the world stage.]

Ongoing … [Interjections.] Yes? [Interjections.] Are you arguing, are you suggesting that you didn’t deserve your position on the world platforms? [Interjections.] I am very intrigued.

Ongoing diplomatic efforts contributed to the formation of the African Union, the acceptance of the Peer Review Mechanism, the recognition of South Africa’s global importance by our inclusion on the Security Council of the United Nations and acceptance as a voice to be listened to by the G8.

However, in a number of critical areas the Presidency failed to provide the leadership that was required. The tacit support linked to the National Commissioner of Police when criminal charges were to be brought against him has done tremendous damage to the government’s commitment to combating organised crime and, dare I say, to the credibility of the President himself.

This blow was exacerbated through the subsequent process to disband the Scorpions against the recommendations of the long-suppressed Khampepe Commission report and contrary to an earlier Cabinet decision. Also, the murky waters around the suspension of the National Director of Public Prosecutions and the passivity of the President on the arms deal have done irreparable damage to the reputation of the highest office of our land in terms of the promotion of clean government and a corruption-free society.

But it is to the credit of this Presidency that pertinent issues have been placed on the table with respect to the economy, inter alia, through the approach of identifying binding constraints on growth. Sadly, despite its well-meaning overarching economic policy initiatives – Jipsa and Asgisa – the Presidency has not succeeded in effectively mobilising the resources to remove the barriers to growth to bring about the skills revolution promised, or to improve the job-creating capacity of our economy. And these will probably need an extension of term.

Most crucially, of course, the Presidency has not anticipated the crisis with our electricity generation infrastructure capacity, along with some other Ministers, and the serious constraints it would place on our economic growth. More grandiose projects have superseded the good work that Project Consolidate and the Presidency’s izimbizo programmes were to achieve, and have left these programmes impotent and especially the latter initiative open to manipulation for party-political gain by the ruling party. [Interjections.]

We also continue to be burdened with a crumbling health system, which through sheer ineptitude does not deliver on its mandate with respect to the management of facilities charged with the treatment of HIV/Aids and other high-prevalence diseases.

The robustness of our modern state is being eroded by these failings, all of which make it impossible to hold up the third Presidency as a model for future incumbents of the highest office of our land.

In 2001 the government announced 22 presidential development nodes in the poorest and least developed communities in our country to be prioritised for key interventions aimed at improving the dismal quality of life in these communities. The Ukhahlamba district in the Eastern Cape is such a presidential node. Yet, when 140 infants recently perished there because of diarrhoea contracted from impurities in drinking water and rendered untreatable by the shortage of basic medicines at local hospitals, the lack of response from the Presidency was chilling.

The women in these poor areas are subject to poverty and abuse. The children are subjected to the highest child rape incidences in the world. More than 60 children get raped per day. Yet we have under the Presidency the Office on the Status of Women, the Office on the Rights of the Child and the National Youth Commission that are supposed to address their needs, but have failed to do so year after year.

It was in Alexandra township, probably the best known developmental node, that the horrifying xenophobic violence we have been experiencing originally exploded. Here we saw the poor turn on the poor in the most brutal fashion, at least partially also out of frustration with their economic situation and living conditions, something, Mr President, I think you have yet to acknowledge.

This is not the kind of Presidency we deserve. We need the kind of Presidency that will ensure that the state is an efficient service delivery instrument.

Ons benodig egter nie ’n opgeblase openbare sektor om die regering se doeltreffendheid rakende dienslewering en die verandering wat mense benodig, teweeg te bring nie.

Maar ten spyte daarvan dat dit ’n pertinente prioriteit van die Presidentskantoor is, het die hoeveelheid vakante poste in die nasionale regering aan die einde van die 2006-07 boekjaar steeds meer as 40 000 vakatures beloop.

Daarbenewens is openbare-private vennootskappe, PPPs, nie genoegsaam gebruik om die vakuum wat deur ons kwynende regeringskapasiteit veroorsaak word te bevorder om die pas van dienslewering veral in terme van werkskepping en infrastruktuur, te vul nie.

As gevolg van die tekort … Mevrou, ek is nie ’n roker nie. Ek is jammer.

As gevolg van die tekort aan leierskap wat deur die Presidensie in dié verband verskaf is, het daar ’n hinderlike – eintlik meer embarrasserende - onenigheid ontstaan tussen die Tesourie wat die betrokkenheid van die privaatsektor steun, en die Minister van Openbare Ondernemings, wat dit nie steun nie. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraphs follows.)

[However, we do not need a bloated public sector in order to bring about government efficiency regarding service delivery and the changes required by the people.

Yet, regardless of the fact that it is a pertinent priority of the President’s Office, the number of vacant posts in the national government still totalled more than 40 000 at the closing of the 2006-07 financial year.

Besides that, public-private partnerships were not utilised sufficiently to fill the vacuum created by the fading capacity of the state to promote the rate of service delivery, particularly in terms of job creation and infrastructure.

Owing to a lack … [Interjections.] Madam, I am sorry, but I do not smoke.

Owing to a lack of leadership provided by the Presidency in this regard, an obstructive – actually more embarrassing – discord has developed between the Treasury, which supports the involvement of the private sector, and the Minister for Public Enterprises, who does not.]

This absence of government direction was starkly evidenced in the patent lack of concerted action during the xenophobic attacks and the need for emergency aid which civil society and local government had to provide in the breach.

Prudent political leadership is what South Africa needs now and this is also true when it comes to fostering and harnessing civil society co- operation. The situation of foreign nationals in our country is a salient reminder of the real need for South Africa to play a constructive role on the continent.

The contributions that we have been able to make through our leading roles in the African Union and the G77, and the mediation from our Presidency in countries such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Burundi have been particularly fruitful.

All the greater the pity that these achievements have to be so callously undermined by the ruinous positions we adopted during the violent aftermath of both the Zimbabwean and Kenyan elections, and our morally duplicitous stance as chair of the Security Council.

It is not an exaggeration, Sir, to call the situation in Zambabwe … rather Zimbabwe, slow. The situation in Zimbabwe … [Laughter.] If I were you, I would concentrate on what I am going to say.

The SPEAKER: Order, hon members.

The LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION: That is where you can learn something. It is not an exaggeration to call the situation in Zimbabwe slow-motion mass murder achieved by cutting off the funds to starving children, so as to subvert the results of democracy. The President cannot deny complicity in this by obstructing the issue from going to the United Nations where it belongs. He must now break his bonds with Mugabe. It is a simple question for all of you of common decency, of siding with the people, and not with the tyrants. It is your choice to make.

Madam Speaker, to get South Africa working for all South Africans, our Presidency needs to be beyond reproach as a force for getting Africa to work for all Africans. We need new ideas and decisive political leadership to take our country forward.

Nuwe politieke denke, en ’n nuwe sosiale kontrak, word dringend benodig om te verhoed dat ons nie weer eens, soos voor 1994, afstuur op ’n doodloopstraat nie. Destyds is die land ook bestuur in belang van slegs ’n gedeelte van die bevolking. Ons het dit omgeswaai; ons almal saam. Nou moet ons saamstaan en dit weer doen. [Interjections.] U weet dat dit nie die waarheid is nie.

Laat ek maar weer omonwonde herhaal: nie bruin of swart of wit sal alleen die mas opkom nie. ’n Nuwe apartheid is die laaste ding wat ons wil hê. Politieke transformasie, emosioneel noodsaaklik soos dit was, en steeds is, is nie volhoubaar ten koste van kundigheid en die uitsluiting van die grootste gros van die bevolking nie. Sonder transformasie kan ons nie ons samelewing hervorm nie, maar sonder kundigheid kan geen moderne samelewing vorentoe beweeg nie. Hierdie twee noodsaaklike fasette van ons huidige bestel moet met omsigtigheid bestuur word; aanvullend, maar nie ten koste van mekaar nie.

Dis ook noodsaaklik dat die Presidensie nie die waarde van taal en kultuur van ons verskeidenheid van gemeenskappe onderskat nie. Dit moet te alle tye deur die hoogste amp van die land begryp word en ek is ook bly dat hy dit in sy toespraak genoem het.

Speaker, ons grondwetlike skikking het op die beginsels van die regstaat en die reg tot privaateiendom tot stand gekom. Dit bly van kardinale belang vir ons vooruitgang as ’n nasie, sowel as privaat individue - dit sluit kommersiële boere, opkomende boere, voornemende boere en enigiemand wat nie ’n boer is nie – in. Dit sal rampspoedig wees as die beginsel omvergewerp word deur een uit ’n vloed van ondeurdagte wetsontwerpe, wat tans deur die Parlement gedruk word in ’n desperate poging om met wetgewing reg te maak wat weens gebrekkige bestuur nie gedoen kon word nie.

Ons het aan die staat die verantwoordelikheid oorgedra om ons teen misdaad te beskerm. Die staat kan nie nou daardie verantwoordelikheid ontduik nie. Dit help nie om die Skerpioene lam te lê om politiese vriende te beskerm nie; hierdie foefies ondermyn die hele regstaat. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraphs follows.)

[New political thinking and a new social contract are urgently needed in order to prevent us from once again, like before 1994, heading down a dead- end street. At that time the country was also governed in the interests of only a section of the population. We turned that around; all of us together. Now we must stand together and do it again. [Interjections.] You know that’s not the truth.

So let me repeat plainly: neither brown nor black or white can go it alone. The last thing we want is a new apartheid. Political transformation, emotionally essential as it was, and still is, is not sustainable at the expense of expertise and the exclusion of the great majority of the population. Without transformation we cannot reform our society, but without skills no modern society can make progress. These two vital facets of our current dispensation must be managed with circumspection; complementary to, but not at the expense of, one another.

It is also essential for the Presidency not to underestimate the value of language and culture to our diversity of communities. This should be appreciated at all times by the highest office of the country, and I am also pleased that he has mentioned this in his speech.

Speaker, our constitutional dispensation was brought about on the principles of the constitutional state and the right to private property. It remains of vital importance for our progress as a nation, as well as private individuals – including commercial farmers, emerging farmers, prospective farmers and anyone who is not a farmer. It would be disastrous if this principle were to be overthrown by one of the flood of ill- considered Bills which are currently being forced through Parliament in a desperate attempt to rectify by way of legislation what could not be achieved because of poor management.

We have assigned to the state the responsibility of protecting us against crime. Now the state cannot escape that responsibility. It doesn’t help to incapacitate the Scorpions in order to protect political friends; these stunts are undermining the entire constitutional state.]

I now rephrase my earlier question: what kind of Presidency do we deserve? We actually need to go no further than the American example where a man … [Interjections.] … unknown to the outside world, a mere 10 months ago – I hope someone like that is hiding in your ranks – now stands on the cusp of becoming the so-called leader of the free world. He achieved this miraculous rise in prominence not only by promoting the simple message – change we can believe in – but also by being the kind of man we can believe in.

No one can be unaware of the inclusive spirit, common decency, and caring that emanates from him. In South Africa we are desperately in need of leaders of such unambiguous honesty, humble realism, moral rectitude, and capacity to deliver the change we can believe in.

We will achieve this by cherishing contributions, whether they are local and white; or foreign and black; or all of these things – whether they belong to the previously advantaged or the currently disadvantaged. Bring them together so that we can all be advantaged. We will achieve this if we open up our society and opportunities for all.

We will achieve this by removing the fault lines of race and ethnicity as a yardstick for determining the value of human beings, and of being the frame of reference for political parties. It is necessary that we break free from outdated political models and move towards a truly South African construct which gives credence to the momentous changes we made in 1994.

We will also achieve a truly better life for all if we act like the volunteers at the refugee centres who, when the need was greatest, saw neither race nor creed nor colour, but simply frightened humanity looking for help. We will achieve this by realigning the politics of this country through a unity of purpose and vision, and the conviction that each and every one of us is a valued and indispensable part of the future.

Either, to paraphrase the President, we succeed together or collectively we will fail. When we differ, let it be on issues, not values; and when we debate, let us use words as bricks and mortar, not sticks and stones. When we act, let us remember the words of Dr Martin Luther King, “We are all tied together in a single garment of destiny.” It is one thing to have a new system of national orders, but it is an entirely different story to encourage the formation of a new national order.

The choices made in the Presidency, or by the President, shape the destiny of this land and every individual who resides in it. Instead of harnessing that power in ever-increasing service of narrow sectional interests, we ask that it be unleashed in the service of the broad national interest of all the citizens and occupants of this resourceful and resource-rich country.

No presidential legacy will be greater, or last longer in the annals of history, than that which placed service to the people above service to self. Thank you. [Applause.]

Mr A C NEL: Madam Speaker, on a point of order: Is it parliamentary for the Leader of the Opposition to refer to “slow-motion murder taking place in Zimbabwe” and to say that our President is complicit in that?

The SPEAKER: I would like to take that away and come back and make a ruling.

The DEPUTY MINISTER OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Madam Speaker, Comrade President, Comrade Deputy President, Ministers, Deputy Ministers, hon members, it is truly a privilege to have been given the opportunity to speak on this occasion. This is the last budget to be presented to the National Assembly by you, Mr President, during this term of office. In a matter of months we will once again be immersed in an election campaign, and in less than a year a new administration will be in place.

This debate comes in the wake of a series of unfortunate developments: electricity cuts, sharp increases in food and fuel prices, inflation has moved out of the target band, and we have been hit rather hard by a series of interest rate hikes. These are difficult times for everyone, and, as is always the case, poor people and low-income earners are the most affected.

In the face of these challenges it would be easy to descend into a mood of pessimism and to lose sight of the many immensely positive changes that have reached every corner of our country since the arrival of democracy.

Fourteen years ago, on 27 April 1994, the course of history in our country was changed forever. It was an exciting time, a time of joy, relief, and celebration. For millions of people it brought real hope that their dignity would finally be restored and that there was a life of quality to look forward to. The ANC fought long and hard to make that first election a reality. Hardly surprisingly, the ANC won convincingly. The election was hailed a miracle, but that is not what it was. It was the product of good leadership, dedication and the selfless struggle of millions of South Africans.

Comrade President, there is a distinguished delegation of veterans here from the Eastern Cape to listen to this debate. They are the people who brought us the freedom we enjoy today. [Applause.]

History gave us the seemingly impossible task of uniting and bringing peace to our country. We rose to the occasion and we took on the responsibility of rebuilding our country, tackling poverty and unemployment, providing shelter to the homeless, supplying water, sanitation and electricity to those who had to do without, ensuring equality to women and people with disabilities, and offering a life of dignity to all our citizens - the vast majority of whom had been oppressed and enslaved for centuries. Today, 14 years later, we can say with some pride that we have made huge advances in meeting the commitments we made to the people of our country. We are not patting ourselves on the back and we are certainly not saying “mission accomplished”. We will continue our fight against poverty until we can truly say, it is no more. We will continue our unrelenting struggle for a genuinely nonracial, nonsexist South Africa.

In 2004 almost 70% of our country’s voters gave the ANC yet another popular mandate to govern. Our pledge to them was that we would halve poverty and unemployment by 2014. This pledge was not lightly made and we were quite aware that it was not going to be an easy task. But we can say with confidence, as you said, Comrade President, in your state of the nation address earlier this year, that whatever the challenges of the moment, we are on course.

In 1994 when we took over the reins of government, 59% of households had access to basic water supply. By 2007 this figure had risen to 83% and it continues to rise. In 1994, 61% of households had access to electricity. Today a staggering 80% have electricity and more than 2 million houses have been built over the last 14 years.

When we took over the governing of our country in 1994 social grants were the preserve of an elite minority; today more than 12 million people receive social grants from the state. [Applause.] This is the story of what has been happening in our country in the past 14 years. Uneven though it may be, with its own ups and downs, it is by any standards a remarkable story. With the benefit of hindsight it is clear that we could undoubtedly have achieved a great deal more, but while we have made mistakes we have also learnt from them and the once sinking ship is well on course.

Of course, we are acutely aware of the many challenges that remain, including the immediate, much publicised so-called challenges of the moment. Indeed, Mr President, we will have to strain every sinew of our collective body to address these challenges. The persistently high level of crime features prominently among these challenges and will have to be tackled with unprecedented vigour by this government and society as a whole.

Our dream of improving the lives of our people cannot be achieved if we do not succeed in this fight. A pensioner whose pension has been stolen doesn’t care about the statistics of social grant delivery. A house with sanitation, electricity and water and a clinic and school nearby will be of no consolation to the parents of a murdered child. An abused woman will never fully enjoy the fruits of democracy, and notwithstanding the quality of our policies and plans, our economy will not grow as it needs to unless we bring crime under control.

Other speakers in this debate, Mr President, will go into more details about our plans to combat crime, but let it be said by every one of us: We are serious about our determination to fight crime and to make South Africa a most unwelcome place for criminals, whoever they are and wherever they come from. [Applause.]

There is no running away from it: The rising cost of living is taking its toll on our citizens. Our economy is facing some daunting challenges, some of our own making and some imposed on us from abroad. During such times, it is all too easy to slip into despondency and pessimism. However, in confronting the problems that face us and in taking stock of our successes and failures, we need to look back to see where we come from. As far as the economy is concerned we have come a very long way.

In 1994 this government inherited an economy on its knees, bleeding jobs, investment and human resources. We were on a downwards spiral that, if it had been allowed to continue, would have left our country in ruins, but our efforts stopped the descent and we have dug ourselves out of that deep hole. Today we are in a much better position to confront the challenges of our time precisely because we took the correct decisions on economic policy at that time.

Madam Speaker, allow me to make a few comparisons between 1997 and 2007. In 1997 our economy was producing about R686 billion worth of products. In 2007 this figure exceeded R2 trillion. [Applause.] And although there is understandable despair today about interest rates, let us not forget that in 1997, even before the Asian crisis, interest rates stood at 19%; in 2007 they stood at 11%.

In 1997 public expenditure was just R189 billion; last year the government spent R522 billion. [Applause.] Trevor, I hope I got these figures accurately. After a long period of rising unemployment which started in the mid-1980s, our unemployment rate fell from over 30% in 1997 to 23,5% in

1. The past four years have been particularly good. Gross domestic product growth has averaged close to 5% a year. National income per person has grown by 22%. Since 2003, 1,3 million jobs have been created! [Applause.]

I could go on. However, these facts in no way detract from the reality that our people do face considerable hardships and that we are still confronted by vast developmental challenges. However, there is no doubt that we have made considerable gains in rebuilding our economy, in restoring credibility in public finances and in providing the resources to meet our developmental challenges. These gains must not be undone. We are going through a difficult patch, but I have no doubt whatsoever that we will get out of it and that we are on course.

Under your leadership, Comrade President, and the leadership of the ANC, we will continue to change our country for the better. We will reach the remaining households who do not yet have access to water, sanitation and electricity. We will continue with what has to be one of the most impressive housing programmes the world has ever seen. With the benefit of learning and, of course, the benefit of the drive and energy of one Minister Lindiwe Sisulu, we will do it even better, where the provision of shelter becomes the provision of a well-located home with basic comforts. Of course, we would call on all South Africans to play their part, because the backlog remains huge.

We will tackle crime and we will do it with vigour. Our economy will continue to grow and we will ensure that more jobs are created and that the unacceptably large gap between the rich and the poor is narrowed.

Mr President, it goes without saying that the ANC supports the budget of the Presidency. You have an excellent team of people. While we understand that you will be retiring from your position - not this year, it should be stressed - am I right, Kgalema? - [Laughter.] - and also as a young man, that has to be stressed as well - I knew you would like that one, Mr President - we would appeal to you not to take your entire team with you. We need their experience and we need their expertise. [Applause.]

Mr President, Deputy President, and I am sure I speak on behalf of every Minister and every Deputy Minister here, it has really been a privilege to serve in this ANC-led government. It continues to be a privilege. And to you, Mr President, we pledge that we will continue to serve with humility and do justice to the millions who sacrificed so much to free our country. Thank you. [Applause.]

Prince M G BUTHELEZI: Madam Speaker, your Excellency the President, your Excellency the Deputy President, let me also take advantage of my being at this podium to repeat what I scribbled to the deputy president of the ANC, when I said that his entry into this House will add value and wisdom. I know that he may not have got my message, because if there’s anything that they failed to teach me in all the years in this institution it is how to write. I know that he may not have understood what I meant.

On the occasion of President Mbeki’s penultimate Budget Vote, I maintain that history will remember him as someone who cared deeply and passionately about the new South Africa, its people and its place in the world. I have known the President for over 30 years and served alongside him in the Cabinet for ten of those years. Yes, Mr President, you are perhaps the only person in this House who can testify that I also worked with that icon, Reginald Oliver Tambo, for decades.

Ke a tseba hore ha ke bua jwalo, botsebanyane ba tla re ke bua leshano. [I know that when I say that, Mr Know-it-all will say that I am lying.]

You can hear them even now murmuring. Yes, President, you and I were political opponents after our meeting in London in 1979, but we were never enemies. We have sometimes differed sharply, and notably on the government’s strategy to combat HIV/Aids and immigration policy to attract skills and maintain an open but controlled immigration policy, based on international best practice. I contend that if my approach had prevailed, and God knows we tried, an involuntary African diaspora with the flood of millions of refugees from Zimbabwe into South Africa could have been avoided.

I was saddened that my departure from your Cabinet, Your Excellency, was preceded by finding myself cast in the improbable role of defendant in a court in which my President was the litigant against me as his Minister. My respect for the institution of the Presidency, however, was not diminished by this sorry saga. To digress a little, may I take advantage of this opportunity to record my disquiet at the manner in which the hon member of the DA, the hon Mark Lowe, together with his colleague, tarred me with the brush of mismanagement of the Department of Home Affairs yesterday. I wonder whether Mr Lowe was here when one spook after another was appointed to head the department. [Laughter.] That is people whose only forte was that they were spooks with no particular record of efficiency or experience in administration. Was Mr Lowe here when the Masetlha saga took place, a director-general who defied me and refused even to implement my decisions? I submitted to the President and Cabinet four lever-arch files listing his acts of insubordination. I received no sympathy. He was instead promoted to the Presidency, but God being great, I could not believe my eyes one day and shared my surprise with the Director-General in the Presidency, Rev Chikane, when we met at the airport. I said, “DG, what is this I see in the Sunday paper?” It read: “The President is a liar – Masetlha”. [Laughter.] The rest is now history.

