National Assembly - 09 September 2010
THURSDAY, 09 SEPTEMBER 2010 __
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
____
The House met at 14:06.
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.
NOTICES OF MOTION
Ms N A MNISI: Thank you, Mr Speaker. I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the ANC:
That the House debates social and economic infrastructure and the extension of quality government services, particularly health and education, to the rural areas.
I thank you.
Mr M S F DE FREITAS: Mr Speaker, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the DA:
That the House debates the performance of the Cross-border Road Transport Agency and whether any solutions are necessary in order for this entity to comply with its legislative mandate.
Mr L S NGONYAMA: Mr Speaker, I hereby give notice …
The SPEAKER: I didn’t recognise you. Speak only when you have been recognised. Hon Smuts, I recognise you. [Laughter.]
Mr L S NGONYAMA: Mr Speaker, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of Cope:
That the House debates the recent unrest in Mozambique resulting from deprivation and food shortages, and the impact on South Africa and the Southern Africa Development Community,region.
Mr N A RAMATLHODI: Hon Speaker, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the ANC:
That the House debates how to devise means in terms of which official languages are used in the courts in order to enhance access to justice. Thank you, Mr Speaker. [Applause.] Mr S N SWART: Speaker, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the ACDP:
That the House debates the Special Report on the Implementation of Public Protector Reports and Remedial Action that states that non- implementing organs of state that reject or do not comply with the findings of the Public Protector can be held accountable by Parliament.
I thank you. [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: Hon members, it’s difficult to hear the speakers. I suspect we are here to listen to them so, if you keep quiet, you stand a better chance of hearing what they have to say.
Mr S MOKGALAPA: Speaker, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the DA:
That the House discusses the principles that should guide South Africa’s foreign policy and our participation in international agreements, and how these principles relate to the national interests of our country.
Ms W NGWENYA: Speaker, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the ANC:
That the House debates community participation in Parole boards and
correctional, rehabilitation and reintegration initiatives.
Thank you.
Dr S M VAN DYK: Speaker, ek gee hiermee kennis dat ek op die volgende sittingsdag namens die DA sal voorstel:
Dat die Huis ’n debat voer oor Eskom se onlangse verklaring dat die
voorsiening van elektrisiteit aan Suid-Afrika slegs tot 2017 gewaarborg
kan word. (Translation of Afrikaans subject for discussion follows.)
[Dr S M VAN DYK: Speaker, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day I shall move on behalf of the DA:
That the House debates Eskom’s recent statement that the supply of
sufficient electricity to South Africa can only be guaranteed until
2017.]
Ms H F MATLANYANE: Hon Speaker, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the ANC:
That the House debates the significance strides made in mathematics,
science and technology in our educational system.
Thank you.
Mr S J F MARAIS: Speaker, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the DA:
That the House debates illegal and unsafe electricity and solutions to
help Eskom eradicate this problem.
Thank you.
Mr L RAMATLAKANE: Speaker, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of Cope:
That the House debates the unacceptable trend established by the ruling party to force directors-general and chief executive officers of parastatals to attend the ANC National General Council.
Thank you.
Mrs J D KILIAN: Speaker, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of Cope:
That the House debates the decision by the SABC board on the appointment of the SABC news head and the pressure exerted on board members to regularise the appointment. Thank you.
Mr L S NGONYAMA: Hon Speaker, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of Cope:
That the House debates the Khoi people’s alleged lack of recognition as a minority group.
Thank you.
The SPEAKER: Hon Ellis, please take your seat and welcome to the House.
ANNUAL ZULU REED DANCE
(Draft Resolution)
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Hon Speaker, I move without notice:
That the House –
1) notes that every year in September over 15 000 Zulu maidens gather
at King Goodwill Zwelithini’s royal palace for the Zulu reed dance
(uMkhosi woMhlanga) and that this year's event will take place on
11 and 12 September at the Enyokeni Royal Palace in Nongoma;
2) further notes that the reed dance is a colourful cultural
celebration ...
The SPEAKER: Hon members of the ANC, you can’t hear your Chief Whip speaking; please reduce your noise levels.
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Thank you, hon Speaker, for the protection. I shall continue:
... that promotes respect for young women and preserves the custom
of keeping girls as virgins until marriage;
(3) believes that the Zulu reed dance plays a significant part in
Zulu heritage in terms of portraying and instilling a sense of
pride, belonging and identity among the youth;
(4) acknowledges that this year’s ceremony will see all the young
women participating in the event undergoing life skills training as
well as receiving information about moral regeneration and HIV and
Aids education, especially on prevention methods; and
(5) wishes the participants a very successful uMkhosi woMhlanga.
I thank you, hon Speaker. [Applause.]
Agreed to.
The SPEAKER: Thank you. May I just add that the attendance at the reed dance is per invitation only, but … [Laughter.] Order!
END OF HOLY MONTH OF RAMADAN
(Draft Resolution)
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Hon Speaker, I move without notice:
That the House -
1) notes that Friday, 10 September 2010, marks the end of the holy
month of Ramadan;
2) further notes that during this day, Muslims across the globe wish
each other “Eid-ul-Fitr’’ and families, friends and relatives get
together to build a feeling of unity among one another and spread
happiness all round;
3) believes that Muslims in this country have made a great
contribution to the defeat of apartheid, colonialism and to the
creation and sustenance of our democracy and that the holy month
of Ramadan afforded them a unique opportunity to strengthen bonds
of friendship and family ties among themselves and with their
fellow South Africans;
4) remembers that the religion of Islam preaches, among other things,
respect for humanity and encourages peace and justice; and
5) extends its best wishes to all Muslims in our country and around
the world.
Agreed to.
COMMEMORATION OF BISHO MASSACRE
(Draft Resolution)
Mr M A NHANHA: Speaker, I move without notice:
That the House -
1) notes that 7 September marked the 18th year of the Bisho massacre
in which 29 innocent lives were lost and scores of people were
injured at the hands of Oupa Gqozo;
2) commemorates those freedom fighters who either died or were
wounded during that fateful protest march;
3) remembers with sadness the brave souls who paid the ultimate price
for Ciskei’s reincorporation into South Africa during the final
years of apartheid; and
4) expresses its regret to the families of the victims and, in the
same token, the appreciation of the nation for the liberation that
we achieved through the sacrifices they made.
Agreed to.
NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR CRIME PREVENTION
(Draft Resolution)
Mr A M MPONTSHANE: Hon Speaker, I move without notice:
That the House -
1) notes that on 6 September 2010 the National Institute for Crime
Prevention and the Reintegration of Offenders celebrated its 100th
anniversary;
2) further notes that Nicro provides crime prevention services and
public educational programmes as well as analysing the root causes
of crime;
3) recognises that the organisation has more than 40 community victim
support centres throughout the country; and
4) congratulates Nicro and wishes them success as they strive towards
their goal of staying vibrant and relevant in the communities they
serve.
Agreed to.
GOOD WISHES FOR JEWISH NEW YEAR
(Draft Resolution) The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Hon Speaker, I move without notice:
That the House -
1) notes that Thursday marks the beginning of a very auspicious
period in the Jewish calendar, with members of the Jewish faith
observing Rosh Hashanah;
2) further notes that Rosh Hashanah, the beginning of the year, is a
time for introspection and reflection on the past year as well as
a time to look forward to the year ahead; and
3) wishes the Jewish community of South Africa “Shana tova”.
Agreed to.
SCHOOL EDUCATION AFTER PUBLIC SERVICE STRIKE
(Member’s Statement)
Mrs J C MOLOI-MOROPA (ANC): Speaker, the ANC welcomes the suspension of the public sector strike by the unions. We believe this is a step in the right direction to ensure stability and normality in the public sector. The strike caused a massive strain on public health care and the postponement of the matric preliminary exams in some provinces.
With all teachers resuming their duties, we urge all educators to find creative ways to ensure that all Grade 12 learners are fully prepared to write the preliminary exams.
Learners are encouraged to make use of all programmes offered by their various schools and the Department of Basic Education. The upcoming school holidays should be utilised productively. Learners and teachers are urged again to give assistance and guidance, even during the school holidays.
Consultations between labour unions and government should continue beyond the negotiations to ensure the delivery of essential services to the public. We believe that together we can do more.
Thank you.
CRIME STATISTICS
(Member’s Statement)
Ms D KOHLER-BARNARD (DA): Thank you, Chair. Today’s crime statistics really shows incremental improvement across the board. So, South Africans do have room to be cautiously optimistic. Crime is something which affects every South African, and a decrease in crime is obviously something to be welcomed. Crime statistics provide an important assessment of how well government is managing to keep South Africans safe.
When the statistics for next year are released the SAPS’ special measures during the Fifa World Cup will, I believe, translate into greater measurable outcomes and demonstrate what happens when safety is a non- negotiable priority of government, and the stress is on visible policing.
The SAPS have made important strides, especially in contact crimes. The murder rate is down by a significant 8,6%, and attempted murder down by 6,1%. Robberies with attempt to inflict grievous bodily harm and secular offences are also down.
Worryingly, residential burglaries and business premises robberies have again increased, by 2,7% and 4,4% respectively. This means that South Africans are unfortunately less safe in their homes than they were in the previous year, and that businesses are more vulnerable to crime.
The DA commends all the brave men and women in the SAPS for their efforts in keeping South Africa safe, and we also proffer our heartfelt condolences to the families and friends of the 110 police officers who died in the course of duty. Thank you. [Applause.]
CORRUPTION IN ARMS DEAL
(Member’s Statement)
Ms L M MASHIANE (Cope): Chairperson, the arms deal saga hangs like an albatross around the neck of the ANC - that is how it will stay! [Interjections.]
The rearguard action by the ANC comes on top of the new evidence given by Anwar Dramat to Scopa that high-ranking politicians and shady businessmen had pocketed about R480 million from the R43 billion arms deal. According to Dramat, R300 million in kickbacks might have been paid for the British Aerospace Electronic Systems contract and R180 million by the German frigate consortium.
These bribes would have been paid to secure contracts for the supply of fighter aircrafts and naval vessels. The fact that the Hawks have 460 boxes of documentary evidence, as well as 4,7 million computer-generated documents, shouldn’t be a problem. The Hawks should use data mining software and new technology to identify the wrongdoers.
The issue of time, money and manpower raised by Dramat is outrageous. Corruption has been institutionalised in the ANC - this is common cause. That is why it continues to frustrate the arms deal investigation. This is why it pressurises its MPs in Scopa to follow instructions. It all points to the rottenness of the core of this government which, if allowed to fester, will destroy our democracy and our society. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
SAPS EDUCATIONAL TRUST FUND
(Member’s Statement)
Mr G LEKGETHO (ANC): Thank you, hon Speaker. The ANC welcomes Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa’s announcement that the SAPS is to establish an educational trust fund that will benefit children whose parents or guardians have died in the line of duty. The announcement was made on the SAPS National Commemoration Day, to honour the 110 police officers who died in the line of duty during the past financial year.
The SAPS Education Trust Fund is expected to be fully operational by January 2011. During this Commemoration Day, the Minister noted that many of the police officers who died were fairly young, and even though the SAPS paid out their pension and policy benefits, it was evidently impossible that those payments would sustain the loved ones left behind.
The criteria in terms of permissibility into the educational trust fund will be voluntary, but consideration will be on the neediest. The SAPS Educational Trust Fund will be the first of its kind, and will be a lasting legacy to those who have lost their lives in the service of the country. I thank you.
DEATH OF IFP MEMBERS DURING STRUGGLE
(Member’s Statement)
Mr M A MNCWANGO (IFP): Hon Speaker, 16 years have passed since South Africans were shot or burnt to death in political conflict, and even though we will never forget this painful part of our history, memory of the trauma has faded. Some 20 500 people were killed between 1984 and 1994. The conventional wisdom is that they died at the hands of the state third force, but Anthea Jeffery’s book, People’s War: New Light on the Struggle for South Africa, paints an accurate picture in which she explains that these people died as a result of the people’s war the ANC unleashed.
In 1993, the IFP president, Mangosuthu Buthelezi, drew attention to the 275 IFP leaders who had been killed since 1985. He asked why this was of no consequence. Buthelezi asked how the 1994 election could be free and fair in such a climate and withdrew from the election process in protest.
He was demonised for his views and actions at the time. Jeffery’s book lays out how the people’s war allowed the ANC to dominate the negotiating process, to marginalise people like Prince Buthelezi and to seize a virtual monopoly on power in 1994. Even though Dr Jeffery’s book has been on the shelves for many months, we would like to congratulate her on publishing a balanced narrative of the history of South Africa and the struggle for freedom. Since the dawn of democracy, there have been too many instances of the ruling party trying to paint a distorted picture of the struggle, and in some instances there have been attempts to rewrite history entirely. [Applause.]
MRS PATRICIA DE LILLE ON HER RETIREMENT FROM PARLIAMENT AND THE ARMS DEAL
(Member’s Statement)
Ms P DE LILLE (ID): Hon Speaker, Phansi ANC Phansi! [Interjections.] Hon Speaker, it is with immense sadness that I’m leaving this Parliament today. [Interjections.] I have fought many fights in this Parliament, and I have won most of them. [Interjections.] Even though I have fought with many people, I’ve also made many friends. I also feel proud that we could all build our new democracy together. But as I’m leaving today, I want to remind you that exactly 11 years ago … [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: Hon members, order!
Ms P DE LILLE: … on 9 September 1999 in this Parliament, I blew the whistle on the arms deal.
Yesterday, the head of the Hawks, Mr Anwar Dramat, suggested to the Standing Committee on Public Accounts, Scopa, that the investigations into the arms deal must be dropped for financial reasons. How ridiculous! I wonder which politicians instructed him to cover up for them. No amount of money is too big to bring these crooks to book. Some of them are still in government today. [Applause.]
I want to say to the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Communications, hon Vadi, and hon Sikhumbuzo Kholwane and all the members of the portfolio committee, I wish you well in your task; also to the rural development committee, hon Sizane, I wish you well in your task. Aluta continua! I will see you on the streets. Thank you. [Applause.]