In the same way, my party and I led the criticism inside and outside the government of how the President’s first term was unproductively spent deciding whether HIV was the cause of Aids, something medical science had long taken for granted, to the detriment of millions of people infected or affected by this deadly virus. However, despite these failings, I was proud to serve in the Cabinet with the President for ten years. More accurately: I recall that Madiba often jocularly said that he was the de jure President of South Africa and the de facto President was President Mbeki. Those of us who were in the Cabinet since 1994 know how true that is. So, I say, “humanum est errare” [to err is human].

South Africa has been led by a talented patriot with a clear grasp of public policy for the past nine years. I would like to say that his fiercest critics in this House and beyond cannot deny that this man has given his best at home, and given South Africa political clout far exceeding our lower-middle ranking status in the international community. [Applause.] I know from sitting alongside him in countless international meetings that he bats for South Africa at every opportunity.

The President’s crowning achievement is, of course, his meticulous work, alongside the Finance Minister, to integrate South Africa into the global economy. When we participated in the first Cabinet meetings in 1994, Mr President, few of us could have imagined that the years of economic stagnation experienced under the apartheid era in the 1980s would be so swiftly reversed. [Applause.] These achievements, despite the rage all around us, will stand and this country will endure, will revive and will prosper because we are a great nation. [Applause.]

I am duty bound, as I have done over the past 14 years, to spell out some of the dangers we face and call the President to account. It is clear to me that our country seeks discipline and direction under leadership. The President will, by now, have come to understand the painful words of that Shakespearean character, Claudius, to be true: “When sorrows come, they come not single spies but in battalions.”

Earlier in the year, I posed the question: Is the institution of the executive Presidency the best prescription for South Africa? It was this question that led me to table the Eighteenth Constitution Amendment Bill to separate the head of state from the head of government, to establish both a President and Prime Minister at the next general election. For partisan reasons, even for those of you who are groaning in that corner, the ruling party rejected its desirability, but does the President himself recognise that a marker has been laid down and that sooner, rather than later, we will have to address the tough questions of governance that my Bill raised?

The health of the Republic is not good. I mean, when a Deputy Minister can stand here in front of you and ask the deputy president of the ANC whether or not the President will complete his term, however jocularly he puts it, when he knows that his term is not over, then the health of the Republic is not good. Our democratic institutions are failing the South African people. This Parliament has signally failed in its policy oversight and policy- making role. We all know that in the aftermath of the dastardly xenophobic attacks the most immediate problem is food security. We must be tough on xenophobia and tough on the causes of xenophobia, as the President has also emphasised. The roots of such decadent lawlessness lie in an entrenched national malaise. The president of the United States Franklin D Roosevelt’s adviser, Harry Hopkins, famously observed in the midst of the American depression, and I quote:

People don’t eat in the long run; they eat every day - or starve in the long run.

The time for food summits and workshops is long past.

I would like to ask the President to spell out in his reply tomorrow if the Presidency will make it an Apex Priority to ensure that no displaced person, and indeed no South African citizen, is left unfed. We need to hear the details, not worthy aspirations. The muscle of the state is needed in the strategic fight against poverty. I know; I was in your Cabinet, President. I know that we tried. I always say so.

The IFP asks, however: Will the Presidency now accept that a basic income grant must be urgently introduced? Failure to do so will, I fear, result in the widespread rioting and looting that we have witnessed in countries such as Egypt and Indonesia. The consequences for our already fragile national unity are simply too terrible to comprehend.

At this time, Mr President, apart from the legitimate cut-and-thrust of the democratic process, there seems to be a concerted effort to destroy your legacy. I say what I’m going to say now because I do not want your legacy to be destroyed.

I am concerned that, as your term of office comes to a close, the undertaking that was made to the Coalition of Traditional Leaders by the Cabinet committee which was chaired by the hon Mr J G Zuma, the then Deputy President of the Republic and now president of the ANC, has been dishonoured. I raised this matter with the hon president of the ANC at a meeting this year of the traditional leaders of the world. I will not say what he said to me then because he’s not here.

Once again, I must remind the President that the Cabinet committee promised that, in order to prevent the obliteration of the powers and functions of traditional leaders, Chapters 7 and 12 of the Constitution would be amended. It was a solemn promise that the President made, both verbally and in writing. Mr President, a promise is a promise. I would certainly be saddened if the failure to fulfil such a solemn undertaking would be used by those clearly wanting to destroy your legacy by branding you as someone who will go down in history as having deceived the traditional leaders of the Republic. We also need a strong sense of leadership from the President in seemingly trivial matters, not just in the big matters. We especially need direction in protecting our fragile environment. We need to be told authoritatively how important it is to save electricity and to begin car-sharing to reduce carbon emissions. The endless traffic jams have become a permanent feature of all our cities.

I fear that, due to our immediate political crisis, we have not kept pace with the rest of the world on how to combat global warming. The IFP is alarmed that South Africa is not rising to the green challenge and exercising leadership. The damage to the environment, alongside poverty, is undoubtedly, in my view, the biggest global challenge of our times. I would like to hear from the President what plans he has for the government to regain the green initiative.

Finally, in the life of every woman and man, in every nation, and yes, every Presidency, there is a tipping point. In my judgement, this great nation of ours has not yet reached the tipping point between success and disintegration, but we are teetering on the brink. For the sake of this country, I plead with the President to use these final few months, to use the Presidency to reach out to the great majority of South African people of goodwill, to safeguard our fragile achievements, and to have the courage to discard failed policies. I would like to assure him of our support as he tries to complete this great task. Dlamini! [Applause.]   The SPEAKER: Hon members, before I call on the next speaker, I would like to recognise a group of children who attended the Children’s Parliament hosted by the Presidency and the Committee on the Improvement of Quality of Life and Status of Children, Youth and Disabled Persons. [Applause.]

Prof B TUROK: Madam Speaker, hon President, hon Deputy President and hon deputy president of the ANC, let me start by saying that I deplore the cheap jibe by the Leader of the Opposition at our honoured deputy president of the ANC, and assure the House that the country expects the hon member to have a long and illustrious career in this House. [Applause.]

Mr President, I was fortunate to be present at the World Bank conference on Monday this week when you made an inspirational and erudite speech in support of development economics. You received a solid ovation despite tackling the thorny issue of market fundamentalism in an audience with many World Bank staffers who, in the past, have not supported development economics. You informed the audience that, even today, the advice that you constantly get is to privatise, deregulate and open to free trade. Yet, you argued, such policies are not adequate for a developing country where, as you said, the poor are knocking at the gate. I am reading these paragraphs, Mr President, because I want to get them right. I have a copy of the speech, which I have read three times - a very sophisticated speech indeed. Indeed, one of the participants at the conference, a chief economist, said to me that there are not many presidents in the world who give lectures of this kind. [Applause.]

Mr President, you also quoted one of Africa’s most distinguished scholars, Thandika Mkandawire, who happened to be in South Africa last week. I was privileged to chair a session where he spoke at a conference convened by the Development Bank of Southern Africa and the Human Sciences Research Council on the theme “Constructing a democratic developmental state in South Africa”. He spoke on some of the negative elements of World Bank interventions in Africa because he wanted to point out some lessons to us as a developing country. The conference had several international experts, such as Prof Ha-Joon Chang from South Korea, who explained the process through which South Korea moved, in a few decades, from being poorer than Ghana – this was just after the Second World War - to becoming one of the economic giants of our period. These experts were convinced, and I say this to the hon Buthelezi - unfortunately he has left - that South Africa had the capability to become a truly developmental state and that we had the capacity. When the President said a moment ago that there was no crisis of incapacity in government, which is a slightly negative statement, our meeting, the conference, felt that we did indeed have the capability to become a truly democratic developmental state. And I would say to the hon Buthelezi that there is no tipping point in sight. Indeed, international experts and development economists are convinced that we have all the ingredients necessary to become a powerful, developmental and developed state.

However, the conference and I believe that we need to have a further mobilisation of the people of South Africa, because of two issues: Firstly, we have a great deal of poverty and underdevelopment. We have rural areas which have huge capacity but are presently not producing the public goods that we require. Secondly, there are large areas of the world economy which are unhelpful to our own advancement and integration into the world economy. This morning, we were briefed in our portfolio committee that the difficulties of negotiation between Africa and Europe around the economic partnership agreements are enormous, with a great deal of stubbornness in Europe for any advance. So, there are pockets of the world system which are not in favour of our advance and our proper integration into the world economy. This is why we need to take much stronger measures ourselves to mobilise the resources and capabilities that we have as a country.

We were told that the Korean government, and I am going to be very brief here and staccato, played a transformational role and not a restraining role – a very important point. They placed a great deal of emphasis on planning. They gave much direction to business and provided protection to infant industries. By the way, we were informed that when it comes to protectionism, the United States was the world champion in protectionism from 1820 to 1940. Yet, we were told that we must all open up and have free markets and liberalise everything while they have grown behind protective barriers over such a long time.

We were also told that one of the key elements of advancement in South Korea was to force business to procure locally. So, there are many lessons, in my view, that we can learn from their experience. Certainly, they have proven success. It is conceded that in the South Korean case and in other East Asian tigers, there were authoritarian regimes in place. In discussion with Prof Ha-Joon Chang and others, they said immediately that authoritarianism is not a necessary ingredient for a developmental state and for democracy.

Indeed, we in South Africa have this huge democracy and the huge ANC with its mass support. This is something upon which we can rely rather than be fearful of. So, what are the lessons for South Africa? Firstly, we must expand the capabilities of all our people. The opinion of the experts who come from all over the world is that this is a rich country; we have excellent institutions; we have massive natural resources; and we have a great deal of know-how. We must mobilise all these to a higher level, including the ordinary people of this country who do have capabilities which are not always recognised. These experts said to us that we must be bolder. They said we should not be risk averse and that we must take a chance and push forward on a developmental paradigm which will bring us to a proper developed situation. We must also use more state intervention. The Asian Tigers did not hesitate to use state intervention. We must not be timid in this area. Let us move. We have a strong state and big capabilities – let us move. Let us also plan. We were informed that, in the private sector, every big firm plans. No general manager or chief executive will come into a large corporation and say they must see what the market wants and then they will meet the market. No! They come in and say they have studied the market and that they know what they are going to do. They say these are the plans and this is how they are going to invest. That’s the way to move forward. And it seems to me that we should not be timid about planning. There is nothing to be ashamed of. We are not talking about a command economy with central planning. But let us plan just like the private sector does - give direction to business and co-ordination with business.

Last night there was a lecture at the same conference by a top businessman from India who explained how, even in India, where the government is not socialist or anything like that, they co-ordinate and work with business; there is a partnership. Why is it that we get the impression that, in South Africa, the partnership between the state and business isn’t as it should be? Let us give more direction.

Let us also create an effective Public Service. We need a Public Service which is as strong, educated and efficient as those they had in South Korea, Japan and other countries. Let us not hesitate in this area.

Now, we talk about a democratic developmental state and not an authoritarian developmental state. It is agreed now in most sectors of the academic community and the planning community that democracy is an advantage. We had one professor from the United States, Prof Evans, who is an expert in development state theory, who argued that the capabilities of people are a major asset in moving along a developmental path. And indeed I think no one can dispute that, in South Africa, because of the large problems of unemployment, poverty and marginalisation - especially in rural areas - we are not expanding the capabilities of ordinary people as much as we should. So, let us do that. And let us expand the capabilities of ordinary people in line with democratic practices. Let us make the people participate. We talk about a bottom-up democracy. Let us implement that. Let us ensure that the Public Service sees to it that in every project there is proper participation from below. In that way, we will build a healthy democratic developmental state along the lines that our President argued in front of the World Bank. Thank you. [Applause.]

Mr B H HOLOMISA: Lawulekani! [Be disciplined!]

Chairperson, hon President, hon Deputy President, hon Ministers and hon members, I wish also to welcome the deputy president of the ANC. Siyabulela, mkhuluwa! Silindile ukuba uza kude unyukele nini ngase kunxele kwakho. [We thank you, Mr K Motlanthe! We are waiting to see you occupy a higher position.]

The UDM supports the Budget Vote. The current escalation in the prices of food and fuel, including paraffin and electricity, and interest rates will undermine all the initiatives undertaken since 1994 to uplift the poorest of the poor. Your Office and Cabinet, Sir, therefore need to devise strategies to salvage the country from this unfolding crisis. For instance, when the former Minister of Minerals and Energy, Penuell Maduna, sold our oil reserves, he rebuffed concerns with the statement that we did not need to worry because the world was awash with oil. Today those reserves could have been used to intervene on behalf of South Africans. We say that the government must do more.

Equally, it would be in the interests of our people to review the instruments used by the Reserve Bank under Mr Tito Mboweni. Instead of using inflation as the overwhelming measurement, he should rather include factors such as unemployment too. This way we can halt this practice of beating consumers and the economy over the head with high interest rates for imported inflation. Indeed, if these monitoring instruments are not reviewed, they will hit hard the majority of the citizens who have for decades been locked out of the economic mainstream. Yes, in other countries you have an interest rate dispensation that protects those who invest in property, because shelter is a basic human right.

In all likelihood, Mr President, this will be the last Budget Vote you present to Parliament. My observation is not based on the calls from some of your colleagues for you to step down, but on the constitutional reality that your term will expire early next year. This country has to thank you for the job you have done, and in particular for the institutions you have put in place. I’m thinking specifically of the manner in which you have placed South Africa on the map of the continent and the world. However, this recent spate of violent xenophobic attacks has done much damage to our image. Whilst the architects of this violence are yet to be exposed, one might be tempted to think that it was a campaign designed to slap you in the face and undermine your legacy on the continent.

There is no doubt that the big debate on the future of the continent will continue despite recent setbacks. Perhaps the next phase that SADC countries should consider is moving towards a form of federal governance for the region in order to integrate economic, social and security policies. Such closer co-operation would unlock the vast economic and human resources of the region and benefit all its citizens. This would be in line with the current plans to allow the free movement of citizens of the Southern African Development Community.

During your term of office, Sir, it is a pity that some of your colleagues entrusted with delivery could not live up to the legitimate expectations of the nation. We now see that some of your wealthy colleagues are masquerading all over, trying to portray failures and unpopular decisions as belonging to the President only, whilst the public knows that these have been the ANC’s collective decisions.

However, this does not address the inherent problems in the tripartite alliance’s thinking and policies. Therefore, when these newly recycled leaders come to power, nothing will change. They should stop misleading the nation by claiming differently. We know them; some of them have been Premiers and have participated in municipalities and government departments; there is nothing new that they are going to bring.

Indeed, Sir, you and your party leader, Mr Jacob Zuma, have jointly written to the City Press that the policy positions adopted by the ANC at the Polokwane conference “do not represent a qualitative break” with past party positions. So, who’s fooling who?

Despite all of this, there is no doubt that the country is crying out for constructive change. This highlights, once more, the need for the national convention that I’ve suggested in the House before, especially to debate issues of economy and social cohesion, as President Mbeki suggested in this House last year. Finally, the idea of this convention should not be confined to Members of Parliament only and should include other stakeholders outside this House. Perhaps Madam Speaker and the President should approach the SA Human Rights Commission to facilitate such a national convention. Time is against us. Enkosi. [Thank you.] [Applause.]

Dkt S C CWELE: Sihlalo, Mongameli, Phini likaMongameli, malungu ahloniphekileyo ePhalamende, mphakathi waseNingizimu Afrika, nami ngisukuma egameni likaKhongolose ukuxhasa isabelo sezimali sehhovisi likaMongameli uComrade uThabo Mbeki.

UKhongolose uyazithokozela futhi uzishayela ihlombe izinhlelo zikahulumeni zokulwisana nazo zonke izinkinga esake sabhekana nazo. Ukhongolose uyathokoza ikakhulukazi nge gxathu esesilithathile ekulwisaneni nobumpofu nokusweleka kwemisebenzi.

Imiphumela emihle yalezi zinhlelo ifana nenkanyezi yokusa esihola isisusa ebumnyameni beminyaka yencindezelo isiwezela ekusaseni eliqhakazile lempilo engcono kubo bonke abantu baseNingizimu Afrika. Kodwa siyaqonda futhi ukuthi yonke le mizamo ingaphelela eboyeni okwezithukuthuku zenja uma singabambani sisukume silwisane nobugebengu, nesihluku sodlame olukhungethe imiphakathi nezwe lethu.

Siyazi ukuthi umsuka wenzondo nokucwasana usemlandweni wethu omubi weminyaka yencindezelo. Kodwa manje lesi yisikhathi sokubhukula silwisane nezephulamthetho, ubugebengu, indluzula kanye nokucwasana kwemiphakathi yethu. Zolo lokhu sibone izindimbane zabantu zimasha ePitoli zithi sekwanele ukuhlukunyezwa izigelekeqe. Asisukume sibambisane nohulumeni silwisane nendluzula.

Ngomgqibelo odlule nathi ePortshepstone besishaye uhologo simasha silwisana nodlame nokuhlukunyezwa kwabezizwe abakhosele edolobheni lethu laseHibiscus Coast. Abantu abalinganiselwa enkulungwaneni bazo zonke izinhlanga ikakhulukazi abantu abasha kuhlanganisa nabafowethu nodadewethu abaqhamuka kumazwe ase-Afrika.

Le mashi yayiholwa abefundisi, oDokotela uMgojo, abaholi bendabuko, amaphoyisa, abaholi bamabhizinisi nabasebenzi, isiteshi somsakazo somphakathi i-Radio Sunny South sasiphelezelwa ngabaculi abaqavile KwaZulu- Natali abanjengoProfessor noTzozo.

Obemele uhulumeni omkhulu bekungumhlonishwa uMalusi Gigaba, abaholi bendawo bakaKhongolose, abe-IFP kanye neDA imbala, sonke besithi ngeke sisale ekwakheni lolu mbimbi noma ukhukhulela ngoqo wokulwisana nodlame, inzondo nendluzula. (Translation of isiZulu speech follows.)

[Dr S C CWELE: Chairperson, President, Deputy President, hon Members of Parliament, fellow South Africans, I rise on behalf of the African National Congress to support the Budget Vote for the Office of the president, Comrade Thabo Mbeki. The ANC is happy and it applauds government programmes aimed at fighting the most challenging problems that we have ever faced. The ANC is happy especially with the distance that we have travelled in the fight against poverty and unemployment.

The good results of these initiatives are like a morning star at dawn that leads us from the darkness of the years of oppression, leading us to a brighter future with a better life for all South Africans. But we understand that all this will come to naught if we do not unite and stand firm against crime and violence in our communities and ultimately in our country.

We know and understand that the root of hatred and discrimination arises from our bad history of the years of oppression, but this is the time for us to roll up our sleeves and fight against criminals, crime, violence and discrimination in our communities. Just yesterday we saw a massive number of people marching in Pretoria saying they cannot accept with being terrorised by criminals anymore. Let us stand united with government in the fight against violent crime.

Last Saturday we also embarked on a march to fight against violence and the abuse of foreigners especially the ones who are housed in Hibiscus Coast Municipality. About 1000 people of all races, especially the youth, including our brothers and sisters from other African countries, took part in this march. This march was led by religious ministers, Dr Mgojo, traditional leaders, police, businesspeople and workers and the local radio station, Radio Sunny South, was also represented, and it was accompanied by well-known KwaZulu- Natal musicians like Professor and Tzozo.

The representative from national government was Comrade Malusi Gigaba. We had ANC local leaders, the IFP was also there, and even the DA as well. We were all saying that we will not fail to unite and embark on a march against riots, hatred and violence.]

These masses deliver the powerful message with one voice that the people of South Africa will not allow themselves to be victims of crime, but will unite to form a broad front against crime in our communities. We realise that crime cannot be solved by government alone, but requires the active participation of every citizen in order to realise our dream of a community living in peace and comfort. We are conscious that the war against crime will be won or lost at community level.

We listened to ordinary people and all stakeholders suggesting practical ways of tackling crime. As peace-loving South Africans, we must mobilise and empower our communities to go beyond workshops and talkshops towards taking decisive steps to make criminality not a choice, through our local initiative working together with our law enforcement agencies. Key to this is the cultivation of our culture of ubuntu as a foundation for moral regeneration and treatment of our neighbours. The ANC appreciates the progress made in the co-ordination of our criminal justice system at all levels and the introduction of community safety forums as local centres for popular participation of our citizens. We must deploy the necessary resources to capacitate and ensure the smooth functioning of these community safety forums. We must revive our street or village committees in all our neighbourhoods. These street committees must not be party-political structures. They must be local organs of popular participation by all our people to resolve all challenges in our neighbourhoods. They must be local hub centres for efficient functioning of our ward committees and community safety forums.

We understand that a large number of our people are still trapped in the poverty cycle. Our democracy gives space to all to voice their concerns, but there can be no justification for burning trains and stations simply because someone has stolen signal cables, resulting in delays in our train schedules. There can be no justification for destroying property and community infrastructure because of delays in service delivery. There can be no justification for allowing criminals to act with impunity.

We welcome the legislation that has been introduced in Parliament as part of the transformation and strengthening of our criminal justice system. In this regard we welcome legislative proposals that seek to build more capacitated structure with the Saps to deal with organised crime.

Our budding democracy is thriving, and nothing will stop us from reaching our destination of a united, nonracial, nonsexist and democratic society. Unity is the key in dealing with whatever challenges we may encounter in our path to a prosperous nation. However, we must heed the wise words of our hero, O R Tambo, when he advised, and I quote:

… unity does not grow wild … It has to be nurtured, built up, it wears away. It must be doctored, treated. It also has many enemies … and you have to keep vigilant against these.

There are still challenges that threaten our social cohesion and progress as a nation. First is the challenge posed by information peddlers who continue to spread false information with the aim of causing confusion and instability, and undermine our efforts to achieve peace and development in our country and Africa. Part of this are the relentless attempts by these individuals to abuse the democratic space created by South Africa to attack our nation or destabilise our neighbours.

The other threat is transnational crime. We need to pay special attention to our borders and undermine the capacity of these criminals to operate across them. Key to the strategy should be the free movement of documented people across SADC while improving our capacity to deter illegal migration and criminals from crossing our borders. We must make resources available, focusing on co-ordination of IT systems and increasing the capacity of departments and brutally dealing with corruption at these posts.

We must address the new challenges that have emerged as we implement the transfer of borderline control from the SA National Defence Force to the SA Police Service. The terrain has changed, because the criminals are using sophisticated technologies and heavy artillery in paving their way across our borders. We must as a consequence capacitate our police to deal with these challenges and probably review the timeline for handover next year.

In conclusion, there is nobody in the history of South Africa who has done so much and remained so committed to the upliftment of the poor and vulnerable as the ANC and its government. Our national project of nation- building is on track. However, we are fully aware that this task of building a national democratic society goes beyond the ruling party and rests on the shoulders of every South African. We can overcome the current challenge of crime in our community. We must unite and act now to make our villages places of safety and comfort.

We support this Budget Vote. [Applause.]

The DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC: Chairperson, the President of the Republic, the hon Thabo Mbeki, hon members, and also a special word of welcome to the deputy president of the ANC. I am glad you are here, deputy president. Whenever we greet you, we like to say …unginika umdlandla … [… your presence makes me happy and it gives me oomph …]

I just want to assure you … ngizokunika umdlandla nomthwalo, nomuntu esengizothululela kuye eminye imithwalo engisindayo. [… that I will give you all my burdens, and now that you are here with us, I will have a person to report all my heavy loads to.] You are most welcome.

We are drawing close to the end of the third term of this democratic government. It has been 14 years of progress and challenges. This year, 2008, is a tough year. It is full of contradictions, but it is also full of milestones as well as challenges and setbacks. Nothing illustrates these contradictions for our country and the world more than the food security crisis the world is currently facing.

The Secretary-General of the UN, Mr Ban Ki-moon, captured it in his opening address to the Conference on World Food Security, the Challenges of Climate Change and Bioenergy in Rome last week, and I quote:

The threats are obvious to us all. Yet the crisis also presents us with an opportunity.

So much in our own state of affairs represents opportunities and threats, all at the same time.

Hon members, we come together to take stock in this important month of June, Youth Month. We are reminded by our great leader Oliver Tambo that our successes will be judged by the extent to which we build a society that nurtures and unleashes the potential of young people. I am glad to see so many of them in the House today.

I feel honoured to discuss this Budget Vote of the Presidency, which is meant to manage and develop the strategic agenda of government and give effect to the people’s contract.

It is important to reflect on what we have achieved despite the daunting challenges we have faced and those that still lie ahead, especially now in this present climate of high inflation and interest rates, food insecurity, electricity shortages, high fuel costs, climate change, violence against Africans who are not of South African origin, and the general concerns about service delivery that concern some of our people.

We are also concerned about crime in our country, no doubt, because of how it impacts on our citizens and their quality of life. We welcome the initiatives, such as yesterday’s march, by members of our society to take steps to fight crime. The comments by some of the speakers at the march regarding the need to strengthen our social institutions coincide with our moral regeneration objectives. Without common values and shared concerns for fellow human beings we will not achieve our noblest goals of social cohesion. We therefore applaud the draft Charter on Positive Values soon to be launched by the Moral Regeneration Movement, some time in the next few months.

I also want to extend our condolences to those families of South Africans, of Zimbabweans, of Mozambicans, who lost their people in the recent violence. Of course, one Somali citizen also lost his life. I must add that those who are taking advantage of this difficult situation will be brought to book, whether they are South Africans or foreigners. This violence is not just by South Africans against foreigners; it is by criminals against people.

The structural faults in the global economy have impacted upon us, and this places a heavy burden on us as a developmental state. But we have not been derailed in our goal of providing water and sanitation, of restoring our public health system, of caring for the elderly and infirm, and of educating our children for a more secure future. Yes, it is difficult, but we know that it is not impossible.

Taken as a whole, these challenges, which impact on the public mood, may seem daunting. I am convinced, however, that we are capable of turning the corner and consolidating the gains we have made in our hard-won democracy if, and only if, we adopt a “Business Unusual” approach, and only if we are able to identify clearly the challenges we face and take advantage of the opportunities, and there are plenty of them on the horizon.

Lapha emsebenzini wethu kwihhovisi likaMongameli sibambisane nabantu abaningi, ngoba siyazi ukuthi injobo enhle ithungelwa ebandla. [In our work in the Presidency we have collaborated with many people because we know that two heads are better than one.]

In our work within the Presidency we are supported by our colleagues at national, provincial and local level, as well as members of broader society who give of their time, resources, energy and goodwill generously.

Platforms for engagement include the Presidential Working Groups which the President convenes and attends without fail. We also have the Presidential Co-ordinating Council, the Jipsa Joint Task Team, the International Investment Council, the Presidential Information Advisory Council, the Youth Development Forum as well as interministerial committees that co- ordinate many other programmes of government.

I do want to thank especially the joint working group for the work it has done in assisting us to deal with the emergency in energy, supporting the two hardworking Ministers.

Ningadinwa nangomso! [We will forever be grateful to you – do it again!]

We would also like to acknowledge all of the people and organisations who work with us, some of whom are here with us today. The people we collaborate with include the people who participate in and are beneficiaries of the National Youth Service, who are here. It also includes the representatives and participants in the placement programme of Jipsa. I know that we have some representatives here who have just returned from India, the Netherlands and Germany. [Applause.] I want to thank you for all the support that you have been able to give us and I’d like to urge all of those people who have collaborated with us to give the same support to the next team that will be in government. All of this co-operation would not mean anything, though, if our own co-ordinating mechanism as government did not meet the standards. In that regard I’d also like to express my appreciation for the work done by our Cabinet office, serving the Presidency and the executive. Without this centre holding, we would not be able to serve you effectively.

The cluster system has also matured and filtered to all spheres of government, making our collective tasks and intergovernmental co-ordination possible, within clusters, between clusters and in terms of us being the government as well as the ruling party.

Asgisa programmes cannot be implemented without greater co-ordination. Through the cluster system we have been able to plan, execute and monitor better the strategic interventions, especially the large overarching interventions such as the Infrastructure Programme, the Expanded Public Works Programme, the National Youth Service Programme and preparations for 2010 Fifa World Cup.

Again I would like to emphasize the fact that this co-ordination needs to be refined, and I would encourage the next team to refine it. A good start has been made and, when we do it well, it really works.

It should be much better once we have set up the planning capacity within government to institutionalise integrated planning. I want to thank the Policy Unit in the Presidency under the leadership of Comrade Joel Netshitenzhe, for the sterling work they have done in all the areas of policy execution and co-ordination.

I must, however, say that greater co-ordination by ourselves as members of the executive, senior officials especially, will ensure that all of this collective work yields even greater results. We must forge ahead, as the Minister of Education was saying, with the removing of the remaining silos. Fragmentation and poor co-ordination means loss of value in our work. Through co-ordination the ruling party has been able to work as one ANC, especially to advance and inform policy. Despite what people say and think, the ANC is not a two-headed monster. Whatever the challenges and the opportunities, renewal exists and many opportunities to forge ahead also exist.

The Leader of Government Business convened a number of meetings towards the beginning of the year with Ministers, committee chairs, the Chief Whips’ Office and the Whippery in general, as well as senior officials from different departments, who were able to examine the government’s legislative programme.

This has resulted in a more accurate programme. A larger number of Bills were planned and actually tabled within the timeframes. I congratulate you, hon members. Only a few Bills have failed to comply, and we are paying attention to them. I want to thank the hon Chief Whip for the assistance given in this regard.

The Leader of Government Business also gives fortnightly reports to Cabinet on the programme of Parliament, issues before Parliament are discussed and we remind Ministers of the number of unanswered parliamentary questions, amongst other things. Sometimes we get it wrong and I end up answering questions from Ministers as to why I am challenging them about questions they have answered.

Uxolo bethuna! Siyanxenxeza no JJ! [Sorry, hon members! We are apologising to JJ!] It’s all for the good!

Attempts are being made to build greater capacity at the level of the Leader of Government Business to provide support on issues such as monitoring the legislative programme of departments. More work needs to be done on monitoring the quality of legislation as well.

After all, when you strip us of all the titles we have, our core responsibility remains that of making laws. That is the essence of our existence in this Chamber.

Singabashayi bemithetho nje kuphela. Ngakho-ke kufanele imithetho yethu ibonakale ukuthi ishaywe abantu abaphekiwe. [We are legislators and that’s it. So the pieces of legislation that we pass should therefore reflect our experience and maturity.]

As the Leader of Government Business we have an essential role to fulfil in offering an interface between the executive and Parliament. Although we may differ on some issues, the highest law of the land, our Constitution, obliges us to serve the nation together, whilst you, hon members, do your oversight work. We congratulate you on that and encourage you to do that. However, I also have to express concern, because there have been excesses in some cases which are of concern, especially when they lead to a breakdown in relations between committees, officials and Ministers. South Africa loses when that happens as the substance becomes muddled up. This is one of the matters we have to find solutions to.

We have launched the Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa, Asgisa. Our goal was and still is to halve poverty and unemployment by 2014. I am glad that hon Turok has highlighted that we have got what it takes to achieve these objectives.

Asgisa has been one of the most innovative and challenging initiatives under my responsibility. We said, when we started, that we could halve poverty and unemployment if we were able to grow the economy by at least 4,5% on average a year between 2004 and 2009 and by at least 6% on average from 2010 to 2014.

Despite recent economic developments, we will most certainly make progress in some key areas. Government’s contribution through the R600 billion investment in infrastructure has a massive and positive impact, especially at this difficult time.

Asgisa has been making progress in the major areas of work such as infrastructure; skills and education; industrial strategy; sectoral development, especially in the sectors that we have prioritised such as tourism, business processing, outsourcing and biofuels - and indeed we are seeing fruit in the development of small business and addressing issues in the second economy; and stability and government capacity. Infrastructure has always been a cornerstone of Asgisa and we are glad that visible progress has been made in the areas of building or refurbishing power stations, new stadiums for 2010, airports, railway lines, railway stations, harbours, hospitals, pipelines and telecommunications cables. We are buying and building hundreds of railway locomotives and railway lines, harbour equipment, etc. These are some of the concrete things that, when all come together, are enabling us to meet the Asgisa objectives.

I acknowledge the shortcomings in some areas, either as a result of skills shortages or misaligned legislation. I commend members and colleagues who have taken it upon themselves to address some of these areas. One such area is the deployment of skills in municipalities through Siyenza Manje, which seeks to enable municipalities to meet what we think are supposed to be their Asgisa targets.

At this stage, I also want to thank the departments, the state-owned enterprises and the private sector for the enormous contribution they have made in the different areas on which Asgisa touches.

It is a fact that in 1994 the government inherited a weak economy with high levels of public debt, chronic unemployment, high tariff protection, low levels of competitiveness and practically no foreign investment of note. Also, during this time, there was a deliberate and designed strategy to strip our workforce of their productive capacity through the systematic denial of education and training opportunities. That was 1994.

But, due to policy interventions with foresight and aggressive economic reforms, the picture is very different 14 years later. Even with the current difficulties in the global trading environment, South Africa is attracting large foreign investment and we are also mobilising significant domestic investment. As the economies of Europe and North America experience a slowdown, we are attracting a lot of their productive capacity. I know because the Department of Trade and Industry and Trade and Investment South Africa confirm this.

Highlights of recent developments on investments include a rapid increase in fixed investment activity in South Africa on the back of a massive infrastructure investment drive by government, public corporations as well as the private sector, and a domestic and foreign investment pipeline: There are 74 domestic and foreign investment projects in the investment pipeline to the value of R206 billion; major Greenfield projects with significant BEE opportunities, multiplier effects and geographic spread; and domestic investment projects at R143 billion and foreign investment at R53 billion, with a total of R171 billion in the pipeline committed or in progress. This is an attractive economy, notwithstanding the challenges that we face. We could not have achieved this if we had not worked hard in the years that we are emerging from.

Manufacturing accounts for R19,7 billion, resources account for R182,7 billion and we have R3,6 billion for services in the pipeline. One would have loved to have seen manufacturing featuring much better.

We recognise the work of the Department of Trade and Industry, and Trade and Investment South Africa, and thank them and many of you for this good work.

In line with commitments made in Asgisa, government’s obligation to industrial strategy took a qualitative step forward. We once again congratulate the hon members who have worked hard to make sure that we have an industrial policy action plan, which is another milestone to which we committed ourselves when we started with Asgisa.

I want to acknowledge the role played by many stakeholders, including business and labour, and I hope that labour is very happy that we have come this far. This has been one area where they had great interest.

We are also pleased that in the critical sectors of tourism and business process outsourcing we have commenced with the implementation of some of the areas that we have set for ourselves and indeed we can see progress. I also want to commend the co-operation we have seen between government and industries, and the role that has been played by the Setas. We tend to criticize the Setas all the time but I have to say that they have played a positive role in this case. This is another example of effective collaboration.

With biofuels, we have approved the strategy which excludes maize in order to ensure food security. We are pleased that the recent Food and Agriculture Organisation conference confirmed the decision we took to exclude maize from the feedstock. This decision has been shown to be correct.

The issue of rising costs of food, declining stocks and the threat of crop failure in many countries is of concern to us. Hence, the emphasis is not only on shortcuts but long-term strategies to improve productivity. Accordingly, we support aspects of the declaration that was adopted at the food crisis summit, and I quote:

Encourage the international community to continue its efforts in liberalising international trade in agriculture by reducing trade barriers and market distorting policies. Addressing these measures will give farmers, particularly in developing countries, new opportunities to sell their products on world markets and support their efforts to increase productivity and production.

At that conference on food the emphasis was on – and I think as South Africa we should take this to heart - production, production and more production. For us in South Africa and for many other countries that are underproducing, it is important that we seize this opportunity and see it not only as a time of crisis but as a time of opportunity for us to increase our productivity and enhance our food security.

We must also heed the call of the director-general of the Food and Agriculture Organisation who challenged the global community to act timeously in delivering seeds, irrigation equipment and farming machinery to farmers before it is too late to produce for the next season.

In South Africa, we are looking at short- and long-term interventions in this regard. These range from strengthening and extending our safety nets and social security, to improving the nutrition status and access to food for our children and pregnant women, and improving agriculture, providing starter packs for households to grow their own food. Each one of us can grow something in our backyard. Growing a vibrant agricultural sector, both commercial and noncommercial, and addressing the skills shortages in this sector all form part of our medium-to-long-term intervention.

You will recall that the President announced in his state of the nation address the setting up of an anti-poverty War Room to co-ordinate a sustained and decisive campaign that would free millions of our people who continue to suffer from the ravages of poverty.

I will officially launch the commencement of the National Campaign against Poverty in the Gariep region of the Free State on 7 July. We have already established the War Room. The campaign will be characterised by a door-to- door visit to poor households whose member or members receive support from the SA Social Security Agency.

Field workers of the campaign, yourselves, will carry a list of all existing products and services to which individuals in these households are entitled from national, provincial and local government as well as state- owned entities. They will enquire whether there are any members in that poor household who do not receive the support they are entitled to. They will help them to identify the support services they should be receiving from government but, above all, we also want members of that household to agree that they must take active responsibility in addressing this. The shift that we are introducing here is that it is not government in service of our poor communities but it is government working together with our poor communities so that they can also participate in releasing themselves from poverty. [Applause.]

We will convey the information that we will gather during these visits to the relevant agencies so that they can take follow-up action. We also expect that provinces and municipalities will have their own anti-poverty war rooms.

The uniqueness of our campaign this time is that it targets poverty at household level, for the whole family, and this should enable us to develop a blanket country–to-country intervention to address poverty in the manner of addressing the specifics of a particular household.

If the field workers identify, for instance, that a young person in a particular household should be going to school, which is another mechanism to fight poverty, we will make sure that that happens. We will refer them to an educational institution or a skills centre. If we identify someone in a family who has the potential to start a sustainable small business, we will link that person with the relevant agency. If we identify a child who is not receiving the required attention, either from a social worker or primary health care facility, we will make sure that, by the time we leave that house, that has been addressed.

Our duty as the state is to provide safety nets to poor households, but the success of our interventions will be limited unless these households take responsibility as well.

The anti-poverty strategy points to the critical importance of employment creation. All the data point to the fact that we are creating more jobs and we have been doing so over the past five years. However, we know that unemployment still remains unacceptably high.

Another major shift that we are making in our anti-poverty strategy, in addition to targeting households, is to introduce intensive economic interventions to address issues of poverty. This makes the economic cluster a very important role-player in fighting poverty.

We have a number of interventions addressing poverty, some of them being led from DTI. We have a fund of R200 million called the Masisizane scheme contributed to by the private sector and we are collaborating with Old Mutual as a contributing private sector partner in making finance available. We are also working with other government departments such as the Departments of Arts and Culture, Water Affairs, Agriculture, Public Works and many others in bringing about the provision of these basic services that are addressing people at the level of the second economy.

What we need are more opportunities for able-bodied South Africans to participate actively in the economy. Initiatives such as the Expanded Public Works Programme help us to do that and they have already delivered on one million job opportunities, as mandated by the electorate in 2004. We are still asking more from them because they are doing it well.

A recent review of the EPWP suggests that the training gained from the programme has enabled participants to access further learning and sustainable job opportunities. Seventy per cent of beneficiaries surveyed who participated in the programme mentioned that the EPWP had had a positive impact on their quality of life and the lives of their families.

Another innovation by the Public Works Department includes more than 5000 youths participating in the National Youth Service, using the maintenance of public buildings for the provision of long-term jobs. This was also one of the announcements made by the President in the previous state of the nation address in 2007, and I am glad to say that we have been able to deliver that and we have even excelled.

As we celebrate these achievements, we must remember that young people play a key role in our society. There are a myriad of youth interventions that I am sure Minister Pahad will speak about, which address young people so that we can give them a meaningful opportunity to enter the labour market.

The National Youth Service programmes provide an opportunity to reintegrate these young people into society. I must however say that, even though we have made progress and identified areas and sectors where we can improve and bring in many young people, we can still do much more. There are 50 000 young people who are already in this programme. However, I believe South Africa should have the biggest National Youth Service programme in the Southern Hemisphere. We have the capacity. We have the needy youth and the National Youth Service is the only programme that I can think of where there are no entry barriers for young people. Our inability to massify this programme is something that we really have to pay attention to. The many young people, that I know we are all concerned about, would benefit significantly from this programme. Having said that, I want to thank those departments that are running with the programme.

Jipsa has, in my view, also made a humble contribution in the area of skills development, in directing and enabling training, in facilitating consensus between and amongst stakeholders, and in enabling action to be taken and to remove blockages that are identified by the multistakeholder fora. But of course Jipsa does not replace the institutions, the departments whose core mandate is to address education. In the forefront of responding and finding solutions have been the Departments of Education and Labour, the provinces, and of course we are also involving the Setas and the private sector in this regard.

We launched Jipsa in 2006 to address primarily scarce skills. We have received co-operation from many quarters, but I want to single out the artisans because this is a programme that many of you were also concerned about. To date there are 22 000 artisans in the training pipeline. Of these 22 000 artisans, we are able to train 18 000 or more because of service- level agreements we have signed with different Setas, thanks to facilitation by the Department of Labour.

We would also like to thank the previous chairperson of the Joint Working Group, Comrade Gwede Mantashe. He has been relieved from this position and has been replaced by Bheki Ntshalintshali, who has taken over the baton. He is also making his presence felt in that position.

We thank our local and international partners who are supporting our graduate placement programme. We are placing graduates in many countries around the world, as well as in South Africa. Through this programme we are able to facilitate easy and quick access to skills for many young graduates who would otherwise take much longer to acquire work skills. We would like to see this programme going from strength to strength. I want to indicate that we are also beginning to receive positive responses from the industries that we are approaching and asking to place also unemployed matriculants, especially in the retail sector.

With regard to Sanac we can report that we have been able to launch the National Strategic Plan, as you know, and it has been largely embraced in South Africa and even by our international partners. However, with regard to implementation, progress is modest. We need to do something to address the issue of the secretariat and the skills capacity of Sanac. If we are unable to address that, we will not be able to realise the fruits of that programme.

Comrades, the late Comrade Manuel “Barbarroja” Pineiro noted there is no universal law which says that present shortcomings won’t be succeeded by future victories and successes. We are determined to intensify our work towards the building of a better life for all, and this commitment will be sustained by the next ANC government.

Experiences of the past 14 years have taught us important lessons that have shaped our ready-to-govern determination. It has taught us to be audacious, to be humble, to be resilient, to be more visionary and strategic, more internationalist, more caring and also to deepen our democratic practices.

We are called upon to act together. Our people, in particular the poorest of the poor, expect nothing less from us. Again, another writer, James Baldwin, said: “Anyone who has ever struggled with poverty knows how extremely expensive it is to be poor.”