PRESIDENT ZUMA’S VISIT TO EASTERN CAPE COMMUNITIES
(Member’s Statement)
Ms P MADUNA (ANC): Hon Speaker, President Zuma, in his capacity as President of the ANC, visited Uitenhage recently and, amongst other things, went to speak to the people from Delview. While going from door to door, the President went to the dilapidated house of 67-year-old Susan de Rocks. The President saw the state of the house and after stepping into a hole which was on the floor, whispered into her ear that he will make sure that she moves into a new house soon.
On Monday, 16 August 2010, municipal workers from the Nelson Mandela Metropole started building a new house for her, as promised by President Zuma. Susan de Rocks will be moving into her new house soon after receiving the keys personally from the Minister of Basic Education, Angie Motshekga.
President Zuma has shown repeatedly that he has empathy with the people of South Africa and listens to the plight of the poor. The President established a call centre last year whereby the public could call the Presidency directly to raise queries and complaints.
The ANC commends the President for taking time out of his extremely busy schedule to interact with the people and listen to their problems. Thank you. [Applause.]
DEPARTMENT OF MINERAL RESOURCES ALLEGEDLY INVOLVED IN FRAUDULENT ACTIONS
(Member’s Statement)
Mr E J MARAIS (DA): Speaker, the Department of Mineral Resources is in a terrible state of affairs. Kumba is taking the Department of Mineral Resources to court over alleged fraudulent manipulation by Imperial Crown Trading of the application submitted to the department. It is therefore concerning that the department is in possession of all the alleged fraudulent documents on which Kumba is basing their court application.
If the court finds that the application by Imperial Crown Trading was falsified and was indeed based on the documents emanating from the department, then the department could well be criticised for closing its eyes to the fraudulent activity or, even worse, be alleged to have been an accomplice in manipulating applications in favour of ANC-linked politicians.
Another issue of concern is a Lonmin-Keysha investment matter where Keysha obtained rights to so-called associated minerals at the expense of an established miner, Lonmin. While the department urges that the Act is not clear on the issue of associated minerals, it continued with the issuing of a prospecting right to Keysha investments, an entity with connections to the ANC and with no proven record in mining or ability to have access to funding requirements. Now the Minister, knowing that her department is out of control, has instituted a six month moratorium on prospecting despite the law not providing for such a draconian measure. Thank you, sir. [Time expired.] WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT
(Member’s Statement)
Mr G J SELAU (ANC): Hon Speaker, 80 female volunteers who helped to build 54 houses in the North West province as part of Women’s Month are to receive training that will equip them to start their own construction companies. The training programme is an initiative of the Minister of Human Settlements Tokyo Sexwale and the human settlement department of North West.
The women will be trained in financial literacy by First National Bank and will also get training in life orientation by the National Development Agency. They will also receive three month’s training from the National Home Builders Registration Council, where they will be taught technical skills and undergo practical training.
On completion of the training, volunteers will be issued with National Home Builders Registration Council accreditation certificates, which will then give them opportunities to create jobs for themselves or establish construction companies.
The ANC welcomes the initiative of expanding opportunities to women, so that they can improve their entrepreneurial skills and stand a better chance in accessing economic opportunities. Malibongwe! Igama lamakhosikazi! [Praise! The name of women!] [Applause.]
ANTHEA JEFFERY’S BOOK
(Member’s Statement)
Ms S P LEBENYA-NTANZI (IFP): Hon Speaker, the IFP would like to congratulate Dr Anthea Jeffery on her latest book Chasing the Rainbow: South Africa’s Move from Mandela. At its simplest level, Chasing the Rainbow is the dispassionate assessment of South Africa’s progress since 1994 in ten critical areas ranging from the rule of law and effective governance to liberating the poor and fighting crime. [Interjections.]
The DEPUTY CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Speaker, on a point of order …
Ms S P LEBENYA-NTANZI (IFP): Dr Jeffery hands out plaudits where merited, but for the most …
The SPEAKER: Order! Order! Is that a point of order, Deputy Chief Whip?
The DEPUTY CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Yes, Mr Speaker, we think that the statement has been read. The SPEAKER: We can’t hear you.
The DEPUTY CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Mr Speaker, the statement was read earlier on. [Interjections.]
Ms S P LEBENYA-NTANZI (IFP): Oh please, no! Hon Speaker, this is a new statement.
Dr Jeffery hands out plaudits where merited …
The SPEAKER: Let’s listen to the new statement. [Laughter.] Continue, hon member.
Ms S P LEBENYA-NTANZI: … but for the most part her analysis reveals a country struggling desperately to fulfil the hopes that attended the dawn of the rainbow era.
In addition, Dr Anthea Jeffery also discusses the ruling party’s newest onslaughts on the opposition in pursuit of its national democratic revolution programme. Amongst other things, this revolution aims to eliminate any opposition to the ruling party. If this is indeed the ruling party’s objective, I would like to signal a warning today, in this House, that we all need to fear the future of our young democracy. I thank you. [Applause.]
PUBLIC SERVICES STRIKE AND STATE CULPABILITY
(Member’s Statement)
Mr W M MADISHA (Cope): Mr Speaker, Cope upholds the constitutional rights of workers to engage in industrial action and to withhold their labour to enhance their remuneration and working conditions. This right, however, must be exercised responsibly and without violence.
During the strike, valuable time that cannot be made up now in education was lost and plans must be implemented. Although the blame is wholly shifted to educators and other public sector workers, the employer cannot escape culpability in this regard because of bad faith negotiations and arrogant ministerial statements. By allowing the industrial action to be prolonged, matters got out of hand and people suffered injuries, deaths in hospitals and learners were unable to complete their syllabi.
Had government, inter alia, curtailed accesses with regard to luxury vehicles travel costs, hotel bills by some of the Ministers present here, there would have been money in the fiscus to pay teachers, health workers and others salaries commensurate with their qualifications and responsibilities. Unfortunately government has been spending freely and lavishly, and then it begins to plead poverty when public sector workers request legitimate improvements in remuneration.
Government has three weeks to settle the problems faced by workers. We are saying to you that you must negotiate in good faith. We call on government to learn a lesson from this very long industrial action in our country’s history. Salary reviews going forward must precede the passing of the budget and not occur subsequently to its passing. [Time expired.]
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON YOUTH DEVELOPMENT
(Member’s Statement)
Mrs M T KUBAYI (ANC): Hon Speaker, the first international conference of parliamentarians on youth development was held in Mexico City, from 24 to 27 August 2010. As part of the celebrations of 2010 being declared as the youth year, as per the United Nations, the conference was also a UN- supported initiative. At the conference the SA Parliament was represented by members of both the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces.
The conference looked at various topics and South Africa participated in the following: unemployment, health and education. Other topics that the conference covered included peace and security, social participation and democracy, information technology, immigration and sustainable development. All of these topics are considered key to youth development.
As such, the conference adopted declarations which bind each parliamentary member to adopt and implement in support of the youth. Thus, the ANC continue to support the global campaigns, which are aimed at putting youth development issues on the world agenda, and identifying priority action for 2015 on youth issues to be included in the international agenda for development beyond the millennium development goals. Thank you. [Applause.]
SOUTH AFRICAN SATELLITE SUMBANDILA
(Member’s Statement)
Ms M R SHINN (DA): A year ago, South Africa launched its satellite, SumbandilaSat, amid much fanfare. This pioneering craft heralded our bright future as a space-faring nation.
But it’s a crippled ship. Cost compromises made during construction meant that some of the components have permanently failed because they were not robust enough. Some of the problems have been fixed, but about half the promised capability of the satellite is lost.
Three universities that were promised the use of SumbandilaSat have not yet been able to start their experiments – a year after launch.
The total cost of the programme is, I’ve been told, about R90 million and about R52 million spent on getting the craft to work after launch. These are expensive school, fees, particularly as all we get is 10 minutes worth of information a day to compile images that take 15 days of processing to become useable.
A year ago, the hon Minister of Science and Technology promised to provide a cost justification on building our own satellites. When she did not deliver on this promise, I sent her a question and her response was a smokescreen.
She could not give concrete details of return on investment. She chose not to give figures proving that it is cheaper to make our own satellite than it is to acquire the earth observation information from the six satellite providers we currently use.
Cabinet wants taxpayers to become the major shareholders of the satellite’s manufacturer, SunSpace. I suggest that, instead, our money be better used in developing our unique global competitive capabilities. [Applause.]
HOUSING DELIVERY IN URBAN AREAS
(Member’s Statement)
Mr J M MATSHOBA (ANC): Speaker, the ANC-led government, through the Department of Human Settlements, is embarking on radical changes that could turn the tide of housing delivery in the country.
According to data from the Department of Human Settlements, some 2,7 million houses have been in South Africa over the last 40 years. Post- 1994 South Africa marked the beginning of unprecedented demand for housing, as more people moved to urban areas in search of new economic opportunities that were being created by the new democratic order. The demand became so high that the then Department of Housing was forced to look outside itself for solutions to meet this deadline for delivery when it announced the establishment of a housing delivery agency last year. The agency has facilitated the acquisition of land for housing development across the country, allowing for more than 240 000 new houses to be handed over to the new owners between 2008 and 2009.
The expenditure on housing delivery has also increased from R4,9 billion in 2004-05 to R10,5 billion in the last financial year, increasing at an average rate of 23%. Authorities, however, admit that there have been challenges.
Ward authorities, as listed in the policy of the people housing process, will seek the establishment of a new funding mechanism that will allow for more committed urban projects in the delivery of what is now termed human settlement.
The ANC-led government is committed to accelerating the delivery of housing within the context of sustainable human settlement. I thank you. [Applause.]
FEMALE ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR AWARD
(Member’s Statement)
Mrs P C NGWENYA-MABILA (ANC): Speaker, the annual Female Entrepreneur of the Year award was held in the Eastern Cape over the weekend. Its aim is to encourage and recognise the participation of women in the agriculture, forestry and fisheries sectors.
A Limpopo woman, Mavis Mathabatha, won the 2010 Female Entrepreneur of the Year award, as well as R365 000. Mavis Mathabatha is the leader of the Lammangata Moringa community wellness project, which cultivates and utilises Moringa Oleifera, a plant possessing remarkable nutritional properties. The plant, which is known as the miracle tree, possesses vitamin A and C, iron and protein.
The Lammangata Moringa project produces and packages 10 000 tons of all- natural Moringa leaf powder. It creates jobs for 12 women and five men. The project also offers Moringa Oleifera seedlings and education on nutrition at no cost to rural communities in Limpopo.
The ANC encourages these kinds of initiatives, especially initiatives that empower rural women, particularly those who derive their livelihood from the use of productive land. Thank you.
Mr K J DIKOBO (Azapo): Speaker, on a point of order: As far as we are concerned, Azapo was supposed to have a slot during Members’ Statements. We were not called.
The SPEAKER: Hon member, I follow the list that I have in front of me. I don’t know what list you have in front of you.
Mr K J DIKOBO (Azapo): I also have information from my Chief Whip that it was our turn.
The SPEAKER: Well, I don’t know about your Chief Whip. Here I follow the orders from the Table staff. I am sure we can check with the Table after this but, sadly, you are not on my list.
I have said this before: People who are not on my list won’t be given a chance to speak.
Table staff, can you please note the concern expressed, that Azapo was on the list, should have been on the list, might have been on the list, but was not recorded here?
GOOD WISHES FOR HERITAGE MONTH
(Minister’s Response)
The MINISTER OF ARTS AND CULTURE: Speaker, my response is, happy Heritage Month to all the members! Thank you. [Applause.]
SOUTH AFRICAN SATELLITE SUMBANDILA
ANTHEA JEFFERY’S BOOK
MRS PATRICIA DE LILLE ON HER RETIREMENT FROM PARLIAMENT AND ARMS DEAL
PUBLIC SERVICE STRIKE AND STATE CULPABILITY
(Minister’s Response)
The MINISTER OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Speaker, if I could begin with the statement made by hon Shinn, I certainly did not give her a response that satisfied her in the question that she sent to me.
I do not believe she is correct in saying that the satellite is a costly waste. We did indicate that this is a demonstrator satellite and that South Africa would not have the entire set of responses it seeks to achieve through the launch and utilisation of a satellite.
We will continue with our satellite programme. We believe we have the skills, the ability, and the technology to develop satellites not just for South Africa, but for the African continent as well. Therefore our plans are under way and they will continue to be executed to serve the innovation, technological and development interests of South Africa.
With respect to the statement and the excitement of the IFP on the book by Anthea Jeffery, I should say that, when I was a lecturer at university, I always taught my students not to use one source. Once you do, of course, you distort the work that you are trying to do. [Interjections.]
Now, we know many persons attempt to be revisionists insofar as history is concerned. Unfortunately, the glorious contribution of the ANC to the struggle for freedom in South Africa and the achievement of democracy we enjoy today cannot be changed by any historian … [Applause.] … and any attempt to create the image and pretend that only one organisation was involved in the violence which was visited on not just the people of KwaZulu-Natal, but on the people of Gauteng and other areas, is absolutely dishonest and untrue. Therefore I would say that what must be done is that we should look at a wide range of historical sources and tell the political truth in South Africa.
I also want to say that we wish hon De Lille well. We hope she spends less time on the streets and more delivering to the poor, as she promised in her statement last week. We were a little surprised that she has not joined the benches of the party whose card she so bravely held high at her recent conference. But, we understand hon De Lille’s embarrassment in that regard, and we do wish her well.
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION: Speaker, on a point of order: The hon member shows an embarrassing lack of knowledge of the Rules of this House.
The MINISTER OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Speaker, I think that hon member is the last one to tell me about the Rules of this House, since I was party to its writing. [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: Order, hon members! Order!