Let me say this unequivocally: We are still firmly on track and our eyes remain on the ball as public representatives of this third democratic government. I look forward to seeing all of you participate in the different programmes that our departments as well as the Presidency have, especially starting with the programmes during the month of June, which will be celebrating the youth.

Thank you to the great team in the Presidency led by Rev Chikane, Joel Netshitenze, Trevor Fowler and the many other senior officials. Thanks to our advisers, to the staff in our private offices, our protectors, our staff at home, and thanks to you, hon members, for the camaraderie and the challenges that you present me with, but let us reduce the challenges.

More than anything else, thank you for the support that ensures that we are able to work together as a collective. I also want to thank you, Mr President, for the opportunity to serve. I thank you. [Applause.]

The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr M B Skosana): Thank you, Deputy President. Before I call the next speaker, this House will remember that, immediately after the hon the Leader of the Opposition completed her address, a point of order was raised by the Deputy Chief Whip of the Majority Party regarding her remarks on the President’s speech. I am informed that the hon the Leader of the Opposition would want this opportunity now to withdraw that remark. We do not have to wait for further accounts.

The LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION: Thank you, Chairperson, I would like to withdraw the remark which I made starting, “The President cannot deny complicity”, and I apologise. [Applause.]

Mrs P DE LILLE: Chairperson, hon President, hon Deputy President, I would also like to welcome Comrade Kgalema Motlanthe as an hon member of this House. I am sure that he will add a lot of value to the debate. I also want to put what I am going to say in context. What I am going to say today is because I am a patriot, and I love my country; I care about my country and I don’t hate anyone in my country.

Earlier this year, when the ID called for a vote of no confidence in the President and his Cabinet, some said that it was political grandstanding. Now many of those same voices share our disillusionment and disappointment about the state of the nation and the lack of leadership we are facing. What I want to make clear is that there is no leadership crisis in South Africa; there is a leadership crisis in government. It is the President’s and the Presidency’s role to provide that leadership. It is to the President of the country that the people look to give them a sense of direction and hope. Sadly, the early achievements of the Presidency have long been overshadowed by the failures in several areas. From the electricity crisis to the Scorpions to xenophobia, we have not seen the decisive leadership that could have prevented these problems from escalating into crises. While we accept the complexity of some of these issues, decisive leadership, acting boldly and quickly, could have lessened the impact and scale of the problems. I want to agree with the hon Minister of Education that we must be honest that many things have changed in our country, but we need to maintain the momentum.

Even now, as some of these problems deepen, we fail to see the leadership that is needed. For example: What is going to be done to cushion the poor against the massive increase in food, fuel and other prices? Hon President, in your state of the nation address this year, you spoke about the war on poverty. But where and how is this war being waged? We are not seeing and feeling the impact of this much-needed fight against poverty. In addition to the inhumanity of poverty, it also, together with inequality, threatens the social stability of our society. We remain one of the most unequal countries on this planet and this does not bode well for developing a culture of human rights and tolerance.

The infighting in the ANC is also severely threatening service delivery. The media is filled with stories about battles within the ANC. The truth is that the ANC is at war with itself. But at whose expense are these battles taking place? As usual, it is the poor and the average South African that suffers most. It is really sad to see a once proud liberation movement drift so far from the values and discipline that inspired our struggle against apartheid. Partly due to political wrangling, we have crucial government departments hanging in limbo due to vacancies or under acting heads. More than a year after the Deputy Minister of Health was fired, her position still remains vacant. In addition to the farce at the SABC, two crucial services in our fight against crime, the NPA and the SA Police Service, are both operating under acting heads. There are even rumours that we have an acting President.

Hon President, while you have said some nice things about an African Renaissance, this has remained nothing more than talk. The lofty vision of an African Renaissance is in shreds after the recent wave of xenophobic attacks. What plan ever existed to build unity amongst our people; to build the self-esteem of our youth and to give them hope; to repair the social fabric of our society and to bring the people of our country and continent together? We are facing tough times but we must not lose hope. What South Africa needs now is leadership that can inspire us, leadership that we can trust and that can give us hope. We need to restore to the Presidency the trust and leadership it should embody, but we cannot restore it without it being earned. And that, Mr President, is your challenge.

Once again, I made this speech because I care about South Africa, because I love South Africa and I hope that we can all work together to build this beautiful country of ours and never give up hope. Once we give up hope, we will become hopeless and that is not good for our future. The ID supports the budget.

Mr J J MAAKE: Chairperson, President of the Republic and Deputy President, Ministers and Deputy Ministers, my fellow parliamentarians, ladies and gentlemen, not forgetting the deputy president of my movement: Africa has never at any stage been a better place than we see it today. Though there are still sporadic wars in some parts of Africa, it is not as we used to see happening before South Africa was free. Most of the conflicts were in fact started and fuelled by the notorious and belligerent South Africa, which would systematically destroy the infrastructure and economies of these countries in order to render them weak, purportedly looking for terrorists, finding that the biggest of them all was Thabo Mbeki.

Today South Africa is solidly placed on the world map. Not only did it manage to place itself on the world map, but also the African continent as a whole. Credit needs to be given to the ANC government, and especially to the President of the country for his tireless efforts in this regard. [Applause.]

Today we talk about the African Union, Nepad, the African Bank, and the African Peacekeeping Force, to which South Africa is the main contributor in all its endeavours. We have peacekeepers in Burundi, the DRC, Sudan, etc. We are involved in peace efforts in Zimbabwe, not forgetting our previous involvement in Northern Ireland and Palestine. South Africa, as a member of the AU, is also involved in peace efforts in Western Sahara, the last colony in Africa. All this is thanks to the efforts of the President of South Africa, President Thabo Mbeki. Whoever can’t see all this good work must be blind. It was easy for Western countries to orchestrate coups in Africa as they wished, but it is not as easy as it used to be, since South Africa has become one of the players in the African landscape.

I once said in this House that there was war in this country. When there is war, it stands to reason that there will be people who would be engaged in this war, and these people are called veterans, veterans of the liberation struggle. In some countries they are visible for everyone to see and be proud of them. The last ANC conference clearly stated that these people must be looked after. We are happy about the Special Pensions Bill which will be coming before Parliament in this regard. Areas such as medical aid, funeral schemes and public transport for the veterans, etc also need to be addressed as a matter of urgency. The ANC government is surely in the process of correcting some of the above concerns.

There is a lot of moaning and howling from the opposition about crime in this country. No amount of this howling will solve this problem. Instead, we need to put our heads together and try very hard to make South Africa a better place to live in for everybody, including our grandchildren in the future to come. No one can deny the fact that there is crime in our country, whether high or low. But the most objective way of dealing with this state of affairs would be to look at the causes and how we can reduce crime levels, going into the future together. Avoiding referring to the past will make us have no backbone. During the apartheid era, it was obvious, given the circumstances, that crime would be extremely low or maybe even nonexistent for some sections of the population. If one section of the population had their own bus stops and parks, and in banks were the only ones allowed inside the building whilst some of us had to use a window, and were the only ones allowed inside restaurants, post offices, police stations, etc, the possibility of being a victim of pick-pocketing were surely very slim for that section of the population. I needed a “nagpas” [“night pass”] just to take a stroll in town during the night because I was a potential criminal. When just walking in town was a criminal offence in order to protect certain sections of the population, it becomes very clear that this previously protected section of the population will never fully understand what crime really is in this country. Everything for them is a crisis, and they want to convince everybody that our country is in a crisis, perhaps because they find comfort in numbers.

Even though perhaps at a lower rate, crime has always been prevalent in the townships and villages. We are therefore bound to have a different perception and understanding of crime and its levels. Without justifying the levels of crime at the moment, that section of the population was and still is spoilt. They behave as if they are still protected by the apartheid laws. The opposition seems terribly nostalgic about the days when even the lowest stratum within the white community was queen or king over the highest and esteemed members of the black community, including our President. Reconciliation still seems one-sided. The opposition fails to understand that the world has opened up for everybody. We are in a globalised world and everyone needs to behave that way. Behaving as if we are still under apartheid won’t help; you need to wake up to the realities of today. Even with the levels of crime that we have, South Africa is still a peaceful and stable country, comparatively speaking, in the whole world. Research has shown that the more unequal a society, the more violent it would tend to be.

People know their communities and can easily protect themselves against criminals if afforded the appropriate skills and police community relations. “The year of mass mobilisation” - what does that mean? It means having structures at the grassroots that are responsible and cover all spheres of their lives, structures for poverty alleviation, for creating employment for themselves, for their protection, and all in all for the betterment of their lives. We can proudly talk about community policing forums, which we can proudly say involves the masses of our people, in partnership with our police, in their own protection against the monster criminals, as my comrade, hon Bloem, said.

Moulana M R SAYEDALI-SHAH: What was the million men march all about?

Mr J J MAAKE: When I grew up in the village of Shiluvane, we had people from other countries, notably people from Blantyre in Malawi, whom we used to call Maplantane, because of Blantyre of course. They were the best tailors you could get all around the villages. We had students from other countries studying in this country.

We had people from different countries working in South Africa, helping to build this country into what it is today. We had almost the whole of Southern Africa singing Nkosi Sikelel’ as their national anthem. Some examples of these people we are talking about, some as students and some as workers, are: Eduardo Mondlane, Joshua Nkomo, Toivo ja Toivo, Samora Machel, etc.

Never at any stage during these times was there ever anything of what we saw in the recent past. And praise must be given to our security structures for having managed to stamp out the violence in no time. Again, we must not forget that when we lost four policemen in the Jeppestown shoot-out, those that were arrested in this regard were illegal immigrants.

I always stand on this podium and try to teach the opposition the right ways, the right way of listening when people talk to them, the right way of behaving in response to events in our country, but they never listen. The ANC supports the Vote. [Time expired.] [Applause.]

Rev K R J MESHOE: Chairperson, hon President, hon Deputy President …

Mohlomphehi ntate Motlanthe, re ya o amohela le rona ba mokgatlho wa ACDP. [Hon Motlanthe, we from the ACDP also welcome you.]

Yesterday I received a surprise visit from a man I had never met before in my life. He drove from Witbank to Parliament, not knowing who he was going to meet. When he arrived at the visitors’ centre, he told officials that he was on a mission from God, but did not know who to see. He was directed to my office to relate to me what his mission was about. [Interjections.]

This gentleman then asked me to relay a short message to the President and the government. What he said struck a chord with me, and for that reason, I’m going to inform the President about what this gentleman said. He asked me to tell the President that government would not be able to solve the huge problems facing us as a nation without God’s help and wisdom. He continued to say that our nation was overwhelmed because this Parliament sidelined God and His Word when a decision was made to replace prayer to the Almighty God with a moment of silence. This man from Witbank, who is a carpenter by trade, said that this Parliament should acknowledge God in all the ways for government to be able to solve the complex problems and challenges facing this nation. I trust that the President will heed this wise, godly counsel, particularly because of the challenges facing the President personally.

For a few weeks now, calls have been coming from different quarters for the President to resign, because of increasing unhappiness with his attitude and inaction whenever there was a need for action. Under his leadership, the South African government chose to pursue an ineffective quiet diplomacy policy, even when the Zimbabwean police were beating protesters and leaders of the opposition with steel pipes and iron bars, breaking their bones and cracking their skulls in the process. This government refused to condemn or publicly voice their disapproval of the brutality of the cruel and inhumane Zimbabwe government.

The ACDP believes that liberation struggle leaders who become tyrants and brutalise the very people they helped to liberate should not be supported by peace-loving Africans. While we acknowledge and respect the role they played during the liberation struggle, they must understand that they will not rule forever in a democratic dispensation. Those who came from the bush must accept that the time will come when they will be replaced by those who were not in the bush.

When some members of the United Nations Security Council proposed sanctions against Zimbabwe, it was the South African government and the President who opposed the sanctions. The Washington Post, under the headline “Rogue Democrat”, commented in an editorial, and I quote:

The government of President Thabo Mbeki has consistently allied itself with the world’s rogue states and against Western democracies. It has defended Iran’s nuclear programme and resisted sanctions against it. It has shielded Sudan and Burma from the sort of pressure the United Nations once directed at the apartheid regime. Now Mr Mbeki’s policy is reaching its nadir in South Africa’s neighbour, Zimbabwe.

The ACDP believes President Mbeki has to ensure that, this time round, when the UN Security Council meets in New York tomorrow to discuss the crisis in Zimbabwe, South Africa should not deny there is a crisis in Zimbabwe. Our country must support the dispatch of a UN convoy to Zimbabwe to get first- hand information of the atrocities that have been perpetuated by the Zanu- PF militia against members of the opposition.

Whilst the ACDP supports calls for a government of national unity or transitional authority in Zimbabwe, we nevertheless believe that it should not be led by brutal grandpa Robert Mugabe, who must be told to retire as soon as possible.

The President should also make time, we believe, to visit displaced foreign nationals who are victims of xenophobic attacks that embarrassed and shamed us as a nation. As the Presidency knows, there was a lot of criticism levelled against the President for not visiting any scene of violence or even speaking to the nation about what government was doing about the attacks within the first two weeks of the elections. Some even said that because of this “I-don’t-care” attitude, he did not even offer condolences to the family of the man whose burning body was seen on the front page of all the major newspapers and on television networks. I believe it is not too late for the President to offer condolences to the traumatised Nhamuave family and, better still, to visit them in Mozambique. Some of those who say the President does not care might have a softening of attitude if he makes that visit.

In conclusion, as this is the President’s final Budget Vote, the ACDP wishes to commend him and his economic dream-team, led by the Finance Minister, for achieving sustained economic growth. This will be a lasting legacy of your term of office. The ACDP will support this Budget Vote, with the hope that the President will be at home more to guide our nation through the storms that are ahead of us. Thank you.

Ms B N DAMBUZA: Chairperson, hon President, hon Deputy President, Ministers and Deputy Ministers, hon members, directors-general, distinguished guests, and Comrade deputy president of the ANC, the ANC supports the Budget Vote.

During our political transition, South Africa also experienced a dramatic increase in violent crime. Between 1994 and 1999, violent crimes increased by 22%. Multiple factors contributed to the exacerbation of bloodshed, crime, specifically inequality, the ever-increasing wealth gap between poverty-stricken communities and the rich, and the proliferation of unlicensed firearms … kodwa namhlanje sibona umahluko omkhulu nongaphezulu kunalaa meko kwakuyiyo ngaphambi kowe-1994. [… but today we see a huge difference which is far better than before 1994.]

After a decade of freedom and transformation, the ANC-led government continued to embark upon a programme of action to strengthen our democracy and to put the country on a faster growth and development path. The progressive realization of peace and stability rights contained in the South African Constitution distinguishes this country as a developmental state. In the absence of the realization of such rights, South Africa becomes a neo-liberal, market-driven capitalist state, in danger of promoting an unsustainable model of development that widens inequalities and entrenches poverty. The rich become richer, and the poor poorer.

What is unique about the peace and stability rights in the Constitution is that they provide the basis for citizens to hold the government to account. The government clearly has a firm historical base that is the political mandate, and the constitutional and normative imperatives to expand social security to provide comprehensive social protection, of which the ultimate purpose is to increase capabilities and opportunities, and thereby, human dignity will prevail. Moreover, public participation has been a very significant vehicle to reach out to the poorest of the poor across the country.

This has also prompted new thinking and innovative responses to the ideas underlying security, peace, conflict and stability. It must also be noted that the Constitution also provides the powers and functions to the Presidency. It gives the Presidency the mandate to co-ordinate and monitor the different state organs to ensure effective service delivery, as the ANC mandate stipulates. In this debate, Parliament could be portrayed as an organ of people’s popular power.

Let me indicate, amongst other things, one of the most important strategic objectives under the leadership of the hon President is to facilitate a developmental state through: fostering nation-building and bringing the Presidency closer to the people and co-ordinating planning policy and executive management functions in support of the President to ensure harmonious and integrated service delivery throughout the state system.

The 52nd National Conference resolutions in Polokwane called for the finalization and implementation of all resolutions on peace and stability adopted at the 51st National Conference, namely: the accelerated transformation of the judiciary system; the need for Correctional Services to introduce a new system to cater for juvenile detainees; the introduction of a regulatory framework within which private security companies operate so as to allow oversight by the Departments of Safety and Security and Intelligence; and the alignment of all structures of the Justice cluster system. Another important issue to emphasize is the strengthening of the current legislation that deals with child poverty, ongoing murders, disappearances, abuse and neglect.

In response to that, the Justice, Crime Prevention and Security Cluster is following a two-pronged strategy in the fight against crime. The strategy, while confirming the central role of law-enforcement agencies in the fight against crime, also focuses on community involvement and establishment of partnerships as the key instruments of crime prevention and combating.

I just want to remind the members of this august House that the ANC government has embarked on a number of monitoring and evaluation processes, especially around public safety. For example, we have the Ten-Year Review, the Mid-Term Review and the African Peer Review Mechanism assessment, of which the mid-term publications were made in June 2007.

Andizi kuya ke kuzo. Okubalulekileyo kuyo yonke le nto kukuba thina singamaLungu ale Ndlu sibambisane sisonke, singachasani ngokwemibutho yethu, ukuze siqinisekise ukuba abantu bakuthi bafumana ukhuseleko kangangoko nangendlela efanelekileyo. Thina singala malungu umsebenzi wethu kukuqinisekisa ukuba ubunkokeli bethu sibenza ngendlela enentembeko nenkuthalo ukwenzela ukuba abantu bethu bafumane iinkonzo ezibafaneleyo. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraph follows.)

[I am not going to talk to them. What is important in all this is that we, as the Members of this august House, should all work together, and not oppose one another according to our party affiliations, in order to ensure that our people get proper and effective protection. As members, our duty is to ensure that we perform our leadership with diligence and trust for our people to get the service delivery that they deserve.]

On the subject of correctional services, in 2002, the hon President, in his state of the nation address, announced the building of four new-generation centres, which included Kimberley, Nigel, Klerksdorp and Leeuwkop. The Kimberley prison is the first of the four to be built, with a capacity to hold 3000 offenders. The centre faces a number of challenges, including delays in the completion date, which has been extended twice so far. The debate around the building of the prison has been in the public domain since 2001, with the date of these prisons being shifted annually. There may be genuine or other reasons, but what impact do these delays have on the objectives of national priority the President announced?

Comrade President, in his 2006 state of the nation address, referred to the additional construction of four new-generation centres, which were to be built in Allandale, East London, Port Shepstone and Polokwane. In 2007, he again reaffirmed the construction of the mentioned centres, and further emphasized the realization and implementation of the objectives of the White Paper on Corrections, which provides strategic direction that places rehabilitation at the centre of the department’s activities. He further called for adherence to the new laws and regulations regarding imprisonment of juvenile delinquents.

I would like to commend our ANC government, under the leadership of Comrade President Thabo Mbeki, for taking forward the transformation of this country to create a better life for the citizens of our country. A lot of work has been done in transforming justice, state and society.

Oko kukubala nje ezimbini nezintathu. [That is just to count a few.]

These are some of the advances that have been made: Transformation of the justice system, state and society; the criminal justice system of the country is renewed; new service centres have been launched; numerous Bills have been passed, aiming to improve judicial transparency and promote gender law, reduce human trafficking and strengthen constitutional democracy; and case flow governance structures were established and are fully functional in six provinces.

The ANC supports the Budget Vote. Thank you. [Time expired.] [Applause.]

Business suspended at 17:08 and resumed at 17:25.

Dr P W A MULDER: Chairperson, because I have known President Mbeki for more than 14 years and was convinced that he was making a mistake by again standing for presidency at the ANC’s Limpopo conference, I honestly tried to give him some advice in an article, which appeared in Die Burger a couple of weeks before the conference. I would like to quote from that:

Mbeki has to be given recognition for the important role which he played to lead South Africa economically into a realistic policy direction. Harold Wilson, British Prime Minister, wrote: “Most political careers end in tears.” If previous South African political leaders’ careers are considered, it held true for many of them. For democracy in South Africa and for the dignified treatment of Mr Mbeki, it would be a pity if his career ends like this. A solution for this situation must be found.

Now, it was not found and we know more or less where we are today.

Just as the Limpopo conference radically changed the position of President Mbeki, the xenophobic attacks radically changed South Africa. Photos of foreigners being burned shattered the dream of South Africa showing the world how people should live in harmony with each other. The government was warned timeously.

In the African Peer Review Mechanism Report, the government was seriously warned, more than a year ago, about xenophobia and racism in South Africa. Paragraph 956 says:

Xenophobia against other Africans is currently on the rise and should be nipped in the bud in South Africa.

Why did the government not do something? It’s because they started believing in their propaganda and myths. If the gap between a myth and reality becomes too big, unrealistic decisions are made. What are some of these ANC myths?

The first myth is that tribalism and ethnicity are the result of colonialism and apartheid and would in time disappear. The hon Buthelezi wrote, and I quote:

Our ethnicity was not invented by apartheid, only used by it. I did not create Zuluness; Zuluness created me and would last long after I’m gone. I never had difficulties recognising myself as entirely Zulu, entirely South African and entirely a citizen of the world. These are different levels of expression, not contradictions.

The second myth is the belief that black-on-black violence is not possible in South Africa and in Africa.

The third myth is that racism is the preserve of whites. Black people cannot be racist. The xenophobic attacks in South Africa and events in recent times in Africa have proven all these myths to be wrong.

The sad truth is that racism and xenophobia are universal phenomena. They are found all over the globe and in all societies. Their extent and intensity vary with time and circumstances.

I remember how Nigeria, in 1985, ordered the expulsion of 700 000 illegal African immigrants. We saw the recent conflict in Kenya and Rwanda, and the antiwhite/black racism in Zimbabwe. Last year, in this debate, I warned against racism and mentioned examples of xenophobia in Germany and Australia. What should we do now? Firstly, drop these myths and start treating the realities of diversity in South Africa honestly. Then diversity will be an asset and not a threat.

The Bible says: “Love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.” But, then you must be realistic as well.

Accommodating a few thousand ANC exiles in Africa during the struggle years is something totally different from allowing five million foreigners to compete with poor South Africans for scarce resources and thinking that it would not create conflict.

As long as articles are written, as recently in the City Press, that black people cannot be racist but only white people can, then we are not realistic and are not getting anywhere.

What we saw recently was blatant black racism and xenophobia. White racism is condemned by the FF Plus. But we also condemn black racism.

Mr Mandela addressed this Parliament on 10 May 2004, and he said that the guiding principle for him in his life had been that there were good men and women to be found in all groups and from all sectors of society, and that in an open and free society, those South Africans would come together to jointly and co-operatively realise the common good.

In the eighties, two Comrades athletes, Manie Saayman and Louis Harmse, saw the talent in Samuel Tshabalala as he participated barefoot in a Sasolburg marathon. They bought him shoes, got him work and started training him for the Comrades Marathon without any compensation. In 1989, Tshabalala won the Comrades Marathon. However, he did not pitch at the prize-giving ceremony because Saayman, who also participated, had suffered kidney failure and he had preferred to go to the hospital with his trainer in the ambulance. Today they are still friends and hope again to participate in the Comrades Marathon this year.

Why am I telling the story? It’s because I, like Mr Mandela, believe that in all groups in South Africa there are good and bad people. There are good Afrikaners and bad ones. But, there are good Xhosas and bad ones. The big problem is generalisation. As long as there are white people who say that all black people are bad, we are not making any progress at all. But as long as there are black people who say that white people are bad, and whites do not belong in Africa, we are also not making any progress at all. If the good people from the different groups can work together, we can surely resolve all our problems.

If we can learn this only from the recent events, then we are making progress in creating a place in the sun for everyone, and together we can start resolving Africa’s problems. I thank you.

Ms L L MABE: Ke a leboga, Modulasetulo. [Thank you, Chairperson.]

I hope that hon Mulder is not racist; I just hope you are not and if you are not, you are welcome to be part of this august House.

Chairperson, the ANC supports the Budget Vote. Good governance and monitoring in government and by organised, politicised civil society can go a long way to improving the lives of its citizens even where resources, for example, financial and human, are limited.

In a country with a long history of skewed empowerment of minority groups and marginalisation of majority groups, it is crucial for the state to be interventionist in approach. Without decisive state intervention in various sectors of the society and economy, inequalities may instead widen and disrupt stability that has already been achieved by a democratic state. Intervention does not equate to totalitarianism.

Huge basic service backlogs that are a product of the apartheid grand system of exclusion pose serious challenges that require precise and timely state intervention. Therefore, Parliament’s oversight and monitoring by national government of other spheres of government and sectors of society and business are critical.

With transformation challenges faced by a democratic government, democracy would be meaningless to the majority who can be marginalised to the fields of poverty without central planning, co-ordination and state intervention in critical and strategic areas.

Despite many achievements that have already been realised by this government, the ANC government will not rest when people coexist with poverty. Some fundamentals on which to build a democratic developmental state are in place in South Africa and must be harnessed to enhance and improve the lives of our people. This view, as hon Turok impressed on this House earlier, was expressed by economists attending an international conference on South Africa and its possibilities of being a developmental state.

I will now refer to a few of the 24 Apex Priorities referred to by the President of the Republic in his state of the nation address in February. Firstly, government or the Presidency would ensure that there is integrated planning across all spheres of government and alignment among planning instruments. Central planning for the maximisation of available resources cannot be overemphasised, because planning in isolated form compromises service delivery to our people.

Parliament has continuously called for integrated planning and implementation of government projects and delivery of services. With the implementation of this priority, government can double the pace of service delivery. It is possible that as the ANC government, we can double the pace, provided that planning is done centrally to ensure much better co- ordination. We can still do a lot to serve our people much better.

Let me categorically state that the ANC government has done a lot for those who were marginalised in the past but even for those who were privileged, and who continue to be privileged. They cannot pretend not to have benefited from democracy. They have benefited more and I think it’s time that they acknowledge and admit that they have benefited more than they were supposed to benefit. Mind you, there is no other party in this House that can perform better than the ANC has done.

Another priority was to regularise performance and employment contracts of senior managers in the Public Service. There is no reason why this cannot reach completion because 11 years ago, at the 50th ANC Conference in Mafikeng, we resolved this matter as the ANC.

It can’t be business as usual. I believe that the passive skills that are outside the economy can go a long way to addressing the problem of the skills shortage. There are people who’ve got skills but don’t have the experience or relevant skills for the economy but they can be retrained to be active in the economy.

Go botlhokwa thata gore ba bagolo mo pusong ba ye kwa tlase kwa bathong go iponela se se diragalang fa batho ba fiwa ditirelo le boleng ba tsona. A e re fa puso e lebelela kgwetlho ya bokgoni mo ditirong, e gatelele moono wa Batho Pele, gore e nne setlwaedi sa fa go fiwa ditirelo tsa puso kgotsa tsa kgwebo. Go fetoga ga tlhaloganyo ya motho kgotsa mokgwa o motho a golaganang le ba bangwe ka ona ke gona go laolang gore o tla ba thusa ka mokgwa o o jang.

Fa o gopola gore ka 1994 bophelo bo ne bo le jang, gore Aforika Borwa e ne e le mo mojakong wa ntwa ya selegae, o tla bona gore nnete tota ANC e dirile go tlala seatla.

Go botlhokwa gore puso e thuse bomasepala gore fa batho ba fiwa ditirelo, ba fiwe ditirelo tse di botoka ka lebaka la gore bomasepala ba na le kgwetlho ya gore bafe batho ditirelo tse di kgotsafatsang. Mo go nang le bokowa, a puso e tsereganye go sa le gale gore batho ba seke ba itseela molao mo matsogong ka go lemoga gore e kete ga ba tsewe tsia. Go naya sekai, maemo kwa masepaleng wa Rustenburg ga a jese diwelang, Rre Mopresidente. Dilo di senyegela pele mme batho ba tlaa tloga ba dira tse ba sa tshwanelang go di dira gore puso e tle e ba neele ditsebe. Ka na tota nnete ke gore, tsebe ntlha e a ikutlwela. (Translation of Setswana paragraphs follows.)

[It is very important that leaders in government should visit people at grassroots level in order to see for themselves what really takes place when quality services are delivered to the people. In addressing its skills challenges government should consider emphasising Batho Pele principles, so that it becomes government’s culture of offering services or doing business. A person’s mindset, or how he or she interacts with other people, determines how far he or she will go in addressing the plight of the people.

I think you still remember how life was in 1994. South Africa was on the brink of a civil war; you might have noticed that the ANC has indeed outdone itself.

It is important that government should assist municipalities so that when services are delivered to the people, it should be of good quality because municipalities are faced with a challenge of delivering quality services that meet the needs of the people. In cases where there are flaws, government must intervene in time to prevent people from taking the law into their own hands upon realising that they are ignored. For example, conditions in the Rustenburg Municipality are quite appalling. This deteriorating state of affairs might lead people to do what they are not supposed to be doing, as a means to ensure that government listens to them. Remember it is at times wise to listen.]

The Constitution of the Republic, section 41(1)(h), states that all spheres of government and all organs of state must co-operate with one another in mutual trust and good faith by co-ordinating their actions with one another and avoiding legal proceedings against one another.

To that extent, does the Cape Town Metro understand the section and that South Africa is not a federal state? This metro can undermine other spheres of government. Maybe it’s because Cape Town’s climate changes from time to time, that is why they can change so easily and undermine other spheres of government.

Hon President, when will we receive the report by the Department of Provincial and Local Government on the relevance of provinces? We are waiting so that we can start engaging on that report. The implementation of intergovernmental relations creates unnecessary bottlenecks in our march towards the eradication of poverty.

In conclusion, Parliament is empowered by the Constitution to provide mechanisms to ensure that executive organs of state are accountable to it and to maintain oversight over the executive.

I think I must make it clear that corruption, to some people, is something to engage on and be lively about. I know those people who are victims, but I just want to indicate through the House that corruption … [Interjections.] [Time expired.]

Mr I S MFUNDISI: Chairperson, President and hon members, South Africa, like many other countries of the globe, finds herself in a tight corner: food prices are rocketing; the fuel price is immobilising the nation; escalating inflation is staring the nation in the face; and unemployment figures and numbers of poor people increase daily. Surely Charles Dickens would say: “it is the worst of times”, “it is the winter of discontent”, as much as it is “the age of incredulity”. Fourteen years of plenty seem to have gone by. All that stares at us as a nation is hunger, poverty and starvation.

The teenage South Africa behaves like a real teenager. Like a typical teenager, the nation is impatient, intolerant, rebellious and aggressive. One is set aback by some apparently angry teenage members of the ruling party who sulk and fight at the drop of a hat. They speak with forked tongues: They say the President of the country must leave office, and then again, no, he is not leaving office before the end of his tenure. We in the UCDP state, as we did during the state of the nation address, that the President should remain in his post up to the end of his term.

The continued harping on the shortcomings of the current government is reminiscent of those of 1993 to early 1994 when people set themselves the task of making the country ungovernable. The high crime rates that appear to have been well-thought-out and executed, the recent acts of xenophobia and even the poorly thought-out labour strikes at the 2010 soccer stadiums are, in our book, antics designed to discredit the government and humiliate the President of this country. Those who engage in these antics do so at their own peril – really cutting off their noses to spite their faces because whatever will result from this will affect us all.

The news that two South African men from Nelspruit were recently pushed off the road, kidnapped and driven around in Maputo with guns held to their heads, is a clear xenophobic retaliation. How many such incidents we are to live through is the big question. This country’s flourishing foreign policy has been tarnished by these senseless acts.

The fact that we, as a country, are a teenage state can also be noted from organs of state rising up against each other - the SA Police Service versus the Directorate of Special Operations; Ministers of state differing openly on which policy to follow in order to improve the economy; and Members of Parliament showing their strength - “amandla wabo” - by strangling organs and members of the executive. This will prove very costly in the long run. We should also bear in mind that teenagers have suicidal tendencies. Therefore, as this country awakes and becomes aware of itself, it should be nurtured to avoid self-destruction.

We in the UCDP pray for strength for all South Africans not to exaggerate the mistakes of others, because, if put in the same position, they could even be worse.

There are things that need unity of purpose by all South Africans - black, white, brown, young and old. These things are fighting crime, poverty, sexism, racism and similar evils such as xenophobia.

However, the Presidency will have to hone its communication strategy. The unfortunate handling of the Pikoli issue during the Ginwala Commission of Inquiry and the issuing of the letter from the MDC to President Mbeki stand out as very disastrous. I keep hoping that the day will come when we shall be in tandem and pray that God will help us in this situation.

Finally, we accept that the Presidency is the cog around which the wheels of government revolve. Programmes have to be integrated and come out as those of the government and not in silo-like fashion, as the hon Minister of Education indicated earlier, where each member of the executive is seen to be guarding their turf instead of ensuring that government succeeds. I thank you.

Mong K M KHUMALO: Modulasetulo, Mopresidente wa naha ntate Thabo Mbeki, Motlatsamopresidente wa hae mme Phumzile Mlambo-Nqcuka, Motlatsamopresidente wa ANC, Ditho tsa Palamente, bomme, bontate le makhomoreiti kaofela ke ya le dumedisa.

Ke ka bomadimabe hore ntate Meshoe o se a tswile, ke ne ke batla hore ke re ho yena, ke utlwile are, ANC ena e etelletseng pele e utlwisa batho bohloko le ho theola botho ba bona. Ntate Meshoe ke motho wa kereke, hape ke motho e moholo eo ke mohlomphang, nkeke kare o bua leshano, nkapa kare o bua nnete e makatsang. O tseba hantle hore ANC ke yona e ntseng e emetse batho nakong e telele. (Translation of Sesotho paragraphs follows.)

[Mr K M KHUMALO: Chairperson, President of the country Thabo Mbeki, his Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Deputy President of the ANC, Members of Parliament, ladies, gentlemen, and comrades, I greet you all.

It is unfortunate that Mr Meshoe has already left. I would have liked to say to him that I heard him say that the ANC-led government is causing misery for the people, and it is also undermining their dignity. Mr Meshoe is a religious man, and he is also a respectable person. I wouldn’t say that he is telling lies, I would rather say he is being economical with the truth. He knows very well that the ANC is the one that has been representing the people all along.]

It is also important to note that the president of the UDM, who is not here, said the ANC is recycling leadership. Mr President, it is unfortunate that the person who said this was a military ruler of the former Transkei. He was the Deputy Minister of Environmental Affairs. He is also the president-for-life of the UDM, and nobody objects to that. So, it is unfortunate that he can say that we are recycling leadership. It is also unfortunate, Comrade President, that we are told that there is no crisis of leadership in the country – I am responding to this because it is the party that I represent that is being attacked. There is a crisis of leadership in government. This does not make sense. It does not make sense because of the fact that the ANC provides the leadership, and the ANC is government. The ANC is in charge and runs the government. The ANC is dealing with the challenges that we face as a country, and we are dealing with these things all the time.

Dr Mulder, there is a distinction between xenophobia and racism. Xenophobia is when people are attacked on the basis of them hailing from other countries, not on the basis of race, colour or creed. Racism is practised on the basis of race. But sometimes these things come to a state where they become completely unacceptable, all of them. They are unacceptable! So, we are dealing with these things and we are attending to them.

Mr President, the unfortunate thing is that there is confusion between the state of the nation address and the Budget Vote. The people who have spoken have done so as if this is the state of the nation address. This is the Budget Vote debate. It’s part of a process. I must just say that my focus will be on communication, particularly the international arena. I want to focus on the Zimbabwean situation and lastly on social cohesion.

Mr President, it is important that we note that government has used various platforms of communication. Internal newsletters, electronic bulletins, annual reports and broadband are vital to achieving maximum participation. It is also clear that in order for us to create an information society, we must unlock the potential of government to deliver services efficiently and encourage development.

While it is important to move with the changing ICT environment - from fixed-line to mobile, from mobile to broadband, from broadband to private and from private to virtual private networks - we must not leave communities behind. We might find ourselves not moving with the ordinary people in the manner in which we communicate government decisions because they might not be linked up in terms of broadband Internet and many other means of communication. So, it is something that we must deal with as we proceed.

Secondly, our spending patterns in terms of communication should indicate that in terms of the Living Standard Measure, LSM 1 to 5, which is normally rural areas, and LSM 6 to 10, which is urban areas, these two worlds should be taken into consideration when we spend money on advertising and engage with the masses. Now, it is also important for us to make sure that we use various platforms. For rural communities and many others, radio, television, newsletters, Vukuzenzele and many others are quite important. But when we address LSM 6 to 10, then we deal with broadband, infomercials, billboards and stuff like that.

The izimbizo that we normally hold have been quite good and quite successful. However, as Members of Parliament, we should participate in them, because quite often we are not there or we are not called so that we can engage with the masses. These izimbizo should also be able to attract sections of the community that have not been part of them, be they Indian or white. They should be held during weekdays and at weekends because sometimes it is difficult for those who work to attend. These are the issues we have identified and think must be addressed.

Lastly, in terms of communication, it must be noted that it has been difficult for us to achieve what we call universal service obligations, universal access, and bridging the digital divide. This must be done speedily. We are happy that the Presidency has engaged with various committees in terms of izimbizo and many others, and that has been good.

We need to congratulate the President on the role he has played in dealing with the Zimbabwean situation. After the 2002 elections, the President of the country and the then president of Nigeria, President Olusegun Obasanjo, dispatched two eminent men, the then secretary-general of the ANC, Mr Kgalema Motlanthe, and Prof Adebayo Adedeji, to go and resolve two particular issues. Firstly, at that point in time, there was a case against the president of the MDC - allegations of a plot against the president of Zimbabwe and working for a particular company of Ari Ben-Menashe. Secondly, there was the issue that the president of the MDC had lost against the Zimbabwean government and that he wanted the results to be declared null and void because he felt that there had been cheating. From that point in time, six years ago, up until today, we as South Africans and as the ANC have made attempts to ensure that the problem is resolved.

Ambassadors indicate that there are a number of problems that we must attend to in terms of Zimbabwe. Firstly, there was a drought that ravaged the country from the late 1980s to the 1990s. Secondly, commercial farmers engaged in hoarding agricultural products away. This then created a problem. Then the government started to come with tax burdens and a lot of other things against the commercial farmers.

Thirdly, just after the 1999 constituent assembly, the MDC managed to retain 48% of the votes in 2000. It was quite clear then that the Zimbabwean government was getting a bit worried. They introduced two laws that we were also not happy with, namely the Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act, and the Public Order and Security Act. Those who don’t know these laws must go and check what they are. Now, it was quite clear that those laws were going to be problematic because they are draconian laws. They are going to give difficulty for proper political platforms to proceed. I must say that these are the problems of Zimbabwe that have been there. They are not our own creation.

Fourthly, there was a problem of the externalisation of the Zimbabwean currency. Zimbabweans themselves participated in undervaluing their currency by using foreign currency when buying goods and services. In this way they undermined their own currency. That matter must be attended to. When you go to Zimbabwe today, you have a parallel market in terms of the currency - international and local. That is also a Zimbabwean problem which must be attended to. This is the Zimbabweans’ fault, and these are the issues that we must attend to.

Fifthly, there is an issue, perceived or real, that there are serious problems with regard to how government deals with issues of the opposition and whether they are able to achieve a government of unity. You have done what you could in that regard too, Mr President. We expect and hope that they will be able to deal with it as Zimbabweans.

Lastly, in terms of the Zimbabwean situation, we hope and believe that the 27 June elections, when they come, will give an opportunity to Zimbabweans to sit down and find a way to resolve their issues, as we have been assisting and helping. We are interested in a peaceful transition situation in Zimbabwe, where we are not going to be affected as we are today. The President of the country has done his part. The Harare Declaration, which led partly to the success of the South African government leading, was actually concluded there.

The fundamentals for the creation of a conducive climate and removing all obstacles … [Interjections.]

The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr K O Bapela): Hon member, I thought you were concluding. Your time is over.

Mr K M KHUMALO: I thought I had two extra minutes, Mr Chairperson. The ANC supports the budget. Thank you. [Applause.]

The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr K O Bapela): Those minutes do not exist.

The MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: Chairperson, Comrade President, Comrade Deputy President, hon Ministers and Deputy Ministers, hon members, hon deputy president of the ANC Comrade Kgalema Motlanthe – welcome - distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, undeniably one of our most successful achievements as a country has been to replace a system reviled as a crime against humanity with one based on the ideals of nonracism and nonsexism. Since 1994 we have endeavoured to build a socially inclusive and socially cohesive, democratic South Africa through a process of socioeconomic and political transformation.

The triumph of this idea and ideal, the triumph of the reality of democracy and social justice over tyranny, authoritarianism, apartheid and colonialism is a testimony to leadership. It was Thomas Jefferson who said: “God grant that men of principle shall be our principal men.” We in South Africa have been blessed. We have had men and women of principle, stretching from the precolonial times to the present. And our movement, which today forms the governing party, has had men and women of principle, including Pixley ka Isaka Seme, Chief Albert Luthuli, J B Marks, Lilian Ngoyi, Gertrude Shope, Moses Kotane, Walter and Albertina Sisulu, Dr Dadoo, Govan Mbeki, Chris Hani, Joe Slovo and Ruth First, Oliver Tambo, Nelson Mandela, and Thabo Mbeki.

The idea and the ideal triumphed because South Africa embraced democratic citizenship and social inclusion as transformative tools and as normative ideals in the continuing struggle against racism, sexism, xenophobia and related intolerances. In this endeavour, the role of the Office on the Rights of the Child, the Office on the Status of Women and the Office on the Status of Disabled Persons is critical. It falls on them, including the Youth Desk, to oversee mainstreaming of gender, disability, child and youth concerns into all our government’s policies and programmes.

One of the significant steps we took was to place the needs of vulnerable groups – women, children and youth and people with disabilities - at the very heart of our institutions and our policies by locating them in the Presidency. We did this to ensure that the issues of critical importance to vulnerable groups and communities are not left to a single line department but are dealt with in a holistic, integrated fashion. This is about democracy and accountability and it is about ensuring cross-cutting responsibilities in good governance.

The offices and the Youth Desk all engage with civil society organisations in their respective sectors and interact with their provincial and local counterparts to ensure that national policies are translated into action in the other spheres of government. Continuous interface with community-based organisations and with the other two spheres of government ensures that national government stays alive to the issues and challenges facing vulnerable communities so as to ensure that the quality of life of members of those communities improves.

June is Youth Month, and we remember with sadness and pride the enormous sacrifices our youth made in 1976 during the Soweto and related uprisings. Youth make up 41% of our population and they face challenges of poverty, marginalisation in the rural areas, unemployment, unacceptably high school drop-out rates and health issues, including HIV and Aids and other communicable diseases and infections. All of these are exacerbated by conditions of poverty.

A well-resourced, streamlined National Youth Commission is an essential and indispensable adjunct to the work of government in its efforts to improve the wellbeing and conditions of life of youth in our country. The NYC is autonomous and its engagement with the Presidency is limited to the execution of its mandate - to facilitate, co-ordinate and monitor policies and programmes that promote youth development.

Last week, the Presidential Youth Working Group met to exchange views on the important challenges faced by the youth of South Africa. A Draft National Youth Policy was presented. The draft policy is being finalized and will be presented to Cabinet very soon.

In March 2008, we established an inter-departmental task team to address one of the resolutions from Polokwane, which called for the merger of the National Youth Commission and the Umsobomvu Youth Fund, and the establishment of a National Youth Development Agency.