The MINISTER OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Furthermore, the hon Chief Whip – I understand he is the Chief Whip of the largest opposition party – certainly does know that the hon member of his party joined his party a few weeks ago. Therefore I don’t know why he has to deny this.
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION: Speaker, the member should know that the Rules of this House do not permit that party to join this party in this House at this point in time. [Interjections.]
The MINISTER OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: It is possible that the hon Chief Whip of the largest opposition party does not understand the distinction between member and party. I referred to a member joining the party to which he belongs. [Applause.] [Laughter.] But we understand his difficulty.
I do not recall from the committee meeting that discussed the arms deal that there was any reference to a politician by the persons that were making statements in that committee meeting. There is, of course, always an attempt to try to hang this on the ANC. Perhaps the hon member who made the statement on behalf of Cope – since she was a member of the party at the time – may know more than some of us, but there is no member of the ANC that is a beneficiary of this particular deal. Therefore we do not understand why there is a continual attempt to keep this going.
We also negotiated in absolute good faith during the negotiations on salaries. We made the best offer that government is able to make in terms of the resources available to it and we hope that once the 21 days’ suspension is over, we will have signature to what we think is a very good offer for public servants and workers in the Public Service domain. If the hon member of Cope disagrees that this is a good offer, perhaps he’s in the wrong place and should be assisting the workers and government to secure something even better. Thank you.
Mr M J ELLIS: Speaker, I wonder if I could appeal to you, Sir, to try and make sure that more Cabinet Ministers attend the meetings so that we don’t have to have this diatribe from the hon Pandor every time on behalf of a wide range of Ministers. Really, that was atrocious! [Laughter.]
The SPEAKER: Hon member, that is not a point of order.
MRS PATRICIA DE LILLE ON HER RETIREMENT FROM PARLIAMENT AND ARMS DEAL
DEATH OF IFP MEMBERS DURING STRUGGLE
(Minister’s Response)
The MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS: Hon Speaker, I would like to wish hon De Lille well and link that to the IFP’s statement about the ANC’s desire to do away with the opposition. The national democratic revolution has nothing to do with opposition parties. It really has everything to do with democracy, improving the material conditions of our people, pushing back the frontiers of poverty, making sure that the conditions of our people are better than they were during the apartheid days, and a prosperous South Africa. But the opposition will die …
Mr M J ELLIS: Mr Speaker, on a point of order: There is normally only one response to a particular statement. [Interjections.] I can’t remember whether the hon Pandor did, in fact, address this point already. Therefore the hon Nkosazana Zuma is out of order in responding again to this particular matter.
The MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS: She didn’t.
The SPEAKER: No, hon member. Continue, hon Minister. [Interjections.]
The MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS: But …
Mr M J ELLIS: Mr Speaker, are you satisfied, sir, that … [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: I am satisfied. Thank you very much.
Mr M J ELLIS: I find that difficult, sir, because she covered so many points … [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: Hon member, please take your seat. Shall we continue?
The MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS: Yes. The opposition …
The MINISTER OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Mr Speaker, on a point of order: I apologise to my colleague. But, Speaker, I think you should have understanding for the hon Ellis; I noticed he walked in with crutches. [Laughter.]
The SPEAKER: Hon members, please. I really want us to conclude this session today. [Interjections.]
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION: Mr Speaker, on a point of order: With great respect to my … the hon … Is it a Minister over there? I think that’s out of order. To refer to somebody’s disability in that way … [Laughter.] … I think it’s totally out of order. [Laughter.]
The SPEAKER: I think the point is well made. We must treat people with disabilities with respect. [Laughter.]
The MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS: I think the demise of the opposition has nothing to do with the ANC, but has everything to do with the opposition itself. As we have seen, the hon Patricia de Lille has decided to get married and go to some place, running away from the opposition. We see what’s going on in the other parties. This will, indeed, kill the opposition because they have no vision for this country. They have no vision for this country and all they are doing is to fight among themselves. Thank you.
The LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION: Mr Speaker, on a point of order: The hon Minister said that the Opposition is diminishing, and Patricia de Lille is getting married and going somewhere else other than …
The SPEAKER: Marriage has nothing to do with a point of order, hon member … [Laughter.]
The LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION: My point of order, hon Speaker, is that if the hon Minister is honest with this House, she will tell the House that the ranks of the opposition have burgeoned since the last election. It’s the ANC that’s diminishing, not the opposition. [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: That’s a point of information, not a point of order. Order, hon Ministers, and Members of Parliament. [Laughter.]
WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT
HOUSING DELIVERY IN URBAN AREAS
(Minister’s Response) The DEPUTY MINISTER OF HUMAN SETTLEMENTS: Thank you, Speaker ... Mr M J ELLIS: Mr Speaker, on a point of order, sir: I don’t know what the hon Deputy ...
The SPEAKER: You don’t know; why don’t you listen first? [Laughter.] Please take your seat. [Interjections.]
Mr M J ELLIS: I have no doubt, the hon …
The SPEAKER: Hon member Ellis, please take your seat.
Mr M J ELLIS: … but the hon Pandor has covered it already, I can assure you. [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: Please take your seat. Hon Minister, you have my protection.
The DEPUTY MINISTER OF HUMAN SETTLEMENTS: Thank you, Speaker, for the protection. I want to thank hon member Selau for the statement on the North West women volunteers. Those women built 54 houses. This is part of Women’s Build in terms of the Human Settlements department. We have both the Women’s Build and the Youth Build. The approach is to empower women and youth as we build houses.
We have also said that 10% of our budget – now it’s 30% of our budget – should go to women contractors. We applaud those women who went out there and built during Women’s Month, August. In that spirit I also want to thank the MEC of the North West who worked hard to ensure that that programme is a success.
Speaker, also allow me to thank hon member Matshoba regarding his statement on the issue of Human Settlements and the Housing Development Agency. I just want to say that it is true that our establishment of the Housing Development Agency has assisted Human Settlements with regard to acquisition of well-located land. This helps us in building the gap housing which is the rental stock, as well as contractor-driven Breaking New Ground houses. But, at the same time, we promote the people’s housing process to ensure that women build their own houses because we understand that if people build their own houses, there will be less sale of houses. I thank you.
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON YOUTH DEVELOPMENT
(Minister’s Response)
The DEPUTY MINISTER OF JUSTICE AND CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT: Speaker, I would like to thank the hon member Kubayi for the statement she made on the International Youth Conference. I was honoured to lead the government delegation to the World Youth Conference held in Mexico from 24 to 27 August. That conference brought together the government, nongovernmental organisations and parliamentarians to discuss burning issues of youth development in the world today. In particular, it looked at the millennium development goals and how they relate to the youth with a view to making an input at the United Nations General Assembly when it meets later in September.
We focused on issues of particular concern to youth such as health, education and job creation, and we hope that those deliberations are going to guide the UN General Assembly. The significance is that this gathering took place in the second international year of youth, the first one having taken place in 1985 when the youth of South Africa were at the forefront fighting for democracy.
As South Africa, we put forward a number of demands and needs in that meeting relating to the establishment of the UN Youth Fund to start a process leading to a UN Convention on the Rights of Youth. In that, we were echoing the words of the late president of the ANC Oliver Tambo when he said that “a nation, a movement, a people that does not value its youth does not deserve its future”.
In conclusion, Speaker, we look forward to welcoming tens of thousands of young people to South Africa from 13 to 21 December when the World Federation of Democratic Youth hosts the 17th World Festival of Youth and Students. I thank you. [Applause.]
FEMALE ENTREPRENEUR OF THE YEAR AWARD
(Minister’s Response)
The DEPUTY MINISTER OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT AND LAND REFORM: Hon Speaker, I want to take this opportunity to welcome the statement by the hon Ngwenya- Mabila on congratulating Ms Mathabatha on her selection as the Female Entrepreneur of the Year. From our department, we welcome all initiatives that are aimed at mobilising natural resources, especially the utilisation of land for the improvement of the quality of life of people, especially rural people.
We see our duty, as the department, more as being to support initiatives such as that of Ms Mathabatha. We will continue to work with community leaders, businesses and local and provincial authorities to identify people like Ms Mathabatha in their effort to contribute towards a better life for our people, especially those in rural areas. We see this as the practical implementation of our motto that together we can do more. Thank you, hon Speaker. [Applause.]
CONSIDERATION OF REPORT OF PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON JUSTICE AND CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT - RECONSIDERATION OF NOMINATION OF ADV L K B
MPUMLWANA AS SOUTH AFRICAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSIONER
Order disposed of without debate. The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Speaker, I move:
That the Report be adopted.
Motion agreed to.
Report accordingly adopted.
CONSIDERATION OF REQUEST FOR NOMINATION OF PERSONS FOR APPOINTMENT TO SOUTH AFRICAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION IN TERMS OF SECTION 193(5) OF THE CONSTITUTION
Ms M SMUTS: Mr Speaker, the DA asks the National Assembly to nominate Dr Gladstone Sandi Baai as a member of the Human Rights Commission. Dr Baai is a PhD: Philosophy (Durham), who played a leading role in establishing ethics guidelines in the Public Service for more than a decade after the adoption of the final Constitution. He served as Director of Professional Ethics at the office of the Public Service Commission, the Chapter 10 institution. We would like to send him now to a Chapter 9 institution, the SA Human Rights Commission, SAHRC, where, in our view, his skills in developing the monitoring of the code - which he himself develop-and in research makes him a good choice for functions such as the Human Rights Commission’s special constitutional duty of holding government’s departments to account for the implementation of the socioeconomic rights. Among the many books that he authored and co-authored is a title called Snatching Bread from the Mouth of the Poor: Ethics and Corruption, which I rather think says it all.
May I say that Dr Baai struck me as a person of substance; human rights commissioners must be such persons. Their entire impact and effect on society rests on the moral authority they bring to bear, because they can make no binding orders, they are not a court of law. They command and exercise moral suasion – as the previous commission under Jody Kollapen, Leon Wessels, Karthy Govender and a few others so successfully did – they command moral suasion or nothing at all.
We therefore need Dr Baai. It is notable that a person specialising in ethics takes the place of a person who you were asked to appoint last year, until Cope drew to our attention, rather late in the day and moreover erroneously as to exact fact, that Adv Mpulwana, who was the subject of the motion we have just adopted, had been discharged from the employ of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, TRC.
Thanks to the intercession of a concerned citizen in the Eastern Cape, the true facts and the actual High Court judgment in the matter between the TRC vs Adv Mpulwana were provided to me, and therefore to the Portfolio Committee on Justice. We gave the appropriate opportunity for a hearing. We are bound, as is this House, by the unchallenged judgment of the High Court that the advocate by his nondisclosure of his employment at that time in the Eastern Cape Provincial Administration fraudulently misrepresented to the TRC his fitness and propriety.
May I use this opportunity, Sir, to urge party spokespersons to present shortlists for appointment to their caucuses well before the final decision needs ratification, because, although we are indebted to the hon Adams for raising the issue in however lacking a manner, it was brought very late. This is not the first time, in respect of a Chapter 9 institution, that inappropriate persons have in fact been selected when party caucus members, who had insight or experience, could have averted such choices. Unfortunately, it has happened before. In this case I imagine the hon Thozamile Botha may have had something to do with our colleague the hon Adams’s warning, but it came only when we were asking the House to vote on a finally negotiated and agreed upon list. At least Cope has helped: in other cases, it was too late and the consequences which duly unfolded were unfortunately predictable.
So, we thank the House for the adoption of the previous motion for sending this back to us at Justice and we ask the House to vote for Dr Gladstone Sandi Baai. [Applause.]
Mr N J J KOORNHOF: Mr Speaker, to the hon Smuts, it was late but it worked. It is now common knowledge that Adv Mpumlwana was expelled by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, TRC, after a disciplinary inquiry and, therefore, we are now debating this new appointment of Dr Gladstone Sandi Baai today.
The ANC must be congratulated for not sweeping this under the carpet or covering it up. This is a good example, even late, where a debate in the House has played a positive role - a rare example. Let us all gathered here today realise that one’s speech in a debate can make a difference. It happened in this case.
Honesty and integrity must always be the prerequisite if you want to be a custodian of human rights. It was wrong for the committee to appoint a wrong candidate at the beginning. I don’t know why it happened. I was not part of that committee. Dr Gladstone Sandi Baai was, at that time, the correct candidate and still is now, in front of this House, the correct one.
The point is that the SA Human Rights Commission is not there to protect government or to declare their decisions invalid. It must promote and protect the human rights of ordinary people. Therefore, commissioners should be there with the right credentials, and not because they have the right political connections. Cope will support the appointment of Dr Gladstone Sandi Baai and we wish him well in this new job. Mr M G ORIANI-AMBROSINI: Mr Speaker, I think what had to be said has been said. I would just like to add a notation in my two minutes - that politics is an alternation between co-operation and competition. What we have seen in the Justice Committee – not just on this occasion, but even on prior occasions – is the prevalence of co-operation.
We started with candidates who were not consensus candidates, but controversial candidates. We have now completed this process with somebody who is a consensus candidate. I think a great deal of this is due to the wise leadership of hon Ramatlhodi who has created a climate in which like- minded people can work in the committee in the interest of the country, setting aside political differences.
The other thing which I think needs to be raised is that this is a decision that has just been made by Parliament, in Parliament, by the members of the committee. I think it is significant and bodes well for how similar processes can strengthen the supremacy of Parliament. Thank you.
Mr M S SHILOWA: Speaker, on a point of order: Taking into account the advice that hon Stofile gave to Peter de Villiers, isn’t the member better speaking in Italian?
The SPEAKER: Hon member, that is not a point of order. Please, hon members, let us try to be serious from time to time. I know it is difficult to do it all the time, but at least from time to time.
Mr S Z NTAPANE: Mr Speaker, hon members, the matter of filling the vacancies that has arisen at the SA Human Rights Commission should have been relative. Unfortunately, the committee discovered after it had conducted interviews and supported the nomination of Adv Mpumlwana that there were issues which had not been brought to its attention. The committee was obliged to reconsider the matter and, after careful consideration, the committee has withdrawn its support for that nominee.
A consideration of those persons previously interviewed has resulted in the committee recommending the nomination of Dr Gladstone Sandi Baai for the vacancy. The UDM supports the committee’s report. Thank you.
Mr S N SWART: Speaker, the ACDP also supports the recommendation that Dr Sandi Baai be recommended for appointment as a commissioner to the Human Rights Commission. He has a very impressive CV. He was involved in a lot of missionary work and played a leading role in promoting sound ethics in the Public Service Commission. He will undoubtedly add considerable value to the commission.
That having been said, the ACDP would also like to highlight the need for the appointment of additional commissioners to handle the ever-increasing load of the commission. Let us bear in mind that the ad hoc committee on the review of Chapter 9 institutions stated that “the appointment of only five commissioners to an institution with as broad a mandate as that of the Human Rights Commission is deeply problematic and wholly inadequate”.
So, whilst there are additional part-time commissioners, the ACDP shares the view that at least two additional full-time commissioners should be appointed. We trust that the office on institutions supporting democracy as well as the Justice portfolio committee will look into this matter as a matter of urgency, considering that the ad hoc committee made its recommendation three years ago. Thank you.
Mr N A RAMATLHODI: Hon Speaker, I wish to take this opportunity to extend my deep gratitude to members of my committee for their collaborative work, and I would also like to thank members particularly for working together in seeking to advance the interest of our people, which is in South Africa’s national interest.
Criticism has been levelled against us, which I humbly accept. Even in our caucus, where we should have done a bit more research before we made the decision that we arrived at. In our caucus, I suggested that we could have just as easily googled it using modern technology and maybe found out that there were things that we needed to have known, which we didn’t know.
What was fatal to the recommendation that we made earlier was the fact of nondisclosure. We did not get involved with the merits or demerits of the case. We were basically interested in disclosure because that had not happened. We felt that we did not have a choice but to recommend to this Parliament the withdrawal of the recommendation.
The ANC supports Dr S Baai, as the candidate who came out second best in our interviews. He is the son of Xhosa people from the Eastern Cape and a highly gifted intellectual. He comes from the poorest of the poor. He will bring all those skills and temperament into the job of Commissioner of the SA Human Rights Commission. He is highly recommended and I wish to use this opportunity to urge the House to support this candidate.
We are interested in ensuring that the Chapter 9 institutions are strengthened in whatever way possible. It is my view that we should not try and localise them only to ourselves as the Justice committee. If there are additional measures that can be taken by Parliament to reinforce our input into our capabilities of these Chapter 9 institutions – personally, I have no problem with it and I am very easy with that. For instance, the suggestion that came from Professor Asmal’s recommendations, the involvement of the Deputy Speaker, in reinforcing the Chapter 9 institutions, makes a lot of sense to me. So, we should not hold on to boundaries as a leadership and say this belongs to me; that belongs to me. These institutions belong to Parliament and we must make sure that whatever additional resources we can put into them we should do without being led to failure. I thank you very much. [Applause.]
Debate concluded.
Question put: That the nomination of Dr Gladstone Sandi Baai for appointment as Commissioner on the South African Human Rights Commission be approved.
The Speaker announced that, due to the failure of the electronic voting system, the Whips would conduct a head count of members for the purpose of ascertaining support for the nomination. AYES - 254 (ANC - 180, DA - 46, COPE - 14, IFP - 6, ID - 1, UDM - 2, ACDP - 2, PAC - 1, MF - 1, AZAPO - 1).
Question agreed to.
Nomination of Dr Gladstone Sandi Baai for appointment as Commissioner on the South African Human Rights Commission accordingly agreed to, in accordance with section 193(5)(b)(ii) of the Constitution.
The SPEAKER: Also to add, just for the record: There is a precedent for voting when the electoral system is not working. Towards the end of September the electronic voting system in the National Assembly became dysfunctional. On 25 September, at their regular weekly meeting, the Chief Whips’ Forum agreed to a proposal to use a manual voting procedure. So this is quite in order. Also, hon Mlangeni, you were right, everybody’s thing was not working and so we didn’t believe you. But now we do. [Applause.] Thank you very much.
TAXATION LAWS AMENDMENT BILL
(First Reading debate)
VOLUNTARY DISCLOSURE PROGRAMME AND TAXATION LAWS SECOND AMENDMENT BILL
(Second Reading debate)
Gqr Z LUYENGE: Somlomo, Sekela-Mongameli, Baphathiswa, malungu ale Ndlu, ndimi apha egameni lombutho wesizwe ndiza kuphosa ndigibisela malunga noMthetho woXabangelo ojengene nerhafu. Ndiqwalasele ke ngqo kuluntu nakugcino-mali, imisebenzi kunye noshishino. Mandigawule ndiwarhuqa ke ngenxa yexesha.
Lo Mthetho uYilwayo weRhafu wathunyelwa kule komiti ijongene nezimali ukufumana izimvo zoluntu ngoMeyi kulo nyaka umiyo. Siyile komiti ke sabulela ngokungazenzisiyo kubo bonke abathabatha inxaxheba ngokusinika izimvo zabo ngalo Mthetho uYilwayo. Ngokunjalo, sabulela ngokungazenzisiyo kuMphathiswa, uNongxowa weli lizwe, umfo ka Gordhan, kunye nabasebenzi be- ofisi yakhe nakubaqokeleli berhafu, i-SA Revenue Service, Sars, ngomsebenzi omkhulu abawenzileyo ngokusinika iimpendulo ezicace gca okwekati emhlophe ehlungwini kwimibono esiyifumene ngexesha lofuno-zimvo zoluntu. Ezi mpendulo ziye zasincedisa ekubeni sikwazi ukuthethisana saza safikelela ekugqibeleni kwalo mcimbi singawo namhlaje.
Singombutho we-ANC ke sibona kufanelekile ukuba siwuxhase lo Mthetho uYilwayo, kuba ubaluleke kakhulu ukuze siqhubeke nokutshintsha isebe lethu lezerhafu. Olu tshintsho luza kusincedisa sikwazi ukuqinisa ezorhwebo jikelele nokuxhasa siphinde siqinise ukukhula kwezophuhliso kwixesha elizayo. Oku sikwenzela ukuba sikhulise irhafu yesizwe siphinde sijonge nezinye iindlela zokukhulisa ingxowa yesizwe, mfo kaTrollip.
Sithethisana ke ngalo olu tshintsho lwerhafu, masikhumbule ukuba siqala inyanga apho sibhiyozela khona amasiko nenkcubeko yethu. Isihloko salo nyaka ke nje ngoko nisazi sithi: Living out the values of a just and caring society. Esi sihloko salo nyaka sivumelana notshintsho lwerhafu lwanamhlanje. Akubonakali ke ukuba singakwazi ukuba sakhe ithemba lesizwe esikhathalelanayo ngaphandle kwendlela elungileyo yoqokelelo lwerhafu. Ubuntu bethu njengabantu besizwe sama-Afrika buthi masikhathalelane. Busifundisa le nto yokuba umntu mgumntu ngomnye umntu. Ngoko ke kubalulekile ukuba sisisizwe esikhulayo sakhele phezu kweziseko zokukhathalelana. Kubalulekile ke ukuba singabahlali sivuselelane siphinde sibambisane ukwakha ilizwe lethu. Le nto ke ibonakaliswe kukuzimisela ekuhlawuleni iirhafu kwabantu bakuthi ngexesha elililo. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[Dr Z LUYENGE: Hon Speaker, hon Deputy President, Ministers, members of this House, I am standing here on behalf of the people’s party, and I shall comment regarding the Taxation Laws Amendment Bill. I am focussing directly on the public and savings, jobs and industry. Let me briefly continue because of time constraints.
This Bill on taxation laws was sent to the committee dealing with finances in order to get public opinion in May this year. As members of this committee we were very grateful to all those who participated by giving us their opinions regarding this Bill. In addition, we were very grateful to the Minister, who is the national treasurer, Mr Gordhan, and the employees in his office and tax collectors, Sars, for the diligent work they have done, which is to provide us with crystal clear answers regarding the opinions we received during the public hearings. These answers helped us to deliberate and eventually finalise this issue we are discussing today.
The ANC deems it right to support this Bill, because it is very important and will allow us to proceed with the transformation of our tax laws. This transformation will not only help us to strengthen trade in general, but also to increase development in future. We are doing this in order to increase the national tax coffers and we are also looking at various ways to boost those, Mr Trollip.
Whilst addressing transformation in taxation laws, let us remember that we are at the beginning of the month in which we celebrate our traditions and culture. The theme, as you know, for this year’s celebrations is: Living out the values of a just and caring society. This year’s theme is in line with the transformation of tax laws happening nowadays. Therefore, we cannot build the hope of a caring nation without the effective collection of taxes. Ubuntu, as an African nation, requires us to care for each other. Ubuntu inculcates the value that I am because you are. It is important, therefore, that as a developing nation we build upon a caring foundation. It is important that, as a community we motivate one another and work together to build our country. This has been shown by the commitment of our people to paying their taxes in time.]
Among other aspects that the Bill addresses, are those which contribute towards the economic growth value chain such as individual and business taxpayers, savings mechanisms and employment. These will have to be welcomed and commended as they will both directly and indirectly contribute towards the achievement of our priority goals as the ANC, in particular, the creation of decent work and sustainable livelihoods. The ANC views tax evasion and avoidance, not only as a crime, but also as a basis of building a culture of corruption in our society.
In the main, the Bill’s proposal seeks to tighten the rules relating to employer-provided motor vehicles with the aim of preventing tax arbitrage; promote uniformity and avoid duplication in the implementation of the retirement and pre-retirement withdrawal benefits by making the employer- provided lump sum termination payout part of the tax preferred calculation; tighten the deduction criteria for key insurance plans, which are commonly funded by employers, in order to eliminate tax avoidance by expanding the deduction allowance for insurance policies that act as commercial collateral or payment to third party business creditors; narrow the permissible instruments in the implementation of the interest exemption threshold and review its effectiveness as an incentive intended to promote savings by middle- and lower-income households.
It also seeks to place certain Shari’a compliant products such as Murabaha and Diminishing Musharaka on an equal tax footing with conventional finance products; as well as to close the loopholes relating to financial institutions that are deducting beyond what should be equitably allowed to the basic tax principles when implementing laws dealing with interest expense allocations.
It is also to the credit of our democratic parliamentary processes that a number of changes have been made to some of these original proposals as a result of the comments and inputs received during the public hearings.
Due to the following responses from the Ministry and Sars, changes were made to the draft legislation in the following areas: employer-provided motor vehicles; narrowing of the interest exemption threshold; interest expense allocation; as well as the termination of the residential entities.
The original proposals on the narrowing of the interest rate exemption threshold and the anti-avoidance amendment relating to the interest expense allocation have both been withdrawn. This is as a result of consideration of the motivations from the public comments received by the committee. The acceptance of these comments and inputs from the public, and effecting changes, as a result, shows that indeed we are a people-centred Parliament and that we take our democratic processes seriously.
Allow me to conclude by saying that it is also important to note the enormous benefits that the proposals contained in this Bill will bring to individual taxpayers, business and the economy as a whole. In particular, we are happy that the proposal to promote uniformity and avoid duplication in the implementation of the retirement and pre-retirement withdrawal pension benefit has been concluded. This will ensure that the employer- provided lump sum termination payout forms part of the tax preferred calculation. This will benefit those who are faced with retrenchment. It will be extra relief for these workers as it has the potential to bring extra needed cash in hand to cater for their immediate economic needs.
Our historic trend in tax collection over the last few years has been the lowering of personal taxes, bringing relief to low-income groups, whilst at the same time managing to broaden our tax base through better collection methods. Credit in this regard has to go to the Ministry of Finance under the leadership of hon Minister Pravin Gordhan and the SA Revenue Service for continuously improving tax collection in this country.
Mandiyicacise ke le nto ithi olu xabangelo luqondene ngqo nabantu bakuthi abangathathi ntweni ngoba lo rhulumente siwuthathe kwizirhulumente ezingaphambili ezazingahoyanga mntu. Ukuba ungajonga, abantu abaza kuthi bafumane apha ngabona bantu bangathathi ntweni. Abona bantu baza kuxhamla, xa unokujonga umise umnqwazi womsuthu kakuhle, aph’ ezantsi ngabona bantu baza kufumana kakhulu. Ukuya phaya phezulu kwaba banezinto iye inzuzo isibancinane, ngoba irhafu iye ifudumala ngokuya unyuka.
Uthi ke lo Mthetho uYilwayo kwaba bantu bangathi bafumane udendo - nokuba lungenzeka kusasa - ukuba nje ukhe wapasiswa, oza kufumana isambuku-mali sama-R300 000 uyifumana nje felefele kungatsalwanga nesenti ngurhulumemente okhokelwa yi-ANC. [Kwaqhwatywa.] Kanti xa uqala apha kulamakhulu ama- R301 000 uye kuma-R600 000 abo ngabo noko ngathi bafudumele, bona ke bathi barhume i-18 lee pesenti, nto leyo ibingaqhelekanga. Yayingabonabona babulaleka kakhulu. Loo nto ithethe ukuba, Mphathiswa uPandor, siza kubaleka ngezantya singamalungu ale Ndlu siqhwaba izandla sisithi zange siwubone uMthetho–sihlomelo oYilwayo othandwa ngumntu wonke ngokungathi yimali, ngoba ungemali.
Sivene namaqela aphikisayo kulaa komiti ukuba lo umthetho ufike ngelona- lona xesha lilungiselelwe ukuba kulungiselelwe abantu bakuthi yile Palamente ekhululeke neyenza umsebenzi ngendlela ephum’ izandla. Manditsho ke ndithi maz’ enethole. [Kwaqwatywa.] (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.) [Let me explain clearly that this amendment is directed at our people, who are very poor because this government took over from previous governments who did not care for anyone. If you consider the Bill carefully you will discover that the people who benefit are the poor people. The low-income groups are the people who will benefit. The benefits are reduced as you go higher in the income brackets, but the tax increases.