The Youth Desk, working in close co-operation with the National Youth Commission, will complete work on the National Youth Development Policy Framework, develop an Integrated Youth Development Strategy based on the policy framework, and ensure the co-ordination of the National Youth Service Programme. The Youth Desk will integrate youth development issues in the government’s programme of action. The Office on the Status of Women, in order to continue to advance women’s empowerment and gender equality, will complete the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women Report covering 1998 to 2008 for submission to the United Nations; conduct a review of the national gender machinery; track the implementation of Cabinet’s decision that by 2009 50% of all senior managers in the Public Service will be women; and engage in dialogue with the relevant stakeholders on gender-responsive budgeting and financing.

The Office on the Status of Disabled Persons will work assiduously to strengthen the important work of the national disability machinery; to finalize the Draft National Policy Framework and develop a draft implementation plan; to work with the joint monitoring committee to host a Disability Parliament; to deliver on South Africa’s obligations in respect of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities; and to establish a database of professionals for the labour market.

This year, the Office on the Rights of the Child will continue to consolidate cohesion in the sector on the national children’s rights facilitation, co-ordination and oversight programme. In addition to carrying out its core functions and mandate, the Office on the Rights of the Child will host the National Children’s Day and the Joint Day of the African Child, and the Joint Monitoring Committee, the Office on the Rights of the Child and the Children’s Parliament.

A very successful Children’s Parliament was held this morning with children representing all provinces as well as children from Rwanda, Mozambique and Kenya. I would like, along with all of you, to extend a very warm welcome to the children who participated in the Children’s Parliament and who are present with us in the gallery.

The Office on the Rights of the Child will also undertake a much-needed situation analysis on the status of children in South Africa. The office will also host the regional conference on international co-operation on cross-border protection of children in southern and eastern Africa.

Hon members, I stand before you today knowing that this is the last Budget Vote speech I will present before this august body. So I would like to thank all members of the opposition, especially their leaders, for the robust debates we have engaged in, and to anyone whom I may have offended, I want to extend my sincerest apologies.

To the hon member Chief Buthelezi, a very special word of thanks for your kindness and unfailing courtesy - thank you very much. [Applause.]

To the presiding officers, past and present, thank you for your co- operation and assistance. To members of the Joint Monitoring Committee on the Improvement of Quality of Life and Status of Women and the Joint Monitoring Committee on the Improvement of Quality of Life and Status of Children, Youth and Disabled Persons, I say thank you for exercising your responsibilities with diligence and vigilance, and thank you for the principled manner in which you have continually engaged with me. You are having a qualitative impact on improving the lives of vulnerable groups in our society.

To my comrades in the ANC, it has been a pleasure and an honour to have served with all of you. To our Deputy President, who is also the Leader of Government Business, I want to say thank you for all your hard work and your dedication to issues of gender, disability, children and youth. [Applause.]

Our government, with courage and conviction, is committed to improving the wellbeing of all South Africans and especially of those who are vulnerable, disadvantaged and marginalized. This is the essence of leadership. Jean- Jacques Rousseau in the Social Contract drew the link between the social condition of human beings and the role of a leader. He argued that because of the prevalence of inequality, poverty and social injustice, “Man is born free, and everywhere he is in chains.” Under these conditions, the role of a leader is to recognise the extent of the problem and articulate the need for a just society based on a “general will” and create a sense of community and cohesion.

Socially responsible leaders recognise that poverty, inequality and all forms of discrimination, and, critically, gender discrimination and oppression, are the key fault lines nationally and globally. Leaders have a responsibility to establish the “general will” for the creation of a nonracial, nonsexist, socially just South Africa. The leader of the ANC is part of a collective leadership steeped in its political culture, its values and its openly stated vision for progressive politics to dominate the global, continental and national agenda.

This past weekend the president of the ANC and President Mbeki, in a joint letter to the public, said, and I quote:

The ANC has no camps. It does not function as a double-headed monster. It has one common membership. It has one leadership. It has one policy. It has one government. It leads one people, united in its diversity. It has no tricks up its sleeve. It will contest the 2009 election as one united movement.

And I daresay that the ANC will undoubtedly win the next election with an overwhelming majority. [Applause.]

Leadership in the public sphere derives from a commitment to serve the people of our country. Leaders must, in the Weberian sense, live for politics, not off politics. They must work to realise the vision of the movement, lead by example and by consensus, have integrity, and act as a role model to ANC members and nonmembers alike.

Such leaders must eschew all forms of chauvinism and sexism and must promote a vision of unity in diversity and gender equality, respect and tolerance, and must promote democracy and strengthen responsibility and accountability in all the institutions of democracy.

Comrade President, you have demonstrated in practice that you possess these attributes. We first met in 1960 - I hope you haven’t forgotten - and since then our friendship and comradeship has strengthened. It has been a rare privilege and honour to serve under you, first as a parliamentary counsellor, later as Deputy Minister in the Deputy President’s Office, and since 1999 as Minister in the Presidency. Thank you for your support, kindness and generosity. You are a mentor, a teacher and an exceptional leader with a “lekker” sense of humour. You are a wonderful listener; you hear what people say and you have the patience of Job – my wife told me to pronounce it as “Job” as others do the same. You have been a loyal, dedicated, committed and fearless cadre of our great movement for over 50 years. This movement, this country, this Parliament is the better for your involvement and leadership.

President Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar’Adua of Nigeria, in his address to the Joint Sitting of Parliament, said, and I quote:

My brother President Thabo Mbeki has steadfastly and courageously carried on the torch of democratic consolidation alongside economic prosperity. He has constantly promoted and defended the African cause. He deserves our commendation for his efforts at peacemaking and conflict resolution, not only within the South African region, but beyond.

President Mbeki, to all of us who have worked with you over the decades, you embody the qualities of sound democratic leadership. Your reason and judgment about creating a just society and a good society are beyond reproach. You are courageous in the face of enormous pressure; you fight for and uphold the rule of law in the face of authoritarianism; you live by your principles; you speak truth to power and listen to truth from the dispossessed and the marginalised.

Goethe, in one of his poems about the relationship between leadership, freedom and human existence, wrote, and I quote:

Yes, to this thought I hold with firm persistence; The last result of wisdom stamps it true; He only earns his freedom and existence Who daily conquers them anew.

What we have learnt from you is that leadership is indivisible from the fight for freedom and human existence, and only has meaning when we are free from want and poverty. Leadership does not stand apart from freedom and human rights, from social justice and morality. You have shown that the basis of morality, including political morality, is to demonstrate courage of conviction in the face of obstacles and danger and in spite of personal consequences.

Your leadership has brought to our country peace and stability, including macroeconomic stability. You have an unwavering commitment to equality, including gender equality and empowerment. Through your appointments, the overall representation of women in Cabinet, including the Deputy President, is 43,33%. There has been a threefold increase in the number of women Ministers appointed from 1997 to 2008. Cabinet has also taken the decision that, by 2009, 50% of all senior management in government should be women.

Your commitment to peace and security on our continent has you work tirelessly to resolve conflicts in the DRC, Burundi, Sudan, the Ivory Coast and Zimbabwe.

You are a democrat and an ardent proponent of good governance, and thus your commitment to the African Renaissance, the New Partnership for Africa’s Development and the African Peer Review process.

Your leadership style is based on the principles of respect and consensus. You have always valued the input of your peers and always seek to build consensus.

Under your leadership and personal involvement, we were successful in our bid to host the 2010 Fifa World Cup of Soccer, and I can assure you it will be one of the best ever held. [Applause.]

You have taken positions on the global stage that have gone beyond self and country and have been based on principle. You have, for example, been consistent on the need to find a just and lasting solution to the Israeli- Palestinian conflict for the establishment of an independent and viable Palestinian state.

You fit into the tradition of the intellectual who revels in a good debate on issues of vital importance. You are a humanist who cares deeply about the condition of the marginalised and excluded in Africa and the world. You are an intellectual and a philosopher in the sense that Marx meant when he wrote, and I quote:

Philosophers have only interpreted the world in various ways; the point is to change it.

You are a formidable and - even the opposition would agree - an honourable adversary, who wants his ideas debated and scrutinised. You are a practical politician who delights in the pleasure of literature and poetry; you are a philosopher and your narrative encapsulates simultaneously the particular form of South African exile and displacement, our national liberation and our bold and audacious step into the fraternity of democratic nations. The recent storm of hostility and vituperative commentary surrounding your leadership has unfortunately and unnecessarily sought to polarise our society. The commentaries seek deliberately to obfuscate and obliterate, but they cannot, for history will record the successes of our government and will point to your real achievement, which is to have undertaken the historic project of massive socioeconomic, political and administrative transformation of an authoritarian system into one that is democratic, representative and stable.

You have situated the politics of dispossession and oppression at the heart of the most far-reaching project of transformation to have been undertaken in the postcolonial era. So, to fully understand the significance of your leadership and its successes is to understand the recent history of South Africa.

As the government of the day and as Members of Parliament, we must claim our successes and acknowledge our failures. Under the leadership of President Thabo Mbeki, the ANC has won successive elections with evergreater majorities.

Since 1998, the economic policies we have pursued have allowed our government to utilise the revenues generated to invest in improving the wellbeing of our people. Political stability, coupled with macroeconomic stability, have created an environment in which we have witnessed increased public spending on housing, water, electrification, sanitation, education including early childhood education, health care, physical infrastructure and strengthening of the delivery capacity of the developmental state.

To the naysayers who say our economic policies have been a failure, let us point out that our economy is in its longest and most sustained period of economic growth - nine years straight. This is unprecedented in the history of South Africa. In the past three years alone, we have created approximately 500 000 new jobs per annum.

South Africa has made great progress in addressing the country’s twin challenges of poverty and inequality. Basic services have been extended to ever-increasing numbers of formerly disadvantaged people. The total number of grant beneficiaries is 12,4 million, and expenditure on social assistance will be R75,3 billion next year. The provision of social grants is just one of the important interventions we are undertaking to alleviate and eradicate poverty.

We point to these significant and unparalleled achievements not for partisan political purposes, but to state for the record that we can all take pride in these achievements. We can, in the face of untruths, point out that this government, this executive, this legislature and this administration, whatever else their shortcoming, did in a period of 4 years make a positive impact on the lives of the poor in our country. [Applause.]

That we have the resources to pursue pro-poor socioeconomic development strategies is testimony to the vision of our President, who argued that poverty constitutes one of the contemporary era’s gravest fault lines and needs to be eradicated.

Ours remains a dual strategy of short-term poverty alleviation and long- term poverty eradication. And if there is an achievement we can be proud of, it is that the poor in our country are not getting poorer, even if the wealth and gaps between the rich and poor are increasing. We still see poverty and unemployment as major challenges and we have established a Anti- Poverty War Room headed by the Deputy President, and we will not rest until our dual strategy is completely successful, that is, until we eradicate the last vestiges of poverty in our country.

I want to concur, in the strongest possible terms, with our President, Deputy President, other Ministers and Members of Parliament that, as a government, we extend our deepest sympathies and condolences to the families of those who have been injured and killed in dastardly acts of violence. Among those killed were many South Africans. In a liberated South Africa, where we cherish the values of pluralism and diversity, we condemn chauvinism and xenophobia, and acts of violence.

While these attacks mark a shameful moment in our young history, we also need to acknowledge that the overwhelming majority of our people condemn xenophobia and xenophobic violence. The outpouring of generosity, both of spirit as well as of much-needed resources, including food, clothing and shelter, reflects and represents the true virtues of our people. As a country, we have now entered a new phase where reintegrating displaced persons into the communities from which they were displaced has become a priority.

In conclusion, I would like to express my deep appreciation and gratitude to the staff in my office, including Mr Louis du Plooy, who no longer works in the office; the director-general, Rev Frank Chikane; the head of the Policy Co-ordination and Advisory Services, Mr Joel Netshitenzhe; the COO Mr Trevor Fowler; Ms Anne Letsebe of the Cabinet Office; the advisers in the Presidency; the staff and commissioners of the National Youth Commission as well as the entire staff at all levels in the Presidency, for their dedication, commitment and hard work over the past year. Once more, Comrade President, thank you for everything that you have done. [Applause.]

Ms M M MDLALOSE: Chairperson, hon President, the executive and my colleagues, …siyabonga, sihambe kuhulumeni size sifike kulesi sikhathi lapho sesithi senza isabelo mali sokugcina. Sithi sibonga sifise ukubeka ukuthi siyi Joint Monitoring Committee ngokolusha, abantwana kanye nabakhubazekile, omama, siyafisa ukuthi kube khona indlela yokuthi ihhovisi likaMongameli liqhube lishiye umlando ngodaba lolusha. Ngizobeka isibonelo ngenyakatho KwaZulu Natal esifundeni u 25 nesifunda u 24 ngimdidiyele ngokuthi inyakatho ne KwaZulu Natal, ngimdidiyele ngokuthi iningizimu nempumalanga, impumalanga yeFree State. Kuleyondawo uma ubala abantu abakhona, abantu abangaphezulu kwesigidi.

Uma ubala inani lamadolobha, amadolobha ayishumi nambili. Kuleyondawo abantu bayasebenza, bayaya ezikoleni, izikole ziningi zikhona, abantwana bayakhula kodwa siyafisa ukuthi siyibike ukuthi uMongameli siyamfisela ukuthi ashiye umlando endaweni.

Abantwana uma bekhula bahamba baye kwamanye amadolobha bayofunda khona baphinde basebenze khona, bangabe besakhona ukubuyela ekhaya ngoba alukho uhlobo lomsebenzi abangawenza ekhaya. Intuthuko yendawo isemuva.

Kunezimayini, kunemboni enkulu ka Iscor osebizwa ngo Mittal Steel kodwa umuntu okwazi ukusebenza khona owenza umsebenzi angawufundelanga. Umntwana ofundile uhamba aye phandle angabe esekwazi ukubuya, kuthi uma kufuneka amakhono endaweni kudingeke ukuthi kulandwe abantu eRichardsbay, kulandwe abantu ePitoli.

Uma ngabe ke sikwazi ukuthi sisebenzela inqubekela phambili yomnotho, inqubekela phambili yomntwana, inqubekela phambili yendawo, siyafisa ukuthi ihhovisi lika Mongameli ishiye umlando wesikhungo esiphakeme I Technikon.

Ngiyi National Democratic Convention ngize nje naleso siphakamiso ukuthi isabelo mali sisimukele kodwa futhi ake sibonelele kulendawo. Ithe noma ifika inkululeko awangaba khona umehluko omkhulu endaweni. Sicela ukukubeka njengenselelo, sicela ukusho ukuthi indawo nayo iyafuna ukuthi iphumelele. Siyabonga. (Translation of isiZulu paragraphs follows.)

[… we are truly grateful to the government for we have reached a stage where we are doing the last Budget Vote for this session. We are really grateful and, as the Joint Monitoring Committee, we would like to say that on behalf of the youth, children, people living with disabilities, as well as women, we trust that the Office of the President will press on thus leaving a legacy with the youth issues.

I will just make an example with regions 24 and 25 which I will refer to as northern KwaZulu-Natal, and then there is the eastern Free State that I will refer to as the south eastern area. When you look at the numbers of people living in these areas, you find that they are more than a million in total.

And when you look at the number of towns in these areas, you find that there are only twelve. People have jobs in these areas and the youth do attend school, and there are many schools. Children are growing up but we would like to plead with the President to leave a living legacy in these areas.

The problem in these areas is that when children grow up, they go to study in other towns and end up working there as well. As a result, after completing their studies, these children do not go back home because the kinds of jobs that they were trained to do, are not available in their areas since the areas are not developed.

One of the areas that I have mentioned above boasts mines and a very big Iscor company which is now known as Mittal Steel, but people who work there are people who do odd jobs which do not need formal training. Educated youth leave their areas to look for work elsewhere and they do not come back, and when there is a need for specific skills in the area, they are reckoned to be acquired from areas like Richard’s Bay and Pretoria.

If we say that we are working for the development of economy, the youth and the area, we therefore trust that the Office of the President leaves a legacy by building an institution of higher learning, a technikon.

That is the proposal we are putting forward as the National Democratic Convention. We support this Budget Vote but we would like to propose that we should consider that area. There was no significant difference in that area even after the achievement of democracy. Therefore, we would like to put this as a challenge to government that that area needs to be developed too. Thank you.]

The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr K O Bapela): Order! I would like to call upon the hon N C Mfeketo. The member will be delivering her maiden speech.

Ms N C MFEKETO: Thank you, Chairperson, whatever that means!

Chairperson, President of the Republic of South Africa Comrade Thabo Mbeki, Deputy President, Ministers, Deputy Ministers, the deputy president of the ANC, hon members, the ANC supports the Presidency’s Budget Vote. We support it with the confidence that no one can deny that the ANC-led government has made substantial progress since 1994 on all fronts. We have created conditions for a strong foundation for a developing country.

In the 14 short years of our democracy, we are able to reflect on the transition from an inhuman society characterised by racism, division, inequality and injustice, to a society that is caring, open and democratic, committed to the ethos of nonracialism, nonsexism and freedom. We have indeed broken with the past, a past that did not have regard for women and children. The dark night of minority political domination is only a distant memory.

We know, and I am sure all freedom-loving South Africans know, the progress made under your leadership, President. Since 2004, the number of employed people has been increasing by about half a million each year. This, together with the extension of social grants to children, has led to some reduction in the level of severe poverty. The intervention you made in co- ordinating improved service delivery through Project Consolidate and intergovernmental relations is recognisable.

We will be the first ones to acknowledge that there is still much to be done, as identified by the President himself in his state of the nation address in February, hence the Apex Priorities. In this regard, I want to focus on local government as the sphere of government closest to our people. Its successes and failures have a direct impact on our communities. The challenges of poverty, unemployment and inequality must remain high on our agenda, not only in our sphere, but more particularly in the local government sphere. We therefore need to strengthen co-ordination across the three spheres as well as the institutions that provide and set the tone for transformation.

Emphasis must be placed on how different spheres arrange and structure their programmes and allocate their budgets. There must be a way of facilitating what happens in all organs of state as far as the improvement of people’s lives is concerned. This transformation agenda cannot depend on the political party that is in office. If we do not attend to this, the development of sustainable human settlements by 2014 will be a pipe dream, particularly in other provinces.

As stated earlier, local government is the sphere closest to our people and the one that often finds itself at the forefront of delivery. In recent times, we have witnessed civil society actions that illustrate the importance of local government beyond any doubt. When expectations are not met, people direct their frustration at the door of local government. Providing an intergovernmental framework that strengthens rather than burdens local government is therefore critically important. The Intergovernmental Relations Framework Act and the mechanisms that the Act provides go some distance in this process. However, mechanisms are as effective as the people who participate in them allow them to be.

In building on the solid foundation laid by this government, our challenge now is to monitor the structures that have been created to give effect not only to co-operative governance, but to the interdependence that exists between the spheres of government, more specifically between local government, its civil society partners and the state-owned enterprises that play such an important role in our local, regional and national economies.

With regard to monitoring and evaluation, those in local government should know that the intent of our monitoring and evaluation processes is not to lay blame, but to identify delivery pitfalls early on and to facilitate corrective measures in a proactive manner. The credibility, effectiveness and efficiency of our system of local government are a reflection of our total system of governance and administration. Failure in this sphere means failure in the system of governance as a whole.

This year marks a number of important milestones that has brought us to where we are today as a country: The 90th anniversary of the formation of the Bantu Women’s League of South Africa, the 60th anniversary of the formation of the ANC Women’s League and the 25th anniversary of the formation of the United Democratic Front. The founders of all these formations were motivated by one common objective - to break the shackles that trap them and their communities in poverty, unemployment and inequality. These challenges are still present today. The only way to pay tribute to the achievements of these founders is to continue where they left off. We dare not fail them. We need to invest more in programmes that will mobilise and inspire our masses to participate in building the country and the society in which they want to live, and in building a better tomorrow for their children and their children’s children. This is the responsibility of all peace-loving South Africans and not only the government. I thank you.

Mr R B BHOOLA: Chairperson, hon President, hon Deputy President and hon deputy president of the ANC, the department of the Presidency was born in 1996 with our democracy and has successfully served the governance of South Africa by providing executive management and overseeing the co-ordination of the executive and its basket of departments. We acknowledge that as a country our greatest challenge has been poverty and that government has worked endlessly to overcome this.

Under the auspicious leadership of our hon President Thabo Mbeki, the MF is pleased to note that today unemployment has decreased by 2,5%, that 89% of households have access to piped water and that 80% have access to electricity. Within two years the Fifa World Cup will kick off, and indeed we are not just going to be another country hosting the Fifa World Cup, we will simply be the best!

If anything, one of the challenges has been that the labour force has outgrown the economy. The MF applauds the hon President for his foreword to the South Africa Yearbook 2007-08, where he highlights that our economy is now growing at a faster rate than the country’s population, but also acknowledges that poverty and underdevelopment remain as challenges.

The MF honestly believes that we need to look at our achievements to inspire the road forward. The MF notes that over the past few terms women, children and the physically challenged have been a focal point for the Presidency, and we are curious indeed as to the progress made in this regard and as to whether these groups remain a priority for the Presidency.

Our hon President has played a pivotal role on the continent, internationally and in the UN, in building strong relations and creating new ones. Many of the ill-informed public have blindly criticised the Presidency for its choices in handling a number of critical issues but it is evident that the diplomatic stance our country has taken on a number of global concerns has been safe and in the best interests of a developing nation.

What we so often note is that South Africa is still a Third World country and we are still in the early walking stages of our democratic infancy.

The MF has often come under fire for its support for the Presidency and has been accused of being the puppets of the majority, but I assure you that it takes intelligence to note what is best for a country that has inherited a major debt of inequality and retardation.

Our opposition knows how much they contributed to that state and they find it way too easy to blame our current situation on today’s government. Our people need to be educated on the current state of the nation and they need to be educated as to who really placed them in these circumstances.