This Bill is saying to those people who are about to be retrenched - even if it is done tomorrow – if the Bill is passed: To those who will be getting a lump sum, it will not be liable for tax. The ANC-led government will not deduct a cent from that payout. [Applause.] However, if you are getting from R301 000 to R600 000, those who are well off, will contribute 18%, which is something unusual. These used to be the ones who were suffering because of tax burden. This means, hon Minister Pandor, as members of the this House, we are going to jump and applaud, saying we have never experienced an amending Bill that is as popular with everyone as money, because it is about money.
We agreed with the opposition parties in the committee that this Act is promulgated at the right time for this liberated Parliament; that is working effectively, to provide for our people. Thank you. [Applause.]]
Dr D T GEORGE: Chairperson, when the Minister of Finance tabled the Taxation Laws Amendment Bill in this House, he remarked that nobody seemed to be listening to his presentation. His observation points to the reality that many are disinterested in taxation laws because they do not find them to be particularly exciting or easy to understand.
Taxation is, however, the single largest intervention that a government can make in an economy. Tax policy influences economic behaviour, directs scarce financial resources from one part of an economy to another, and has a significant impact on the lives of the people who rely on the tax redistribution system to improve their circumstances.
The taxation laws before us give effect to the revenue proposals announced in the February 2010 Budget and amend 13 different Acts. When the former President signed the Money Bills Amendment and Related Matters Act into law in April last year, the budget process changed significantly.
Parliament now first approves a fiscal framework and revenue proposals, then the tax laws are drafted and a process of public consultation is activated. In theory, Parliament can amend the proposed tax laws before they are enacted. The problem, however, is that the fiscal framework has already been approved and any substantial deviation from revenue proposals could affect national income and thus change the variables on the fiscal framework. To avoid this, taxation amendments should be considered before the fiscal framework is approved.
The Money Bills Amendment and Related Matters Act was passed after several years in the making to provide Parliament with an opportunity to demonstrate that it is, in fact, an active Parliament and that it will exercise its power to amend the proposed Budget to the benefit of all South Africans.
Almost a year and a half after the enabling legislation was enacted, the parliamentary budget office is still not established. On 17 August 2010 the Chief Whip of the DA wrote to the Speaker requesting a meeting to discuss progress on the establishment of the office. The Speaker responded that a report from the team tasked with implementing the Act would be tabled in Parliament within two weeks. Those two weeks have passed.
Although the parliamentary budget office is an important support mechanism for Parliament in its amendment of money Bills, the work of Parliament does not need to be delayed in its absence. The chairman of the Standing Committee on Finance, hon Mufamadi, has initiated a process to place the matter of the VAT treatment of books on the committee agenda so that it can consider whether a formal request will be made to National Treasury to include a zero rating in its development of the budget for the next financial year.
We welcome this development and thank the chairman for progressing this matter that will have a significant and positive impact on improving access to reading material for all South Africans, especially young readers whose thirst for knowledge is severely hampered by empty school library bookshelves and students who are subsidised to study and yet pay tax on the prescribed books that they need to purchase to ensure success in their examinations and ultimate qualification. The DA looks forward to progress on this in the near future.
The DA also welcomes the voluntary disclosure programme that will run from 1 November 2010 to 31 October 2011 to grant relief to taxpayers who disclose defaults which the SA Revenue Service was not aware of. This will ensure that errant taxpayers are permitted to return to their respectable position within the tax net. An opportunity also arises for the so-called informal economy to be included in the calculation of the size of our economy and to contribute to the society that generates its income.
The 2009 tax statistics reveal that 5,5 million individual taxpayers, from a total population fast approaching 50 million, contributed 31,2% of tax revenue. This is a significant contribution by a relatively small portion of our population. The DA does not welcome the increase in the general fuel levy and the one for the Road Accident Fund. We believe that government should not be increasing the tax burden when it has not made any significant progress in plugging the gaping holes in the application of the people’s money. The procurement process is highly inefficient at best, and at worst riddled with corruption. The tender default register remains empty and we await progress following the preliminary report on 27 October 2009 of the government task team to affect saving.
We also await progress on the implementation of the wage subsidy, the introduction of a poverty line index, progress on reducing the size of the administration bureaucracy and increasing the number of teachers, nurses and policemen who serve at the coalface of service delivery. The recent public sector strike, currently on hold, demonstrated the wide disparities in compensation between different classes of public servants.
The taxation laws include a number of amendments to tax on individuals, including partial compensation for fiscal drag. The DA believes that it is possible to offer taxpayers more comprehensive relief from the impact of inflation on their disposable income and greater incentives to save through higher tax-free thresholds on interest-bearing cash investments.
The DA supports the ideal of a lower carbon footprint and believes that incentives are required to encourage economic behaviour which is beneficial to our environment. Our concern that the flat rate carbon emission tax on new vehicles was implemented in isolation from a broader strategy to lower the carbon emissions from all sources in our economy has been addressed. Given that consumers do have a choice to purchase lower emission vehicles, we do not oppose the tax and believe that it will encourage the desired consumer behaviour.
Some motor dealers have falsely advertised that the tax is applicable to all new passenger vehicles to boost their sales. New passenger vehicles that emit less than 120g per kilometre will not be subject to the tax. Although measures have been taken to counter tax arbitrage facilitated through transfer pricing, this risk will always exist while our corporate tax regime is higher than that offered in other more attractive jurisdictions.
Although participation in a race to the bottom in terms of corporate tax is not constructive, National Treasury should continually work towards a lower tax regime that will attract taxpayers into our tax net. The micro business turnover tax should be redesigned, given that it has proved to be unattractive to its target market.
The committee has raised with National Treasury our concern that the tax laws are becoming increasingly complex and complicated and that their simplification should be considered. Treasury has responded that improvements are being made where possible, but that oversimplification can result in unintended distortions to the detriment of particular taxpayers.
The DA remains convinced that a tax commission is required to formally consider how a suitable balance between simplicity and comprehensiveness can be achieved, and we look forward to the result. There was broad consultation during the parliamentary hearings and the willingness of the National Treasury to interact with various stakeholders is noted with thanks. The DA will support the Bills.
Mr N J J KOORNHOF: Speaker, the proposed Bills will not only provide personal income tax relief, but will also close various tax loopholes to ensure a more equitable tax system. The big question is: Is this the end of the road of tax relief? Is next year going to be different? A few options spring to mind. We can see maybe even higher fuel levies …
The SPEAKER: Hon members, order please. You are speaking too loudly now.
Mr N J J KOORNHOF: We can see higher fuel levies next year. We in Cope want to urge, if that is on the cards, that Treasury starts building into their future plans a higher fuel levy for a conditional grant to provinces to take care of regional roads. A good road infrastructure is vital for economic growth.
The other option is a range of new taxes. Are we preparing for a new Tobin tax next year? Maybe the Minister can say something about this. This debate today is against the background of a severe public sector strike. It was Mr Vavi who has reminded us that, since the economic downturn in 2008, we have lost over 1 million jobs and that we still have the highest inequality of any middle-income country in the world. Both these reasons do not justify the strike, but show how absurd it was.
When companies see revenues plunge and wages rise, they cut jobs. In 2009 Anglo Platinum agreed to a 9,5% wage hike, but immediately shed 15 000 jobs. The public sector is no different. Last year we saw an 11% increase and therefore 35 000 jobs were not created. So, an out of control public sector wage bill is bad news for fiscal discipline. If you do not start shedding jobs, or cutting infrastructure spending, or raising taxes, or introducing new ones, what do you do? The best way out is to see economic growth. Even if you have to shed jobs, you will see more revenue for the state. So, what we need in these difficult times is patience, a sustainable and well-anchored fiscal and monetary policy. So Cope wishes Sars all the best in collecting their due taxes and call on all South Africans to make use of the instruments created today to come clean and pay their due taxes. We shall support the legislation. [Applause.]
Mr M G ORIANI-AMBROSINI: Mr Speaker, this complex legislation, like all complex legislation, has good features, less than good features and some features which are less than acceptable. I will limit my comments to echoing a couple of statements made by the hon George.
The first one is that during the process in which we have been involved, we witnessed much rather than participated in it. There was an exchange between highly-paid consultants representing the top layers of the economic system on the one side, and the Treasury on the other. What was lacking within that process was the voice of the common citizen, the voice of the average taxpayer who is carrying the lion’s share of the fiscal burden.
So, I think that we endorse the proposal of the Tax Commission which places an emphasis on the representation of ordinary citizens, over and above what we Members of Parliament can provide in what are often extremely technical debates.
The second issue, which needs to be brought about as soon as possible, as the hon George indicated, is the budget office. There is no reason why it should not be there. We have delayed the enactment of legislation which enables us to amend money Bills for many many years. This is a necessary instrument to bring the democratic process to completion and it needs to be done.
The other suggestion, Minister, please, is for a composite text. Tax amendments are pounding one another. We have got bis, tres, quatres, quinques, septes of the sections. I understand that within the Treasury they are actually using a composite text. It would be nice to re-enact the law, because I understand that there are even doubts on what the law is, and there are differences between what Butterworths is publishing and what others are publishing. So, certainty on the tax law this is an imperative.
Another issue, Minister, is that we tried to close loopholes, but I think that a great deal of damage has been done in terms of simplicity. Complexity has been increased. On the issue of the headquarters of foreign companies, for instance, the system has become so hard to understand that we may have created a tax disincentive for foreign companies placing their headquarters in South Africa rather than in Botswana, where they are currently doing it for no other reason than the fact that the tax system is simpler.
Personally speaking, carbon tax is not something we can endorse. There is no proven connection between a carbon tax and its positive effect in redressing the terrible situation of global warming and climate change. So, in the end, the carbon tax is another luxury tax by a different name and will be remembered amongst taxes like the window taxes in England.
The fuel levy is a regressive form of taxation, and I will leave the rest for another day. Thank you. [Time expired.]
Ms Z S DUBAZANA: Hon Chair, Ministers and Deputy Ministers present, hon members and comrades, the point of departure for the ANC in approaching this debate on the Taxation Laws Amendment Bill must start with ANC policies. The ANC regards the amending Bill as a valuable contribution in the ongoing reform of the taxation legislation regime.
In 1994, the Reconstruction and Development Programme, commonly known as the RDP, proposed the reform of the financial sector and ongoing transformation of the financial system. This RDP proposal was in recognition of the fact that the ANC government inherited a distorted financial system. The RDP notes that assets and taxation practices contributed very little to the development of new sectors of the economy.
This Bill seeks to regulate our tax relationships with foreign countries. Underpinning this tax relationship is our developmental agenda at home, on the continent and with the rest of the world. Such a developmental agenda must inform the nature and the content of the taxation regime and its impact upon trade. Therefore, in crafting the Bill, consideration has been given as to where the Industrial Policy Action Plan, Ipap 2, seeks to steer our trading relations and how this is informed by our new economic growth path, a subject that we have recently debated in this House.
The Bill will bring about the application of best international practice and ensure the most modern methods of determining compliance on tax collection by foreign and domestic companies. At this point in time, the ANC recognises that our economy is export-led, in the main, with its focus on raw material and commodities. The Bill recognises this current scenario, but is crafted in such a manner to allow for further amendment. This will ensure progress on the new growth path and have future implications on the taxation regime.
The Bill further seeks to encourage foreign investment. Any tax regime must be based on a scientific appreciation of the global environment. Within the context of economic globalisation, we are increasingly conscious of insistent demands for the free movement of commodities, finance and capital across the globe. This Bill has, in content, been crafted to appreciate this reality, one which we will still be engaged with in the longer term.
In this regard, our taxation system is not merely about the creation of a foreign investor-friendly environment in order to do business. While recognising the importance of foreign investment, such an approach will negate the nature of the economy we are trying to build. However, tax legislation must be informed by the ANC’s policy approach on industrial strategy, international co-operation and our continental focus. Importantly, as we enter into a new trade bloc agreement with Brazil, Russia, India and China, the structure of our tax regime is going to be critical.
A developmental state ensures that its tax regime speaks to the objectives of what that state seeks to achieve, both nationally and internationally. Therefore one of the key focuses of this Bill must be that it seeks to ensure that both local and foreign investment generate a significant amount of capital. That capital is then steered in such a manner that it contributes towards the creation of decent jobs and the reduction of poverty so as to achieve the national priorities.
The matter of global competitiveness and the nature of the new economic bloc that we enter into will always pose fundamental questions on how we structure our taxation regime and for what objective. The ANC does not enter into this debate on the basis of seeking competitiveness as an end in itself, but rather how the taxation regime leads to greater equity and fairness in local and global trade. Greater equity must lead to a better sharing of basic and natural resources, thus resulting in distribution of wealth to the poor.
The Bill recognises that we operate in a highly regulated environment which, globally, seeks to structure a particular outcome, one which the ANC may not necessarily agree with. Equality, solidarity and sound governance are principles we strive for, and this must influence how we structure changes to the tax regime. The complexity that faces a developmental state such as ours is to ensure that our influence and a more progressive world outlook are achieved and how this must impact upon the nature and the structure of our tax regime.
We are deeply conscious that many industrialised countries in Europe and North America would want to extend their access to the market through a system of greater tax liberalisation. The ANC believes that the international tax system needs to be regulated appropriately in order to protect developing countries and reflect the principles of equity, solidarity and sound governance that were mentioned earlier on. We, of course, desire to protect our fiscus through the adoption of new amendments to the tax regime. These amendments should be viewed in the ongoing restructuring of our economy, the new growth path and the developmental state’s capacity to drive economic transformation.
The need for this amending Bill to address certain specifics is reflected in the tax on cross-border trade finance exemptions, which are defined more clearly, and interests associated with letters of credit agency. The Bill seeks to realign the definition of foreign dividends in line with the international law of the country under which foreign companies are established. Here, a direct tax credit or a participation exemption is encouraged. We are conscious that some foreign companies get into an excessive amount of debt while remaining free from capitalisation restrictions even when the main operations of the company in question are contained within a local South African branch.