Yes, it has been a long wait and a hard road to travel for transformation but government has not stopped and our President has never stopped.

Hon President, the MF salutes you. We remember your sacrifices as a young boy. We remember your sacrifices and commitment to your comrades as a young man. And, hon leader, we stand by you through your commitment and sacrifice to our people over the three terms that you have led us and we would stand by you through another 100 years to come.

Change has come about because of leaders such as the hon Thabo Mbeki and it is the opposition that drives our people astray and causes them to believe in a failing government, a doomed future and a promised land in their claws.

We have had constructive nation-building but unfortunately we have been made to play with the DA and they have slashed our building blocks in the hope that they would be made the kings of the crib. The MF strongly believes that ignorance causes one to lose power.

Mongameli, ngikufisela impumelelo ekulweni nobumpofu. Izandla ziyagezana. Singakhohlwa baba Mongameli ukuthi umuntu umuntu ngabanye abantu. [Hon President, I wish you well in your fight against poverty. And as the old adage goes: one hand washes the other. We do not have to forget, however, hon President, that a person is a person through other persons.]

Hon President, under your impeccable leadership, South Africans have advanced from the dark days of apartheid and oppression into the light of democracy and development. Mahatma Gandhi once said in relation to those who embark on a journey of revenge, that an eye for an eye makes the whole world blind. When a man is at peace with himself then he is at peace with his family. Only when all South Africans are at peace with themselves, will the hon President of the Republic of South Africa, Thabo Mbeki, be at peace.

The MF will support the Budget Vote. Enkosi. [Thank you.][Applause.]

Mr F T MASERUMULE: Chairperson, the previous speakers have recognised the protocol on my behalf, so I shall jump headlong into the debate. My speech is actually not a debate as such, it is just a contribution, because one would understand that, as a rural boy, my issues are simple and practical, straightforward and concise.

But, before I come to that, let’s remind each other, because if we forget it will be a criminal offence: South Africa, this country as we know it - unless we don’t know it - fought in its lifetime until this moment - and I am still fighting but the terrain is different now, and the strategy and tactics are different; the ideas are different but the battlefield is still the same - has fought 850 wars, skirmishes, conflicts and battles over the past three centuries.

When you took office, Mr President, you said “lest we forget”. When Madiba took office, he reminded us “never ever”, and that statement was heavily loaded. Now, if one goes back a little, the most painful moment for me was the moment when the arms struggle was suspended. And it is still painful for me. There was a time when I wanted to break rank and become a lone rebel without a mission, because it was very painful. I could not understand why the ANC compromised on the armed struggle. I was suspicious as to whether the leadership was beginning to sell us out. But later I realised that it was actually a life-and-death matter. If we did not compromise, the country was actually going to go down. It was part of the package of facilitating the establishment of permanent peace and stability. But it is still very painful for me, because reasons were never given. We are trying to grapple with understanding the reasons. Here we are 14 years down the line, but for me it is still painful.

If one goes back a little one would remember the massacres, some which I saw with my own eyes: the Boipatong massacre, the Gugulethu seven, the Matola massacre, the Lesotho massacre, Shobashobane. Do you remember the killings that took place towards the elections in 1994? We went to the elections under fire, and here we are today and we cannot understand why we should be harping on xenophobia, homophobia, racism, etc! Why are we harping on these things? We have seen enough in this country. We have seen enough bloodshed. It should not surprise anybody if there is an influx of foreigners into the country, because South Africa is the southernmost country. So everybody who feels pain will run towards South Africa. There is nothing strange about that. To my own comrades: You know very well that the only secret that we have is the people. We do not have any secret other than the people. The only weapon we have as the ANC is the people.

Now as we go out here, everybody is going to sleep - even the night is going to rest. The country is going to be left with the ANC only. You can imagine the compromises that the ANC has made. Can you show me one organisation here that has made these sacrifices: Talks about talks, the Convention for a Democratic South Africa, Codesa I, Codesa II, multiparty agreements. One can imagine what the ANC has lost amongst its own key principles and policies to bring …

Mr J P I BLANCHÉ: Stick to this afternoon’s Budget Vote!

Mr F T MASERUMULE: If I were you, I would be wiser. Unfortunately I am not you.

Comrades in the ANC tripartite alliance and the SA National Civic Organisation, comrades, please! We were expecting these things, even if we did not know when or how, but there are weaknesses in our communication down there. We need to look into that and establish how we can be proactive even before things happen. We should not be reacting to these things, because we knew that they were going to happen - South Africa is the end of the line.

All sorts of characters and personalities, including warlords and syndicates, are going to come here. It should not surprise anybody. I don’t know why we are getting worried and wondering where they come from. I myself was able to cross from country to country without any papers, and to come back. So what? It is about the ANC, comrades. If there are people amongst us whose lives started in 1994, I am sorry. You need to realise that there was life even before 1994. Our lives did not start in 1994.

I just wanted to remind members where we are coming from. It is necessary, because history can repeat itself.

For me as a rural boy, the key questions are health, land, education and infrastructure. Comrade Jeff, with due respect and with a sense of responsibility, in terms of recapitalisation, when you talk to the bosses of industry you should also talk to the Department of Education and to Comrade Naledi. We are seeing an increase of movement of children at taxi ranks. This is a worrying factor and we need to do something about it. Comrade Naledi, we need to do something. We should be moving with the necessary speed towards the amalgamation of schools in the rural areas, so that we move away from this mainstreaming of education. We need to be specific now. [Time expired.]

Mr N T GODI: Thank you, Chairperson, comrades and hon members. Comrade President, may I state from the outset the APC’s support for this budget.

It is a fact that under your tenure a lot was done to realise the promise of freedom. More could have been done, and still more needs to be done for our people. During the state of the nation address, Comrade President, you spoke about “Business Unusual” in the provision of services to our people. Leadership is a determinant, both political and administrative, of how well we respond to the challenges of agrarian reform, housing, sanitation, education, job creation, poverty eradication, etc. One of the key issues relates to how provinces and municipalities respond to these challenges, of how national departments put provinces and municipalities to the sword for being impediments to service delivery within the current constitutional prescripts.

Business Unusual must unblock the bottlenecks that stifle service delivery, from the complex challenges to the ridiculous. Here is a ridiculous case: Tinyiko Phyllia Shingange of Petanenge Village has been waiting for an RDP house since 2004. The Mopani/Tzaneen Municipality/Realeboga construction project began in May 2004 with about 200 beneficiaries, including Tinyiko. To date, only 33 houses have been built; 17 houses are under construction and 150 houses have not yet been started. Of the total project budget of R6,475 million, R3,497 408,47 has thus far been used in the construction of these 33 houses and for the other 17 houses. Comrade President, can Tinyiko get her house before you leave office?

The APC would like to raise a pertinent issue relating to traditional leadership. It is the conviction of the APC that more needs to be done to enhance the standing and capacity to function properly of this important indigenous African institution. The current policy approaches are fragmentary and not sufficiently thoroughgoing. The APC is referring specifically to their remuneration, in particular that of headmen and headwomen.

As you will be aware, the Moseneke Commission report makes no recommendation on their remuneration, although there is a determination for kings, queens and senior traditional leaders. This is despite the fact that the Remuneration of Public Office Bearers Act of 1998 categorises traditional leaders as public office bearers, and that the Traditional Leadership and Governance Framework Act of 2003 defines traditional leaders as including headmen and headwomen.

The APC is making a case, after numerous meetings and presentations by headmen and headwomen in Limpopo, that the lack of determination on their remuneration by the Moseneke Commission is not legal and is a political disgrace. They are the motive force, the underclass of the system of traditional leadership. They are the men and women who serve their communities on a daily basis, have families to feed and clothe, and children to send to school.

In the case of Limpopo, there are headmen and headwomen who have been earning R1 085 for the past 10 years without any increment. This cannot be right. The fact that some headmen and headwomen in Limpopo have taken government to court is a sign of desperation and a cry for help. Also, is the composition of the House of Traditional Leaders legal or constitutional?

Section 2 of the Limpopo House of Traditional Leaders Act specifically excludes headmen and headwomen from electing or being elected to the house. This needs to be changed to have an inclusive process. That is why these houses have failed to fight for the cause of the underclass forces within their system.

The APC believes that under your leadership our country’s foreign policy has been positive, principled and progressive. South Africa has thus far served with distinction on the United Nations Security Council, despite spirited attempts to embarrass her chairmanship.

The APC fully supports and congratulates you on your mediation and role on behalf of SADC in Zimbabwe. We wish to see a speedy and peaceful resolution of the political and economic challenges of that sister country in the interests of Zimbabweans and not outside forces. Africa remains a continent of challenges and opportunities. The APC fully supports your efforts and South Africa’s contribution in finding solutions to the various developmental challenges facing Africa. Indeed, without unity or integration, Africa will neither achieve its developmental imperatives nor withstand the winds against change blowing from the North to the South.

Comrade President, never mind the vilification by the liberals, neocolonialists and vulgar Marxists; they are a vindication of the correctness of your line. Mangaliso Sobukwe taught us: “We are nothing but tools of history. When we are gone, history shall find new tools.” Thank you. [Applause.]

Ms N C MADLALA-ROUTLEDGE: Chairperson, President of the Republic Comrade Thabo Mbeki, Deputy President Mlambo-Ngcuka, deputy president of the ANC Comrade Kgalema Motlanthe, hon members, improving the quality of life for all people is a fundamental principle of the ANC for which many have given their lives. Since the birth of our movement, we have fought to establish the rights of all and, since coming to government, to improve the lives of all, irrespective of race, ethnicity, gender or political divides.

The ANC supports the Budget Vote of the Presidency. I will focus on the threats and obstacles we face as we build our new social and economic order. In these trying times, the role of the Presidency in driving the co- ordinated response of government and in mobilising society in the task of nation-building becomes central. In this context, the role of the Presidency is to provide leadership, vision and direction to the nation.

Since 1994 our government has reflected, consulted and planned extensively for the transformation of our country from a repressed and racially divided society to one in which we have a Bill of Rights and in which all are equal before the law, irrespective of the colour of their skin.

But the events over the past month have shown us, much clearer than any statistical exercise, the threats we face. The society that we want to build faces the very real enemies of poverty and inequality. The colour of that poverty remains black. In response to hon member Mulder – he’s not in the House – who spoke about black racism and about good and bad people, I want to say that nobody is born a racist. And it is our responsibility – all of us – as parents to teach our children not to be racist. [Applause.]

The economic growth we have seen so far in South Africa has perhaps served to divert attention from the task of reducing inequality. The African Peer Review Mechanism has reported that, “South Africa remains one of the countries with the most unequal societies in the world”. Now, global pressures, the cost of oil and the credit squeeze are turning up the heat on our own pressure cooker. The catastrophic rise in fuel prices has seen an across-the-board increase in the costs of food production and its transportation.

The issue of peak oil will inevitably lead to higher prices as the more difficult reserves need to be extracted. For our country and our continent, this spells disaster. According to McSmith, Morris and Taylor, writing in the Business Report of The Sunday Independent, on 8 June:

Africa is at the sharp end of the oil shock and the interrelated surge in food prices. With millions living on the tiny margin between subsistence and starvation, fuel costs can quickly become a matter of life and death … In South Africa, the government hiked petrol prices by 5% this month, bringing the increase in regulated petrol prices so far this year to 33%. The price of diesel, used extensively in farming and heavy industry, has leapt 49%.

The City of Cape Town recently announced increases in water, electricity, rates and refuse collection averaging out at 7,5%. These will be followed by other municipalities. As the cost of living rises, so too does the cost of borrowing.

The increases in interest rates are hurting those earning less than R100 000 per annum the hardest. With food budgets eating up over 50% of earnings, there is nothing left to save. Among the so-called luxuries people are shedding is domestic help. This will hit hard the many women- headed households in our townships for whom domestic work is their only source of income.

It is no wonder that the lid should blow off our pressure cooker. South Africans do not hate other Africans. We do, however, need to acknowledge the desperation that generations of inequality and poverty have engendered. Our duty as elected public servants is to improve the quality of life of all people.

The President has outlined our achievements. We cherish these gains which we have made in the short time since our democratic transition. The transformation and prosperity of our country face many threats, not least of which is the violence felt by many on the streets, on the buses, in restaurants, in their homes – anywhere. We must not forget that it is the poor who are most vulnerable, who have less access to the police, and who do not have private security armed response or burglar-alarm systems in their homes. A mother and child living in a shack in Khayelitsha, walking alone in the dark to and from the taxi rank to get to work or school, are the most vulnerable.

As we pause to reflect with honesty and clarity on the threats facing us, let us acknowledge the ordinary citizens who have come out in numbers to provide assistance to the tens of thousands of displaced people around the country. Public servants can draw inspiration from the courage, generosity and can-do spirit of the many people who left their comfort zones to drive people and goods, to cook food and to volunteer to do anything that needed to be done.

Inasmuch as we are seething with moral outrage at the burning of Ernesto Alfabeto Nhamuave, the 35-year-old Mozambican man made famous by the manner of his death, we should also be heartened by the many people willing to take the opportunity to serve. The goodwill of the people is a national asset and one of our unlimited resources.

We celebrate the ruling of the Constitutional Court to confirm Comrade Tinyiko Nwamita-Shilubana as the rightful traditional leader of the Vhaloyi people. [Applause.] She is in the House and I want to say that she has won this right not only for herself and her people but for all African women. [Applause.]

Yet there are still reasons to be concerned. We have had shocking reports about men attacking women for wearing pants or miniskirts and women being killed for loving other women. We must campaign to end sexism and homophobia.

I am concerned about the pace of implementation of the National Strategic Plan on HIV and Aids. Aids is having the greatest impact on the youth. Needless to say, this impacts negatively on the economy and the social wellbeing of our people, and poses a great threat to our ability to rebuild our society.

Our attempt to heal the divisions of the past and build a prosperous nation hinges on our ability to pull together to close the many inequalities clearly prevalent that pose a threat to all our efforts. Comrades, as I said earlier, inequality and poverty are the real enemy. If there are other threats, they feed off the poverty in our midst. I thank you. [Applause.]

Mr L M GREEN: Chairperson, hon President, Deputy President, deputy president of the ANC, Ministers and members, our nation needs, now more than ever, to come together and tackle the challenges we face. The hon Routledge has alluded to many of those challenges. The road may have seemed less difficult in 1994, but subsequently we are still a nation divided in our aspirations and uncertain of our collective vision.

The President earlier this year alluded to a number of Apex Priorities government will focus on to accelerate the promises made in creating a society to benefit all. One of the key strategies within the Presidency is to strategically position South Africa’s global image as a nation that inspires stability, to market us as a place that instils peace and stability for all who live in it and that we are a country blessed with a collective intelligence in conflict resolution, willing to mediate in countries engaged in conflict.

There is nothing wrong with this image as it is in large part true and speaks volumes of our potential to be a respected global player. There are however a few things we need to bring back on track if we want to remain an effective and respected player.

The first step is to look inward and get our own house in order. Primarily, people are showing a general lack of trust in the institutions of state. State institutions have systematically alienated people where services targeted for delivery do not always measure up to the expectations of the people. What has further added to the disdain people have for government is the lack of severity in clamping down on those guilty of corruption and nepotism.

There is a general impression that the nation is governed in absentia and that the promise of a better life for all, if it is to be successful, requires far greater economic growth to raise the living standards of all people, that crime and violence be tackled by the best prosecutorial agencies of the state, and to ensure that the future of this land will be equipped with skilled and talented people to build a united nation. There is a sense that people are left to tackle the difficult political problems by themselves. A case in point is the xenophobic attacks on fellow Africans.

With reference to the Zimbabwean crisis, Mr President, you recently stated the following:

We are at one with SADC and most of the international community that the incidents of violence and reported disruption of electoral activities of some of the parties are a cause for serious concern and should be addressed with all urgency.

The question I raise today, Mr President, is: If we all acknowledge that the matter in Zimbabwe is most serious, what urgent steps will be taken by you as SADC’s chief mediator to bring an end to the state-sponsored murder and mayhem orchestrated by Mr Mugabe and his lawless thugs?

Your reluctance to criticise Mr Mugabe publicly has caused the situation in Zimbabwe to deteriorate rapidly. More than 60 MDC supporters have been killed in Zimbabwe since the first round of elections at the end of March, and as the chief mediator … [Interjections.]

The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr K O Bapela): Order! Hon members, your noise level is too high. Once I see Babe Mlangeni tilting his ear to hear, I know that your noise level is too high. Please watch him. Once he starts tilting his ear this way, you must know that your level of noise is high. Thank you.

Mr L M GREEN: Thank you, Chairperson. As the chief mediator, Mr President, do you not have sleepless nights about this? Do you not feel partly responsible for the killings in Zimbabwe? Is your loyalty to Mr Mugabe worth the lives of 60, if not more, innocent Zimbabweans? I don’t think so. It is therefore understandable for Mr Morgan Tsvangirai to call for the President to be stripped of his role as chief SADC mediator.

You were recently asked, Mr President, what legacy you would like to leave after you have left office. Zimbabwe’s crisis must be resolved. This has been your Achilles heel to date. You cannot have your legacy tied to a despot like Mr Mugabe. Zimbabwe and nations further afield in Africa … [Time expired.]

The MINISTER OF SPORT AND RECREATION: Chairperson, Mr President and Deputy President, colleagues, as serious members of this Parliament and as leaders of our own people we must claim our successes and also acknowledge our shortcomings. We are very proud of what our President has done and a number of our colleagues have not shied away from declaring where we were successful and also acknowledging where we had shortcomings.

President Rolihlahla Nelson Mandela concludes the epic drama of his pre- 1994 life, Long Walk to Freedom, with the now famous words:

  I have tried not to falter; I have made missteps along the way. But I
  have discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one only
  finds that there are many more hills to climb. I have taken a moment
  here to rest, to steal a view of the glorious vista that surrounds me,
  to look back on the distance I have come. But I can rest only for a
  moment, for with freedom come responsibilities, and I dare not linger,
  for my long walk is not yet ended.

President Mbeki, you have done your bit and you have done it very well. It is time now to look back and prepare for the second phase of the leadership that you have discharged so exceptionally. [Applause.] We who have ears have learned so much from you. We have learned so much from the principles that you instilled in this House and in our government, and we have learned so much from the way you have dealt with crises.

These words from Comrade Madiba capture a profound dynamic in the process of social transformation. Structural inequality is very deep in our country and in our society and it has the great potential to damage nation-building if not carefully handled, and I dare say that you have handled it very carefully and very sensitively.

The past lives in ubiquitous ways in the present, grappling to pull the present back but also spawning forces that push it forward. In addition, the present marches to the future not in linear fashion, but it has to zigzag around many obstacles. Ours is a long walk, precisely because in 1994 we arrived only at the end of the beginning. And I dare say, we have had a very good journey to this point.

Inspired by the Freedom Charter and the principles enshrined in the Reconstruction and Development Programme and, of course, guided by the Constitution of our beloved country, we continue unabated with our social transformation programme. Informed by the democratic principles of the people-centred and people-driven state and a value system based on human solidarity, we have soldiered on. These pillars are an attribute of a caring society and beckon us to forge a social compact, made up of all South Africans, that has as its central objective of social policy the preservation and the development of human resources and ensuring social cohesion.

As observed in the Macro-Social Report, our society is undergoing dynamic changes partly due to the state of transition and partly due to factors that are beyond our control. In such a context our task of social transformation requires standing firm in the face of constant changes while continuing with our resolve to challenge underdevelopment and the eradication of poverty. How to do it is the constructive debate in which all of us must engage. We should try to develop a national consensus about what needs to be done to transform our country for a better life.

Chairperson, you may not think that we have made great progress in this respect, but if you look back to where our opposition was in 1994 ideologically, and where they are in 2008 on these issues, it seems to me, Mr President, that there is developing consensus on what needs to be done. What is not clear though is how it should be done.

The social transformation agenda that we have embarked on is broad and seeks to bring about change in areas such as comprehensive social security, promotion of national identity and social cohesion, comprehensive health care, meeting the increasing challenges of housing and human settlement, etc.

However, we are also committed to bringing a just dispensation to vulnerable groups such as children, women and people with challenges and disabilities. For these reasons we congratulate ourselves and the world on the ratification of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities by the UN recently.

We are also very proud of the support we gave to Oscar Pistorius and his team of managers who won a historic victory for athletes with disabilities in the whole world. [Applause.] We have climbed a few hills already and nothing should stop us now.

I have not elaborated on the progress that we have made in our steps up this hill, precisely because I knew, Mr President, that you would do that yourself and that my colleagues would follow in your tracks. However, the point that I want to make is to emphasise that there is clear evidence of the progress we are making. It is only the people who are in mental asylums … abantu abasezindumangeni nabantwana abancinane [people in mental institutions and young children] … who will not understand this, who do not have the capacity to differentiate between progress and stagnation.

At any given moment, and in response to pressing demands that may present themselves, government is paying attention to certain areas of priority. Our moral responsibility as public representatives is to repudiate “maak- vir-baba-bang” [frighten-the-baby] politics that create the false impression that we have differences that are impossible to surmount. Such propaganda is simply used to revive alliances and racial solidarities that are as unhelpful in the present as they were unhelpful in the past.

In combating these things change elements must be addressed vigorously at the level of language coexistence. The hon Khumalo raised the question of izimbizo. Some of our communities, Mr President, don’t attend these izimbizo. They claim that the language is a major barrier and so they stay away. We must deal with this and deal with it without wavering.

We must also address the legacy of the Group Areas Act and the Land Acts of the past. Unless we deal with these things the cohesion of our people is not going to be effectively achieved.