In this regard, the ANC therefore requests the hon Minister Mr Gordhan and the Deputy Minister to ensure that transfer pricing is efficiently implemented and a monitoring tool is designed. Thank you. The ANC supports the Taxation Laws Amendment Bill. [Time expired.][Applause.]
Mr S N SWART: Chairperson, hon Minister, the ACDP shares concerns expressed during the Finance Committee’s deliberations that the tax laws are becoming more and more complex with all the amendments, and that some sort of consolidation or simplification is required. Although I have studied tax law, I still find legislation complex, and understand how other MPs, let alone your normal, average citizens, would also struggle to follow the amendments. One of the key issues I do understand relates to tax rates and the thresholds for individuals. Minister, it is commendable, given the budgetary constraints, that personal income tax relief amounted to R6,5 billion, albeit that this relief will basically address inflation and the fiscal drag.
The ACDP also supports the voluntary disclosure programme and trusts that defaulting taxpayers will make use of this opportunity to bring their tax affairs into order. This programme will run from 1 November 2010 to 31 October 2011, with the penalties and some, or all, of the interest being waived. Sars, as we understand, will also not pursue any criminal prosecutions during this time.
Minister, as we are dealing with tax issues, would you care to comment on reports that the budget deficit for the year may be far less than the level estimated in your February Budget Speech? This is if the current trend of a 23% increase in government revenue between April and July this year compared to last year continues, which is almost twice the 12,3% growth projected in your Budget.
On the other hand, we understand that slowing economic growth will also reduce revenue and the public sector wage increases will no doubt boost government expenditure. But overall, do you expect the budget deficit to be less than the projected 6,2% of GDP, or is it still too early to speculate on this issue? Clearly, if it is less, this would buck the global trend for increasing budget deficits.
Lastly, hon Minister, the ACDP wishes to commend Sars on tightening up on revenue collection, and we will support these Bills. I thank you.
Mr D D VAN ROOYEN: Hon Chair, hon Ministers and Deputy Ministers, hon members as well as officials from Treasury, the Taxation Laws Amendment Bill deals with, among other issues, payment of royalties by mining companies. As the beloved movement of South Africans and the pride of Africans, the African National Congress fully supports the amendments being proposed in this Bill with regard to refinements to the minerals royalty legislation.
Notwithstanding the argument suggesting that these amendments are just but scratching the surface of the economic transformation of our country, the ANC believes that the introduction of these changes will help to promote our strategy of minerals beneficiation and thereby, grow the economy. The changes will also help in establishing co-ordination between the implementation of the Minerals and Petroleum Resources Royalty Act and other taxation laws. This co-ordination is important for increasing our tax base.
Hon Chair, it is our insistence that the proposed changes will ensure that we expand the reach of tax policy as one of the potential forms of redistribution mechanisms. Hon members, the concept of royalty in relation to taxation is defined as a payment to the owners of natural resources such as minerals and petroleum by the party licensed to extract such. Royalties, or, as commonly known, resource rent, is paid for the exclusive or nonexclusive licence granted to the operator to extract the minerals which they sell for profit.
This debate, therefore, happens at an opportune time in our history when there is much public debate about our mineral resources, the mining industry and its ownership, as well as the role of the state. The difficulties relating to the system of issuing mineral rights licences experienced by our government is that these rights are open to abuse for a quick profit in the private sector. This is a fact close to logical necessity, but also at the centre of this topical issue is the enormous wealth that can be accrued from such royalties.
Our taxation system classifies royalty as indirect tax. Currently, in addition to our taxation laws, royalty payments are governed by the Minerals and Petroleum Resources Royalty Act of 2008. The state holds the custodianship of our natural resources, including minerals, through the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act of 2002. This is important in the context of royalty because the owners of natural resources are usually sovereign states.
The policy of the people’s movement, the African National Congress, articulates that the use of natural resources, including the minerals, must be undertaken in the interest of sustainable economic development. This policy has informed one of the priorities of the ANC government, which is the promotion of industrialisation through, among others, beneficiation. The ANC policy states:
Our programme must also deepen the linkages of the mineral sector to the national economy through beneficiation of these resources and creating supplier service industries around the mineral sector.
The essence of this Bill is to remove any impediments embedded in the current rules and regulations which act as obstructions to minerals beneficiation. Royalties are often governed by agreements which may specify the determination of royalties in relation to the amounts per unit extracted, or as a percentage of revenue.
Included in the Taxation Laws Amendment Bill are a number of proposals to refine some of the mineral resources royalty provisions. During the tabling of the Budget in February this year, the Budget Review indicated that the Royalty Act has a number of technical anomalies that need correction. These included, inter alia, issues on how unincorporated joint ventures are to be treated, how information is to be stored between Sars and the Department of Mineral Resources, co-ordination with the Income Tax Act as applied within the context of the Royalty Act, and clarifying the specified conditions of determination for certain minerals where there is a range of specified conditions.
Most of the proposals mentioned were further outlined in detail in the draft Bill submitted to the Standing Committee on Finance in May to facilitate public hearings. The process of public hearings brought very important contributions which have enriched the final draft of the Bill. Most of the comments from the public and experts in the field were accepted and resulted in changes being made. For this, we must give credit to all those who gave inputs and to the Ministry for its consideration of the positive comments that were received.
Credit should also be given to the Standing Committee for the robust interrogation of the Bill and all the submissions, which was done despite the existence of the Budget Office. Hon Oriani-Ambrosini, I hope that you will join the committee in deliberations because it sometimes becomes difficult for us to follow on your submissions when you make them from this podium. We have more time in our committee engagements to listen to you attentively. [Applause.] In conclusion, I wish to reiterate my initial emphasis on the importance of mineral resources to our economy. We must accept that this Bill takes us a step further towards the goal of embarking on a new economic growth path that we have debated in this House, the growth path that is sustainable and focused on growth and job creation through industrialisation. An important element of this, as defined in the Industrial Policy Plan, is the beneficiation of our minerals.
We must therefore welcome the proposals contained in this Bill as they are specifically meant to eradicate any rules that have historically acted as impediments to minerals beneficiation. The changes that are being introduced will assist in the promotion of beneficiation and, thereby, propel us to greater heights of industrialisation, economic growth and employment creation. Hence, the tried and tested, glorious movement of the ANC supports the Taxation Laws Amendment Bill. Ke a leboha. [Thank you.] [Applause.]
The MINISTER OF FINANCE: Chairperson and hon members, good afternoon. Let me start with some good news. The Governor of the Reserve Bank has decreased interest rates by 0,5%. [Applause.] So, you can go and borrow some money if you can afford to pay it back. That is the key thing. Interestingly, the Reserve Bank also says that inflation is going to be fairly tame for the rest of this year and not expected to rise above 5% for next year, that food prices will remain fairly benign, and that the issue of growth is slightly less optimistic than what we have been talking about before, because now they say that the rest of this year might produce growth of 2,8%, whereas everybody else was talking about moving towards 3%.
Let me firstly thank the chair of the standing committee, Mr Mufamadi, and members from all of the parties for their participation and for their support. It looks like, although everyone has said how complex this legislation is, they all understood it well enough to come and speak here. So, that is a good sign. Am I right? [Laughter.] Let me also thank the members of the public and the various constituencies who made submissions to the committee and for the officials from Treasury and the SA Revenue Service, Sars, who processed these.
The issue of simplicity and complexity in tax legislation is a perennial one. It is one that we talk about every single time we get here, and even the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development can’t help us to simplify this legislation, I am afraid. The more complex, as I have explained many times, the tax schemes become to either evade or avoid tax – whatever you think is the right and more polite word – the more complex legislation becomes throughout the world. I am sure my colleagues from Treasury and Sars are listening carefully to work out ways of simplifying this complexity. Perhaps the one step is removing the administrative elements from tax legislation, which we now do in the Tax Administration Bill, so once that is processed, that will be the first major step towards simplifying tax legislation.
I am afraid that as long as there are stunts for pricing and there are all sorts of schemes that are developed by batteries of people far larger, both in terms of the resources that they have access to and the numbers that they can actually command, than governments anywhere else in the world, we are not going to be able to cure the problem of complex tax legislation.
Several of the hon members, and in particular hon Luyenge, has talked about the importance of collecting tax, of increasing the tax base, of ensuring that the state plays a key role in enhancing what we call our caring society. Those who, I am afraid, engage in evading tax and who deliberately use avoidance techniques as well don’t help us in this particular respect. Much of the complexity in this legislation is, in fact, directed to them.
The hon George also referred to complexity and what we can do in this particular regard. I am not sure that we are required to spend millions of rands on a commission. Perhaps between Parliament and ourselves we can have more dialogue about tax policy issues and whether some new tweaking is required in respect of tax policies. So, I make that offer that we have a workshop of some sort where contributions from each of us will, I am sure, add some value in this regard. You say that you are awaiting reports from us on procurement and other issues. There is good progress being made in that particular regard.
However, where you are wrong, hon George, is that transfer pricing is not related to the corporate tax regime. Transfer pricing is, in the context of globalisation, in the context of distributive production and operations of multinational companies, a feature that will grow increasingly. These are arbitrage opportunities that companies around the world have, which they utilise, and the world, through the tax administration and tax policy side, is constantly upgrading, if you like, the tools that it has in order to make sure that the country concerned doesn’t actually lose money. What we see in the Act at the moment is in fact an attempt to once again up the stakes, if you like, in terms of transfer pricing by introducing new criteria which would assist in stemming the flow of monies lost to the fiscus.
The hon Koornhof – I am not sure if the headline should read: Cope wants higher fuel levies. It sounded like that a little bit, but I understand where you are coming from, that you actually want to redirect some of the fuel levies to regional roads. Thank you for that idea. The Tobin tax is perhaps one of those things we could debate when we have this workshop that I am talking about. You accurately described the balance between creating jobs, more taxation and some cuts in expenditure, and that is what our fiscal framework attempts to do. It attempts to create that balance between taxation, expenditure and borrowing, in particular.
The hon Oriani-Ambrosini has been invited by the hon Van Rooyen to committee meetings, it looks like, to raise some of the issues that he has, but once again he never fails to entertain us with the latest thoughts that he’s actually had, and we thank him for his contributions in that regard. The same answers that I’ve given until now about simplification on tax legislation apply to him as well.
The one we need to be careful of, as we talk about simplicity, is that we do not create an environment – in this instance and something that other colleagues have mentioned as well – of being part of the race to the bottom. When we talk about foreign companies investing in South Africa, when we open up new regimes for headquarters to be established in this country as well, we should not compete in a way in which we want to beat everybody else and in the end, when we turn around, we find that we have nothing in our pockets. That is what the race to the bottom is about at this point in time. So, at some stage we will have to ask ourselves what would be in our national interest and where the limit would be where we would go to in order protect our own tax base as well.
I think the hon Oriani-Ambrosini needs to also, perhaps, visit the Treasury, let alone the committee, in order to enable us to give him some evidence about the connection between carbon tax and behaviour. That connection is certainly there, and we will want to make it available to him.
I want to thank the hon Dubazana for her contribution and her plea to us to make sure that the tax system links to our aspirations to build a developmental state, to support the growth path and to support the creation of jobs and growth in South Africa, as well.
The hon Swart also makes the plea about complexity. I have given the answer to that. Thank you for your support for the voluntary disclosure regime, and you asked me to commit myself on the budget deficit. I hope, like you, that it will be lower as well, but 27 October is around the corner. Let’s wait for that date, and we will all know what it might look like for the foreseeable future.
Let me thank the hon Van Rooyen for his excellent research into mining royalties, the importance of co-ordinating various aspects of tax policy, and for his insight into the link between mining, industrialisation and the beneficiation processes. Of course, our challenge in South Africa is to stop talking about some of these things and attempt to concretely do the things that will enable us to create jobs and grow the economy. Once again, thank you to all of the parties for their support and for their participation in this process. [Applause.]
Debate concluded.
Taxation Laws Amendment Bill read a first time.
Voluntary Disclosure Programme and Taxation Laws Second Amendment Bill read a second time.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr M B Skosana): The Bills will be sent to the National Council of Provinces for concurrence.
TAXATION LAWS AMENDMENT BILL
(Second Reading debate)
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr M B Skosana): There is no list of speakers. Are there any objections to the Taxation Laws Amendment Bill being read a second time? No objections? Agreed to. The Secretary will read the Bill a second time.
The Bill will be sent to the National Council of Provinces for concurrence.
WORKING TOGETHER TO ENSURE DELIVERY OF QUALITY SERVICE TO COMMUNITIES
(Consideration of Report of Ad Hoc Committee on Co-ordinated Oversight on Service Delivery)
Mr S L TSENOLI: House Chairperson, hon Ministers, Deputy Ministers, members and comrades, we are glad to have the opportunity to report to the House the work of the Ad hoc Committee on Co-ordinated Oversight on Service Delivery. My job today is to request you to accept our invitation of reading the report.
We believe that one of the best legacies that demonstrated the injunction “working together to ensure the delivery of quality service to communities” is the recent World Cup, how it was conducted and in particular the role of the host cities and the municipalities of the host cities. In addition to that, others, although they were not host cities, mobilised the population there to participate actively in the work of the World Cup.
It is an example of the potential that exists in the country that each municipality and us at different levels of government can tap into and use to advance the interest of the majority of the people in our country. This report is a small contribution to that quality of work. The terms of reference were that we should conduct public hearings in Parliament and in all nine provinces; conduct co-ordinated oversight visits in rural and urban areas; and table a report consisting of clear and achievable recommendations with a proposed implementation plan.
This is what we are doing today. We have done the job and compiled the report itself in addition to its nine chapters that outline our assessment, observations and conclusions including recommendations. We have listed the specific municipalities that we visited. We, of course, couldn’t visit as many of them as we would have liked to.