However, government cannot do this alone. Thus the core organisational principle for the second decade of freedom is to pursue a social compact of partnership of the government, the community sector, business and labour, with a clear task that each of these sectors must carry out, severally and collectively, to attain social transformation from which all can benefit. In the words of the late Oliver Tambo: “We must take our common destiny in our own hands.”

Logic suggests that what is needed is a partnership among confident rather than weak actors, more certainty rather than uncertainty. Indeed the greater danger in the coming period is the spectre of an indecisive and weak government. We cannot risk being indecisive. We must march forward with confidence and inspire hope in our communities irrespective of what perceptions are being developed. In the end it will determine how to respond to what has been done. The task of building a nonracial, nonsexist and democratic society must inspire our people with a feeling of hope, an unyielding resolve in promoting national reconciliation, social cohesion and a shared national identity. The ANC is ready and able to lead this process because you have taught us how. Thank you very much. [Applause.]

Mr S SIMMONS: Chairperson, hon President, Deputy President, Ministers and colleagues, for the past three years I have been consistently trying to alert government, Cabinet and the hon President to the adverse effects that vital transformation legislation, notably the Employment Equity Act, has on previously disadvantaged people. In doing so, I’ve stated clearly that the principle of transformation is not in dispute, but rather the model applied.

The hon President agreed to meet to discuss the concerns I’ve raised around coloured people. Needless to say, this never took place. This leads me to wonder whether, other than PR exercises, the Presidency also has an attitude like that of the hon Minister of Labour, who said, “this thing about coloureds is your problem and not ours”.

The attitude is the result of the belief that the concerns I’ve raised regarding coloured people are merely perceptions. I wish to point out to the hon President that these concerns are not perceptions but stem from policy implementation by the ANC government.

The most startling and blatant attempts by the ANC government to marginalise coloured people manifest in the form of the regulation of the Employment Equity Act issued in August 2006 by the hon Minister of Labour. This regulation adds a forced designated group or variable named “Africans”, this despite the fact that African candidates are already provided for within the designated group “blacks”. The effect of this regulation, Mr President, is that for every coloured employee, an employer is obliged to employ two Africans. The further implication is that the labour demographics of the Western Cape effectively have to be altered to the detriment of the coloured labour in this province.

The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr K O Bapela): Order! Hon members, your noise levels again, please.

Mr S SIMMONS: Worse, Mr President, is that all attempts to achieve cohesion between our different peoples are shattered by this racist policy.

The National Alliance has taken legal advice and has been advised that this regulation is ultra vires and open to legal challenge. I have forwarded today to the Office of the hon President a copy of a letter to the hon Minister of Labour requesting him to effect the necessary revisions to the aforementioned regulation. I trust that the hon President will deem this matter important enough to initiate proper remedial action. Thank you.

Die ADJUNKHOOFSWEEP VAN DIE MEERDERHEIDSPARTY: Voorsitter, agb President Thabo Mbeki, agb Adjunkpresident Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, agb adjunkpresident van die ANC, Kameraad Kgalema Motlanthe, agb lede, kamerade en vriende, ek wil begin deur hulde te bring aan die duisende jongmense wat hul lewens opgeoffer het in die stryd om ’n demokratiese samelewing te skep.

Ek staan vandag hier ter ondersteuning van die Presidensie se Begrotingspos. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraphs follows.)

[The DEPUTY CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Chairperson, hon President Thabo Mbeki, hon Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, hon Deputy President of the ANC, Comrade Kgalema Motlanthe, hon members, comrades and friends, I would like to begin by paying tribute to the thousands of young people who sacrificed their lives in the struggle to establish a democratic society.

Today I stand here in support of the Budget Vote of the Presidency.]

This is a Presidency that has provided overall strategic leadership and co- ordination of government and society broadly. It has consistently executed the overwhelming mandate given to the ANC to create a better life for all. It is assisted in mobilising all sectors of society to create a caring society.

I would like to touch briefly on some of the themes and issues that have arisen during the debate, in particular the assessment of the state of our nation and the concept of leadership. The hon Sandra Botha starts off by characterising the past year as “a tumultuous period of shock and uncertainty”. The hon Patricia de Lille engages in a very fashionable exercise of cataloguing failures, real or perceived. The hon Kenneth Meshoe refers to so-called “liberation leaders from the bush”. The hon Botha says in passing that it would be dishonest to say that the Presidency achieved no successes over the past four years, but proceeds quickly to elaborate a hypermarket- long list or inventory of shortcomings and failures, and presents this as a balanced assessment of government policies and programmes.

After the stocktaking exercise she answers a question - “what kind of Presidency do we deserve” - with reference to an American presidential candidate. Without in any way reflecting negatively on Mr Barack Obama and his remarkable achievement, one is struck by the fact that Ms Botha finds it necessary in a nation that produced leadership of the quality of Mahatma Gandhi, Albert Luthuli, Walter and Albertina Sisulu, Bram Fisher, Ahmed Kathrada, Oliver Tambo and Nelson Mandela to cross the Atlantic to find a leader that exemplifies “change we can believe in”.

Our country has experienced 15 years of change we can believe in because we see it happening every day. We see it in the restoration of our dignity; we see it in the millions of houses that have been built; the hundreds of thousands of jobs that have been created; and the millions of people receiving social grants. This is change that millions of South Africans believe in, not only because they see it but because they participate actively in it. The ANC has always sought the active involvement of the greatest number of people in the process of governance. The culture of criticism and self- criticism is integral to our organisational culture and practice. We welcome honest criticism and robust debate. However, we need to see some of the interventions here today for what they are: They are not attempts to provide honest assessments of the Presidency, of the state of our nation or government policies and programmes. They attempt, against overwhelming evidence to the contrary, to portray a nation, a government and an ANC in crisis, a government and an ANC that is incapable of leading society.

The second issue that I want to touch upon very briefly, because I am sure that the House will debate it at length later at an appropriate time, is that of Zimbabwe. Ms Botha, Rev Meshoe and Mr Green all call upon the President, in his capacity as a mediator mandated by the Southern African Development Community, to break his bonds with Mugabe, to distance himself and to condemn. I don’t know whether I understand or don’t understand the concept of a mediator, but it would seem to me like a logical contradiction for a mediator who is tasked with bringing two or more parties together to break ties with one of them. I don’t understand how one mediates under those circumstances. Perhaps someone can explain. [Applause.]

The process of fundamental social transformation is indeed a marathon. It’s a long and arduous journey. Many runners do not have the stamina to complete the race and fall by the wayside. Others are inexperienced or do not understand the challenge posed by the marathon. They sprint ahead quickly only to collapse later. Others enter the race without training sufficiently. Others run in the sun without hats and start hallucinating. [Laughter.]

The ANC is a movement of comrades. We understand that we are in a long race. We understand that this race will have portions when we will run comfortably on a level road. We understand that there will be uphills that will tax our ability to the maximum. We understand that there will be downhills where we will be tempted to overstretch ourselves. We understand that we need to run as a team. We understand that we need the moral and material support of all of those next to the road. We understand that there will be spoilers standing next to the road with false signs pointing us away from the finishing line, but we will stay on course and complete this marathon leading to a better life for all. Mr President, we thank you for your leadership. We support this budget. [Applause.]

Debate interrupted.

The House adjourned at 19:26. ____

            ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS

ANNOUNCEMENTS

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces

The Speaker and the Chairperson

1. Classification of Bills by Joint Tagging Mechanism (JTM)

(1)    The JTM on 10 June 2008 in terms of Joint Rule 160(6) classified
     the following Bills as section 75 Bills:

      a) Protection of Information Bill [B 28 – 2008] (National
         Assembly – sec 75).

      b) Special Pensions Amendment Bill [B 29 – 2008] (National
         Assembly – sec 75).

      c) South African Police Service Amendment Bill [B 30 – 2008]
         (National Assembly – sec 75).

1. Introduction of Bills

 (1)    The Minister for Intelligence


      a) Intelligence Services Amendment Bill [B 37 – 2008] (National
         Assembly – proposed sec 75) [Explanatory summary of Bill and
         prior notice of its introduction published in Government
         Gazette No 31126 of 5 June 2008.]
      b) National Strategic Intelligence Amendment  Bill [B 38 – 2008]
         (National Assembly – proposed sec 75) [Explanatory summary of
         Bill and prior notice of its introduction published in
         Government Gazette No 31126 of 5 June 2008.]


         Introduction and referral to the Ad Hoc Committee on
         Intelligence Legislation of the National Assembly, as well as
         referral to the Joint Tagging Mechanism (JTM) for
         classification in terms of Joint Rule 160.


         In terms of Joint Rule 154 written views on the classification
         of the Bills may be submitted to the JTM within three
         parliamentary working days.

1. Draft Bills submitted in terms of Joint Rule 159

(1)    Mine Health and Safety Amendment Bill and National Energy Bill,
     2008, submitted by the Minister of Minerals and Energy.  Referred
     to the Portfolio Committee on Minerals and Energy and the Select
     Committee on Economic and Foreign Affairs.

National Assembly

Referral to Committees of papers tabled

1. The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on Finance and the Joint Budget Committee for consideration:

   a) Submission of the Financial and Fiscal Commission on the Division of Revenue Bill for 2009-10, tabled in terms of section 9(1) of the Intergovernmental Fiscal Relations Act, 1997 (Act No 97 of 1997).

2. The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on Minerals and Energy for consideration:

   a) Strategic Plan of the Department of Minerals and Energy for 2008 to 2011.

3. The following papers are referred to the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Constitutional Development:

   a) Government Notice No R.391 published in Government Gazette No 30953, dated 11 April 2008: Regulations prescribing the tariff of allowances payable to witnesses in criminal proceedings in terms of the Criminal Procedure Act, 1977 (Act No 51 of 1977).

   b) Government Notice No R.392 published in Government Gazette No 30953, dated 11 April 2008: Regulations prescribing the tariff of allowances payable to psychiatrists and clinical psychologists who appear as witnesses in court in terms of the Criminal Procedure Act, 1977 (Act No 51 of 1977).

   c) Government Notice No R.393 published in Government Gazette No 30953, dated 11 April 2008: Tariff payable to psychiatrists or clinical psychologists for an enquiry into the mental condition of an accused in terms of the Criminal Procedure Act, 1977 (Act No 51 of 1977).

   d) Government Notice No R.394 published in Government Gazette No 30953, dated 11 April 2008: Tariff of allowances payable to witnesses in civil cases in terms of the Magistrates’ Courts Act, 1944 (Act No 32 of 1944), and the Supreme Court Act, 1959 (Act No 59 of 1959).

4. The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on Arts and Culture for consideration. The Report of the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements is referred to the Committee on Public Accounts for consideration:

   a) Report and Financial Statements of the Nelson Mandela Museum for 2006-07, including the Report of the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements for 2006-07 [RP 242-2007].

5. The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on Public Service and Administration for consideration:

   a) Strategic Plan of the Public Service Commission (PSC) for 2008 to 2011.

6. The following papers are referred to the Portfolio Committee on Defence and the Joint Standing Committee on Defence:

   a) The Acting President of the Republic submitted a letter dated 9 May 2008 to the Speaker of the National Assembly, informing members of the Assembly of the employment of the South African National Defence Force in the Democratic Republic of the Congo for service in fulfilment of the international obligations of the Republic of South Africa to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. b) The President of the Republic submitted a letter dated 23 May 2008 to the Speaker of the National Assembly, informing members of the Assembly of the employment of the South African National Defence Force for service in co-operation with the South African Police Service.

7. The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on Sport and Recreation for consideration:

   a) Strategic Plan of the Department of Sport and Recreation for 2008 to 2012.

8. The following papers are referred to the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Constitutional Development for consideration:

   a) Strategic Plan of the Office of the Public Protector for 1 April 2008 to 31 March 2012.

   b) Regulations made in terms of sections 39 and 53 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act, 2007 (Act No 32 of 2007).

9. The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on Agriculture and Land Affairs for consideration.

   a) Report of the Commission on Restitution of Land Rights for 2007-08 [RP 30-2008].

10. The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry for consideration and report and to the Portfolio Committee on Finance, Portfolio Committee on Public Works, Portfolio Committee on Transport, Portfolio Committee on Agriculture and Land Affairs and Portfolio Committee on Public Enterprises:

    a) Report and Financial Statements of the Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa (Asgisa) for 2007.

11. The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on Labour for consideration and report and to the Portfolio Committee on Education, Portfolio Committee on Science and Technology, Portfolio Committee on Public Service and Administration and Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry: a) Joint Initiative on Priority Skills Acquisition (Jipsa) – Report on Activities in 2007 [April 2008].

12. The following papers are referred to the Portfolio Committee on Provincial and Local Government for consideration:

    a) Business Plan of the Department of Provincial and Local Government for 2008-09.

    b) Strategic Plan of the Department of Provincial and Local Government for 2007 to 2012.

    c) Report on the Implementation of the Intergovernmental Relations Framework Act for 2005-06 and 2006-07, tabled in terms of section 46 of the Intergovernmental Relations Framework Act, 2005 (Act No 13 of 2005).

    d) Municipal Performance Report for 2005-06, tabled in terms of section 48 of the Local Government: Municipal Systems Act, 2000 (Act No 32 of 2000).

    e) Report of the National Disaster Management Centre for 2006-07, tabled in terms of section 24 of the Disaster Management Act, 2002 (Act No 57 of 2002).

13. The following paper is referred to the Portfolio Committee on Arts and Culture for consideration:

    a) Strategic Plan of the Department of Arts and Culture for 2008 to 2011.

TABLINGS

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces

1. The Minister of Correctional Services

   (a) Report of the Judicial Inspectorate of Prisons for 2007-2008 [RP 26-2008].

COMMITTEE REPORTS

National Assembly

1. Report of the Portfolio Committee on Communications on the filling of vacancies on the Council of the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa, dated 10 June 2008: The Portfolio Committee on Communications, having considered the request of the National Assembly to submit a shortlist of candidates to the Minister of Communications for appointment to the Council of the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa), referred to it on 2 April 2008 and on 14 May 2008, reports as follows:

   The Committee invited the public to nominate persons for consideration and recommendation to the Minister.

   The Committee considered the nominations and agreed that the following persons be interviewed on 3 June 2008:

   Ms N Batyi, Mr T Dlamini, Prof B Dumisa, Mr T Makhakhe, Mr FK Sibanda and Ms LS Somo.

   After having considered the shortlist, and after having interviewed the candidates, the Committee recommends, in order of preference, that the House, in terms of section 7 of the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa Act (Act No 13 of 2000 – as amended) submits to the Minister a list of suitable candidates at least one and a half times the number of councillors to be appointed, namely:

   Mr FK Sibanda, Ms N Batyi, Mr T Makhakhe, Ms LS Somo and Prof B Dumisa.

Report to be considered.

1. Report of the Portfolio Committee on Agriculture and Land Affairs on Budget Vote: 23 Department of Agriculture, dated 20 May 2008. The Portfolio Committee, having been briefed and having considered Budget Vote: 23 Department of Agriculture for 2008/09 financial year in terms of rule 201 (c) of the National Assembly, reports as follows:

Introduction and Overview

The Director-General of Department of Agriculture briefed the committee and provided an overview of the department’s goals and objectives and of the budget for 2008/09 financial year on 12 March 2008. The main strategic aim of the department is to lead and support sustainable agriculture and promote rural development through ensuring access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food; eliminating skewed participation and inequality in agriculture; maximizing growth, employment and income in the sector; improving the sustainable management of natural agricultural resources and ecological systems; ensuring effective and efficient governance; and ensuring knowledge and information management.

Land and Agrarian Reform Project

The Land and Agrarian Reform Project were established to address the failure to provide adequate post settlement support to land reform beneficiaries. The Director-General highlighted the Department of Agriculture’s response to the Apex Priority 7, as outlined by the President in his 2008 State of the Nation Address, relating to land and agrarian reform which will be the department’s key focus area for the 2008/09 financial year.

The key objectives to LARP are as follows:

    • Redistribution of 5 million hectares of white-owned agricultural
      land to 10 000 new agricultural producers;
    • Increase black entrepreneurs in the agri-business industry by
      10%;
    • Provide universal access to agricultural support services to the
      targeted groups;
    • Increase agricultural production by 10-15% for the target groups
      under the LETSEMA-ILIMA Campaign;
    • Increase agricultural trade by 10-15% for the target groups;
    • Biosecurity; and
    • Governance.

Programme Analysis: The Director-General provided details of the key performance indicators (KPIs) of each programme, for the Department of Agriculture.

The Director-General tabled the department’s budget for the 2008/09 financial year for each of the five programmes i.e. Programme 1: Administration, Programme 2: Livelihoods, Economics and Business Development; Programme 3: Biosecurity and Disaster Management; Programme 4: Production and Resources Management and Programme 5: Sector Services and Partnerships.

Budgetary Breakdown

The activities of the Department are organised into five programmes:

The department has been restructured and its programmes have been reduced from nine to five. The purpose of the restructuring is to strengthen the Department’s capacity to provide oversight over the implementation of national programmes and to focus on priorities.

Programme 1: Administration

The programme provides the department with political and strategic leadership and management, and also manages capital investments. The allocation for the 2008/09 financial year amounts to R300 364 million as compared to R283 335 million for the 2007/08 financial year. The allocation reflects an increase of 6%.

Programme 2: Livelihoods, Economics and Business Development

The programme promotes equitable access to the agricultural sector, the growth and commercial viability of emerging farmers, food security and rural development. It also facilitates market access for South African agricultural products nationally and internationally by developing and implementing appropriate policies and targeted programmes. It promotes BEE in the sector and provides information for developing and monitoring the sector. The programme allocation for the 2008/09 financial year is R901 814 million compared to R886 951 million for the 2007/08 financial year. The allocation reflects an increase of 1.7%.

Programme 3: Bio-Security and Disaster Management

The programme is responsible for managing risks associated with animal and plant diseases and ensuring food safety. The programme also develops the agricultural risk and disaster management policy framework for providing early warnings and post-disaster support to farmers. Within this programme are the sub-programmes of Plant Health and Inspection Services as well as Food, Animal Health and Disaster Management. For the 2008/09 financial year allocation for the programme amounts to R311 721 million, a decrease of 28% compared to R243 611 million for the 2007/08 financial year.

Programme 4: Production and Resource Management

The programme focuses on creating an enabling environment for increased and sustainable agricultural production, promoting sound management and use of land and water resources through appropriate policies, legislation, norms and standards, technical guidelines and other services. This programme is divided into the following two sub-programmes which include Agricultural Production as well as Engineering, Energy, Resource Use and Management. The programme allocation for the 2008/09 financial year is R259 900 million compared to R247 780 million for the 2007/08 financial year. The allocation indicates an increase of 4.9%

Programme 5: Sector Services and Partnerships

The programme manages and co-ordinates stakeholder and international relations, education and training, and the Grootfontein Agricultural Development Institute. It supports agricultural research and extension and advisory services. The budget allocation to this programme amounts to R760 872 million for the 2008/09 financial year compared to R619 489 million during the 2007/08 financial year. This allocation also reflects an increase of 22.8%

Therefore, the total allocation to the department for the 2008/09 financial year amounts to R2 534 671 billion compared to R2 281 166 billion for the 2007/08 financial year. This reflects an increase of 11.1%.

Having deliberated and having sought clarity with respect to Budget Vote 23, the Portfolio Committee on Agriculture and Land Affairs raised the following concerns:

      • The apparent lack of co-ordination between the Departments of
        Agriculture and Land Affairs in terms of support to the Land
        Redistribution for Agricultural Development (LRAD) and other
        land reform beneficiaries. Land had been allocated but support
        from the Department of Agriculture was delayed which resulted in
        project failures.
      • The high vacancy rate within the department and the measures
        taken to address this.
      • The underspending by Provinces, by 50% or less, of their
        allocated budgets.
      • Given the high numbers of commercial farmers leaving the
        agricultural sector, the prospects for emerging farmers to
        survive in this sector.
      • How the rehabilitation of 100 000 hectares of land could be
        achieved given the country's water shortage.
      • The Land Bank was responsible for the disbursement of MAFISA
        funding. Due to the current state of the Land Bank there have
        been flaws in this process. The Department of Agriculture needs
        to investigate alternative options for the disbursement of
        MAFISA funds and look at the creation of a special purpose
        vehicle for this purpose.
      • Measures in place to address changing climatic conditions and
        the adverse effect it is having on the agricultural sector.
      • The extent to which the Department of Agriculture prevents
        threats to local industry through contamination from imported
        agricultural inputs such as fertilizer. An example of this was
        the negative impact that cadmium from imported fertilizer has
        had on the local pineapple industry. The extent to which such
        occurrences can be prevented and the measures taken by the
        Department to address this.
      • The country's progress in respect of the Maputo declaration,
        committing 10% of the government's budget towards support in the
        agricultural sector.
      • The impact of bio-fuels on food security.
      • The lack of capacity of extension officers and the measures
        taken by the Department to address this.
      • The delayed response by the Department in addressing the
        outbreak of disease and natural disasters. In addition, what
        measures are taken by the Department to prevent reoccurrence?

Conclusion The Portfolio Committee expresses its appreciation to the Department for its presentation.

Extension officers play a pivotal role in the post settlement support of emerging farmers and land reform beneficiaries. The committee would like to highlight the need for increased training of existing extension officers and the need to fill vacant posts.

The committee sees a need for increased intergovernmental stakeholder partnership and co-ordination in realizing the objectives of LARP. Members note with concern the failure of the Land Bank to administer MAFISA funding and recommend that alternative mechanisms be sought to address the administration of these funds.

The budget of the department should be incremental in line with the Maputo Declaration target of 10% of national budget allocation to support agricultural development. These budget increments would facilitate the creation of a more productive agricultural sector. The committee feels that the budget of the department does not sufficiently address or respond to major issues on the ground, particularly in terms of poverty alleviation, food security and support to emerging farmers.