We also listed the number of stakeholders that we interacted with, including the unfolding of the media campaign that accompanied our work. This point is particularly important because of the role the media played in this particular effort. The report also contains an addendum, a record of the public hearings in the provinces so that you can get a written feel of those interactions. This is crucial for purposes of your constituency work. If you come from some of these areas, we present to you what came out of those with recommendations that often people themselves made about this.
The recommendations are not only in what we say at the end of the report, but are also contained in the specific areas, as we have done in Durban city, Umsunduzi for example. We give an account of what happened in those meetings, what came out of it and what we see as an appropriate recommendation in that area. So, that is why we recommend strongly that members should take an interest in going through the entire report itself, to look at areas in which we are making a recommendation. Part of the responsibility we have is to take them forward.
We divided ourselves into three teams led by hon Stone Sizani and hon Mandla Mandela, and each of us visited three provinces as teams. Our visits were preceded by public advertising through print and electronic media in all official languages - this we did during and after the programme ended. Understandably, public engagement was robust, both on air and in meetings. By opening such a space an opportunity, Parliament received a significant platform to clarify its role, but people themselves welcomed the opportunity to air their views very robustly, as I said.
We were also accompanied by members of committees of the legislature in some of these provinces, but on not all of the visits were we accompanied by these committees in other provinces. Those who came played a very important role because we acted together and they were able to take on board and provide responses to some of the issues that the public raised.
In addition, we were also accompanied by officials from national departments. These played an equally crucial role. They were spot on, and some of the questions they responded to immediately. Some overnight enquiries were made and the information was brought to meetings of stakeholders the following day. So, in the exercise and during the process itself, we delivered information and things were clarified to people, and the communities appreciated that a lot.
Those officials played a crucial role. We also acted as part of the process. We acted on the spot, on issues that were raised by both municipalities and individuals by writing to provincial departments, communicating with them, raising issues that people were raising and expecting responses to.
There are areas in the country where we received very positive responses promptly. These were welcomed by the municipalities and communities in those areas because of the value of such intervention. In other words, in the process of doing the work of enquiry itself, the effort to communicate produced useful results.
We understood that the reasons for protests were complex and different. We also remembered that the 15-year review of the third administration pointed out in advance that, if things went at the pace at which they were going, we were likely to have problems – partly explaining why in some areas some of these problems occurred.
It is the political issues that require urgent attention. The interface of politics and administration, the quality and frequency of public participation, responsiveness to citizens’ issues override all factors as explanation of protests. In addition to that, poor conflict management impacts naturally on the running of the councils and the relationship between different spheres of government.
People reported that protests were their last resort - they would ordinarily not have wanted to do so. They said that they often did not see movement on the issues they had raised concerns about. We understood that, should those issues have been addressed in time, often only by communication, things would not have turned as ugly as they did in some of the areas – except, of course, in instances where there was clear political contestation, infighting and campaigning by others who would like to replace those in office.
Municipal tenders, including provincial tenders, housing allocation, management, shortages, water and sanitation, electricity, poor financial management and corruption were issues that emerged as some of the reasons stated as secondary reasons for protests. Although people in some instances had similar problems, they didn’t protest because they had responses given to them by officials and councillors in those areas, including departments at provincial level.
In those instances where there were no protests, that would have been the explanation. The difference was made by the active interaction between those who had information and those who could respond to issues on time. The issue of responsiveness was a key one. The issues that were raised were crucial and important. They were not in themselves the major reasons for the protests.
Our recommendations cover areas of governance, areas of anticorruption work, service delivery issues, issues of the Integrated Development Plan, IDP, housing, sanitation, water and electricity, and settlement. The Integrated Development Plans are crucial, but we think that the emerging work of the planning commission is obviously going to be crucial in providing us with a long-term response. We hope that we will be provided with responses that are sustainable, with what we believe is government working together, and that the planning commission’s work will make a big difference if the commission’s work takes on board the work that is expressed in the Integrated Development Plans.
The implementation of the local government turnaround strategy, whilst important, assumes also that the entire government itself as well as provincial and national departments need to change in a manner that reinforces the positive initiative that is already under way. So that together, these three spheres of government produce the quality of service that we are talking about.
Issues of municipal capacity, financial management and communication are crucial; there is no doubt about it. We also appreciate the support we received from councillors and municipal officials, including administrators in municipalities that had administrators running them. They have played a very important role in shedding light on issues - from here we didn’t quite see until we were closely working with them there.
We also appreciate the support given by the technical team of Parliament. They have played an important role. We want to recommend an increased capacity in that area of work. It will make a huge difference in the amount and quality of work that we generate as committees that are doing this kind of work.
Our committee was composed of different committees and that was an important and significant initiative by Parliament-just like the committee that went around the country to look at the state of readiness for 2010, which was composed of different sectoral committees. Similarly, this committee was a very important forum for working together to produce the best results for quality services on the ground.
We hope that some of the recommendations, on which members will touch while speaking today, will shed some light on what we can do. Thank you very much.
Mr A C STEYN: Chairperson, hon Minister, Deputy Ministers, hon members, it is almost one year since the Ad hoc Committee on Co-ordinated Oversight on Service Delivery was established to investigate the underlying reasons for the often violent protests across the country.
The issues that led to many of the protests then, still existed during our oversight visits and, sadly, still exist even as we debate this report this afternoon. I must also say, right at the outset, that in my opinion, very little that we have learnt from our visits and interaction with communities as to the reasons for such protests was new or unknown to the majority, if not all of us. As noted in the report, almost all major problems with service delivery revolved around noncompliance of relevant legislation, poor governance, lack of accountability and lack of meaningful communication between government and communities, and even between different spheres of government.
Housing was a particular challenging issue and was raised without exception in all municipalities that we visited. Ironically, it wasn’t always about the nondelivery of houses and long waiting lists. Where housing was delivered, it was generally of a poor quality and, as mentioned in our report, this particular programme appears to be a breeding ground for corrupt activities. In most municipalities there appears to be a general lack of proper planning and in some of the poorest communities, where some delivery of houses did take place and where many people find themselves without decent shelter, we came across houses that were either not completed, or completed and standing empty for some reason.
In the Thulamela municipal area there were unoccupied houses which were completed in 1998. I almost want to say that there can be no greater injustice than this, where scarce resources - both land and finances - were actually spent or used, but nobody is enjoying the benefit of that expenditure. Sorry, I shouldn’t say nobody. The houses may not be inhabited, but I suppose a builder and perhaps an official or two, somewhere along the line, benefited. The fact remains, a homeless beneficiary somewhere should have been homeless no more.
What became abundantly clear is the fact that many of these protests could have been prevented. Now some of you among us may question this statement. However, very many issues raised were of such a nature that, if we had functioning municipalities, staffed by competent people appointed on merit, they would have been addressed as a matter of course during the daily service delivery activities that a municipality is obligated to do anyway.
We found, in many instances, that the most basic task to be undertaken by a functioning municipality was not done. Granted, in some instances it may have been due to a lack of resources or infrastructure, but even where these were not a major obstacle, there was still a problem with the delivery of such services.
For example, in the Ehlanzeni District Municipality, we found that there was a lack of clarity of the role of the members of the mayoral committee. In the Mkhondo Local Municipality, divisions within the elected political representatives, where one group supported the mayor and another aligned themselves with the speaker, led to paralysis in governance in that municipality.
In a municipality like Buffalo City, where apparently nine councillors have still not been sworn in, it was reported that almost half of the councillors were determined to render the council dysfunctional. These are issues where leadership in these municipalities has broken down and is nonexistent. The fact that these paralysing situations were and are still allowed to continue, points to a problem with leadership that goes right to the top of our political and governance structures.
Wat vir my baie waardevol was omtrent hierdie oorsigbesoeke, was die feit dat amptenare van verskeie departemente ons publieke vergaderings bygewoon het. By hierdie vergaderings is dikwels probleme onder ons aandag gebring waar die oplossing onmiddellik geïdentifiseer is en waar die voorsitter van ons groep voorstelle kon maak aan die betrokke amptenare om die probleem op te los. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraph follows.) [What was very valuable to me with regard to these oversight visits was the fact that officials from various departments attended our public meetings. Often at these meetings problems were brought to our attention where solutions could immediately be identified and where the chairperson of our group could put forward suggestions to the officials concerned to solve the problem.]
A particular instance that comes to mind is a school where a portion of the roof was blown off in a storm. When we visited the school, which were some weeks after the storm and subsequent damage, the learners were still being taught in the exposed classrooms and teaching was suspended whenever it rained. The chairperson instructed officials from Public Works to take steps to attend to the problem right there and then. However, why problems like that have to wait until an intervention takes place, defies comprehension.
It is, therefore, with regret that my suggestion that specific resolutions identified at these meetings be recorded in our report was not adopted and therefore cannot be tracked to determine whether they have indeed been implemented. I thank you. [Applause.]
Mr W P DOMAN: Madam Chairperson, on a point of order: Is it in order that, apart from the hon Minister for Human Settlements – we appreciate his presence – there are no other Ministers present during this very important debate? The Minister for Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs had an unfortunate event, but not even his deputy is here.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms M N Oliphant): That is not a point of order. [Interjections.]
Mr W P DOMAN: Chairperson, can’t you postpone the debate until later so that we can have this important debate in the presence of Ministers?
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms M N Oliphant): There was no point of order. The programme has been decided on at the Chief Whips’ Forum and by the programme committee. Whoever sits there had to propose that.
Mrs H N NDUDE: Chairperson, Ministers and Members of the House, Cope welcomes the report of the Ad hoc Committee on Co-ordinated Oversight on Service Delivery. Parliament has a major role to play in ensuring that the provisions of the Constitution are met.
The protests that befell the country in the recent past have been about the failure of municipalities to deliver services to millions of our people – the most basic services like water, sanitation, roads, electricity and housing. How can such important constitutional obligations be given to structures that lack capacity and political will? It is no secret that these structures are known to be terribly undercapacitated and often lack strategic and administrative vision. How do you expect them to function effectively and deliver services effectively by taking over such huge responsibilities without the funds and budgets needed? These capacity problems have led to some municipalities returning unspent funds to the Treasury annually.
Cope discovered, in a vast majority of municipalities we visited, that in some instances there is only one or no engineers employed, and the town planners have poor or no knowledge of town planning, because they were party-political deployees out of their depth!
South Africa is one of the driest countries in the world, and we are running out of the little amount of water we have left. Our water purification systems have been found wanting and outdated, such that the water we end up with has been dangerously contaminated even for human consumption. Cope dreads what the outcome of this is going to be. Government promised people that the bucket system would be phased out by now, yet people in many communities still make use of the bucket system.
In view of the water crisis that we are facing in the country, the Water Research Commission and the Water Institute of South Africa need to be invited regularly to the portfolio committee to advise Parliament on the magnitude of this problem and alert us to the red flags.
The Minister of Human Settlements has recently been bearing down on renegade developers whose developments to these poor communities cost the government over R40 billion to destroy and rebuild sloppy developments. This calls for stricter scrutiny of the role of housing inspectors and bodies such as the National Home Builders Registration Council, NHBRC, who are supposed to monitor and inspect houses before they are finalised.
Cope supports the report and calls on this House to ensure that the recommendation and implementation plan proposed by the committee be accepted and put into action by this House. Thank you. [Applause.]
Mr P F SMITH: Chairperson and colleagues, I think the country was caught napping last year. The ANC had a very successful election campaign, and they thought everything was hunky-dory. Suddenly they were met with lots of protests where people were very angry with them. That was a big shock. The ANC had to scramble to action. They sent delegations here, there and everywhere.
The Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Cogta, entity’s offices in Pretoria sent all the senior managers out to see what was going on. I think some were belated, because it was only in September that Parliament decided to get into the action as well and establish that committee.
Today, a year later, we have the report of this committee and are asked to approve it. The real question is: Is that report of real value? Furthermore, is it worth the money, the very considerable resource spent in human and financial resources? The answer is an unequivocal, yes. Unfortunately, it is not quite that simple. There are a couple of sides to this story.
On the one hand, the document - which is very lengthy, with many chapters, as the Chair has said-enumerates a litany of problems in local government and municipalities, and makes a whole hosts of recommendations. Most of what we saw and heard was completely unacceptable. We all accepted that. Some of them were really terrible and shocking. It was necessary and we agree that it should be recorded.
My team leader was the hon Sizani. I think he did an excellent job. He was an excellent team leader and I would like to thank him for his position there. I must say that, if you regard the recommendations we made, most of them were fine and there were no problems.
We are hard-pressed to say that they should not be supported, because they are sensible, and speak to the issues. To that extent, I agree that the committee has served its purpose and all is hunky-dory. However, on the other hand, one should ask how much of what we have learnt was really new. Basically, everybody had a pretty good idea of what was going on.
How much of what we learnt was different to what the NCOP proceeds with every week; what the provincial legislatures deal with all the time; and the ruling party teams that were sent out saw? It was all the same thing. We just got more of it because we spent more time there. So, there was nothing particularly new or surprising. It was actually very good that we recorded it.
I have a couple of problems. Firstly, I think that, unfortunately, the committee failed to address the question it was tasked with. It was tasked with establishing the primary and secondary causes of the protests and to make recommendations. What it did was to put forth a 60-page long list of what went wrong, with recommendations. It did not explicitly say that the protests were caused by a, b, or c. That was sloppy and rigorous work by the committee. Nonetheless, the litany of ills, as they are recorded in the ANC municipalities, are now, by and large, very good.
I do not want to reject the recommendations, but I should say that several of them were problematic. There were certain recommendations made which inexplicably have not been included, despite the fact that we and the DA asked for them. The one which was mentioned now was that this House should establish a mechanism to make sure that the recommendations were followed up on then and there.
Why is that not in the report? It is an obvious thing. We visited two municipalities per province and a long list of problems and recommendations were made, but they are not in the report. Why not? So that was a weakness, and I really regret that it was not there.
Secondly, there were also other recommendations, for example, section 57, which deals with managers. It was problematic. We have a situation where the municipal system we had was the interface between the administration and the politicians, through the municipal manager and the mayor.
The report recommended that the section 57 managers should now report politically to councillors seated as portfolio heads. That was a very problematic issue. You are really twiddling the model in a way that is problematic. Depending on how it was implemented, it could cause a lot of trouble. We are not happy with that.
There was also a proposal for a local government service. I am not quite sure what a single local government service means, because the ANC always seems to be talking about a single public service for all three spheres. Now we have a single sphere for local government. Whatever it means, since it was not very clear, because it was very well scripted. It does intrude, if we implement it, upon the autonomy of the municipalities to deal with their own internal affairs, including staffing matters.
We do have problems, but having said that, we support the report and thank everybody for doing it. I thank you. [Applause.]
Mr A J WILLIAMS: Hon House Chairperson, hon Ministers, hon Deputy Ministers, hon members, guests and friends, most importantly, the South African people did not exist so that we can hold political positions. We exist to direct state resources in the best interest of the South African people.
It is very important for South Africans to know this, because all politics are about service delivery. The report of the Ad hoc Committee on Co- ordinated Oversight and Service Delivery states:
The foundation of democracy is primarily the ability of citizens to participate in their own affairs and not only limit the people’s involvement in voting every five years. Since the advent of democracy in South Africa there are many forums and structures that have been established to encourage public participation.
There are numerous constraints confronting these structures which
include resource availability and support. But the most critical in
making these structures functional and yield the desired result is the
actual participation of the people.
On 8 January 2010, on the occasion of the 98th anniversary of the founding of the ANC, its national executive committee stated that:
We must build a state that is democratic, people-driven and people- centred and we must pursue a sustained development, based on an inclusive growth path. It should be a state that unites South Africans around a vision of sustainable development and mobilises them to act as midwives to the birth of a truly united, nonracial, nonsexist, democratic and prosperous society.
The principle of a people-driven and people-centred state is not a new idea that was thought out in some committee just before the elections. The principle of Power to the People is the core of the ANC ideology. Former President of the ANC, Oliver Tambo, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the founding of the ANC, on 8 January 1972 said:
Sixty years is a very long time for fruitless struggle for a freedom in an era in which the government of the people, by the people and for the people is an acceptable definition of democracy.
Then on the occasion of the 72nd anniversary of the founding of the ANC, on 8 January in 1984 former President Oliver Tambo said:
All revolutions are about state power. Ours is no exception. The slogan,
Power to the People, means one thing and one thing only; it means we
seek to destroy the power of apartheid tyranny and replace it with the
popular power with a government whose authority derives from the will of
all of our people, both black and white.
The question that begs asking is why is South Africa not participating in the running of its own country? Why are you not involving yourselves in school governing bodies, hospital management committees, community policing forums and ward committees? These structures exist for one reason and one reason only, so that the people shall govern. South Africa, you owe it to yourselves, your children and the future generations to get informed, organised and active in the running of this country.
Bob Marley sang in the redemption song, ”Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery, none but ourselves can free our minds.” In the context of this speech, the emancipation of your minds is around the understanding, the ideology and the policies of the political parties here in the Fourth Parliament - policies like the ANC community participation policy, which is derived from the ANC ideology, as previously stated.
An example of other kinds of policies that political parties have today is the ANC labour policy, which is expressed through legislation, the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, the Labour Relations Act and many more. Other parties have policies too. The DA also has policies around labour:
The DA will introduce a longer probationary period in which employers
can dismiss under-performing workers without penalty.
Clearly that is a policy which is not in the best interest of the workers here in the Western Cape or anywhere else in South Africa. One wonders from which ideology a policy like that originated. Then again, a party that has reinvented itself more times than Madonna is very unlikely to have any consistent ideological foundation. So come on South Africa, get informed. [Applause.]
Getting organised is not as hard as it sounds. In fact, I am requesting that you, South Africa, go and speak to the person in charge of your nearest police station, the school your children attend, the hospital and your local government and tell them that Parliament has requested that you should find out about … [Interjections.] The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms M N Oliphant): Order, hon member! Is that a point of order?
Mr A C STEYN: Chair, I am wondering if the hon member is in the correct debate. We are talking about an oversight report here and he is talking about policies.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms M N Oliphant): Hon member, can you please allow the member to continue? Continue, hon member.
Mr A J WILLIAMS: Parliament has requested that you find out about how to join the local community policing forums, school governing bodies, hospital management committees, and the ward committees where you live. Become an activist in one or more of these structures. In order for South Africa to be a people-centred and people-driven progressive developmental state, you, the people, must get involved.
Without the people’s activism and involvement, this country would not have progressed from an oppressive apartheid system to a progressive democracy. Without the people’s activism and involvement this country would never have hosted one of the most successful World Cups. However, it should not only be when there is a crisis or a national celebration that South Africa gets involved.
Involve yourselves in the day to day running of this country, crime prevention, health care issues, your child’s education, in the area where you live and where your children play. You do not exist so that I can hold a political position. Without you, South Africa, a people-centred, people- driven progressive developmental state would not materialise.
The Constitution has numerous sections protecting your rights to govern. There are many laws that create structures enabling you to govern. The only thing left to do is for you, South Africa, to step up and live the ideology that the people shall govern, because working together we can do more. I thank you. [Applause.]
Mr J J MCGLUWA: Chairperson, the ID would like to welcome the report and recommendations of the Ad hoc Committee on Co-ordinated Oversight on Service Delivery. Government has allocated over R2 million to this ad hoc committee to hold these public hearings around the country. This committee had the crucial task of helping Parliament better understand the root causes of service delivery protests.
However, the ID was extremely disappointed to find that only a handful of councillors and members of the provincial legislature, MPLs, actually bothered to attend the meetings. This lack of interest makes one understand exactly why voters are losing patience with them. Other public representatives were reluctant to speak openly on causes of bottlenecks in service delivery.
During our visits, it was sad to see children playing in fields of material and human waste; budgets unspent because of a shortage of project managers; the bucket system still in existence in many informal settlements in spite of a government promise to eradicate it by 2007 and, finally, a complete lack of sporting and other facilities.
Most disturbing for me were the many stories of councillors making empty promises to the community, while also failing to attend any public meetings. It seems that some public representatives are more interested in stealing from the poor than serving them.
We also visited Doringbach here in Cape Town, where 2 800 informal dwellings have been erected on private property. Although these structures are being serviced by the city, this does not include electricity, which is a basic right. We applaud and welcome the move by the City of Cape Town to pass a bylaw that will deal with the personal safety of residents on private property.
In the case of Renosterberg Local Municipality, we saw that interns had been employed to run the finance department. Unsurprisingly, the department received a disclaimer.
I would like to thank the chairperson, hon Tsenoli, and the entire committee for their dedication. I think my colleague, hon Tsenoli, as a philosopher, will agree with me that it was once said that a fool elected by a fool will be led by a fool but the biggest fool is the fool who elected that fool. I thank you. [Applause.]
Mr N M KGANYAGO: Chairperson, the report before us is comprehensive, and at the outset we would like to congratulate the committee and those members of government and civil society that participated in the entire process leading up to this report. There is a Swahili saying that says, “You can’t kill a louse with one finger.” Working together really means a lot to all of us. We appreciate the effort that has gone into this process, but I want to express the sincere hope that this is merely the beginning of a nationwide survey, since this report only covers a small number of areas.
The country has witnessed many years of increasingly violent and widespread service delivery protests by impoverished communities. Any effort by Parliament to investigate and attempt to understand the underlying reasons for these protests must be welcomed.
Indeed, this report is a huge step in the right direction if we can get away from the inflammatory and unsubstantiated claims of a third force behind the protests, which is put forward as a dubious justification for unleashing the intelligence forces on our citizens.
That there is a political element to these protests cannot be denied. Regrettably, the report does not dwell on the fact that angry local communities’ legitimate expectations usually relate to ruling party councillors and politicians making unfulfilled promises and failing to provide basic services.
An honest assessment of service delivery protests must also acknowledge that protests are often, if not always, instigated by the ruling party’s own alliance partners, or propagated by competing factions within the ANC. Every party is entitled to managing its internal discipline as it sees fit, but the ruling party should not allow its internal conflicts to affect service delivery.
Notwithstanding the above, the UDM concurs with the broad areas of concern identified by the report with regards to governance, corruption, service delivery, local economic development and communication.
At the heart of these service delivery protests lies the issue of legitimacy. It is our duty as public representatives to ensure that democracy remains healthy in this country. We cannot ignore the threat to the legitimacy of democracy that is posed by masses of South Africans not receiving the most basic of services.
Hope can be a powerful commodity, as the birth of democracy here has demonstrated. But shattered hope can be an equally powerful and negative force. We face a rapidly closing window for delivering on the hope that the advent of democracy gave to the impoverished masses of our country. I thank you.
Mrs T E KENYE: Hon Chairperson, hon Ministers and Deputy Ministers, hom members, the ANC, in preparation for the 2009 national and provincial elections, developed a comprehensive policy framework that deals with the state of health in the country and a turnaround strategy to deal with the challenges. Out of this policy framework the ANC Subcommittee of Education and Health developed a ten-point plan that became the foundation for the department in its turnaround strategy. The department adopted this plan in 2009 – a plan that speaks directly to the experiences the ad hoc committee had during its provincial visits.
The visit highlighted the centrality of the revitalisation of the primary health care system. As in most public hearings, people complained about inaccessibility of health services and time spent waiting for an ambulance when needed. The policy framework and ten-point programme addresses the need to expand access to and coverage of primary health care services, as well as the incorporation of other priority programmes. It speaks to the training of community nurses who work together with community health workers in order to broaden the scope of their work.
The ANC policy framework and ten-point plan speak to the efficiency and management of health care systems. The plan speaks to the needs, it quantifies the totality of health care needs and ensures that those who are graduating in the different health sciences and disciplines meet the challenges we face. It ensures that the necessary clinical training, infrastructure and capacity at higher education institutions are in place and addressed by the Appropriation Bill.
The debate on the further training of nurses and whether we should not begin to restructure the nursing graduate course and relook the nursing diploma, is informed by some of the challenges that the ad hoc committee experienced during its visit. This is informed by the need to deepen experiential learning and deepen theory and practice with more hands practically available to carry out the work. Equally, the requisite skills and capacity speak to how we deal with internships and their proper supervision.
During the visit of the ad hoc committee the revitalisation of infrastructure was a critical point of discussion. Part of the ten-point plan to turn around health speaks to the hospital revitalisation programme and the role that different stakeholders can play in this. Again, from experiences during our visit, the need for a review of aspects of sanitation strategy became clear. National standards and norms remain a huge challenge and, clearly, municipalities are still struggling with internal systems that don’t effectively deal with the totality of needs for sanitation.
The Khayelitsha public hearings revealed a lack of water and sanitation which poses a serious threat to health. Residents are compelled to use communal toilets which were not regularly maintained. Drainage systems are also often blocked. It was even worse in the Harare area where residents use the open toilet system, covering themselves with blankets to hide from people passing by in the street. The lack of decent toilets and water has an adverse effect on the health of residents, exposing them to illnesses such as malaria, TB and other infectious diseases.
A central challenge revealed by the oversight visit was the lack of provision of basic services in informal settlements. Health facilities, clinics and community health centres are critical, and this reaffirms government’s acceleration of the delivery of health infrastructure to improve the quality of health care services to the communities through public-private partnerships.
The ANC health policy and ten-point plan put in place the strengthening of the health information system. This is informed by the experiences of the ad hoc committee in most public hearings and of complaints about loss of folders, other key data and specimens. The ANC health policy framework speaks to accelerating the delivery of health technology and information technology infrastructure so that there is ease of accessibility to patients’ records.
The same strategy applies in the case of shortage or out of stock medicines. Information technology systems have assisted tremendously in being able to trace where to access medicines rather than to depend on paper-based information. This has minimised paperwork, simplified the management information system and provided far better and quicker service delivery to patients.
Any system is only as good as the human resource capacity that has to run it. The ten-point plan addresses the improved human resource planning and development and management training. In addressing the scarcity of doctors, the national human resource planning framework for health commenced in
- The plan draws upon historic work that had already been carried out by the Health Sciences Review Committee in 2007, which developed interventions to strengthen clinical training in higher education institutions. It also addressed factors associated with increasing the number of health professional graduates.
Clearly, the alignment of organograms must be informed by the needs of a given environment and the programmes that the department is required to carry out in terms of the Constitution and policy. Therefore, planning, monitoring and evaluation are critical to ensuring performance.
Each province has developed a provincial human resources health plan and these are being aligned to long-term plans known as service transformation plans and the ten-point plan. With these provincial plans, an assessment has been done of workforce challenges.
Central to the health policy framework is the mobilisation of communities for better health care and environmental protection. This strategy is underpinned by the basics of the health education and awareness programme, using hygiene and morals as key levers. The continued mobilisation of communities on HIV and Aids programmes has been a very important achievement.
In conclusion, what the oversight visit has taught us is that the solutions and answers to the challenges we were confronted with around health are contained in the ANC’s comprehensive Manifesto Policy Framework and ten- point plan. What we need to do is to intensify measures to improve equitable access to health care provision. We must also involve communities in service delivery improvement to ensure adequate supply of appropriate medicines and other supplies, adequate safety for health institutions and health workers as well as the monitoring of the general cleanliness of facilities and the quality of care.
The first clause of the Freedom Charter says that the people shall govern. Now we are governing and all of us must govern, regardless of political affiliation. I thank you. [Applause.]
Mr S C MOTAU: Madam Chairperson, there are many cynics in the country who argue that Parliament should not have to set up a committee and send nearly 40 MPs to nine provinces to establish the causes of service delivery protests – many of them very violent – that have plagued our residential areas in recent times. The sceptics argue that the whole exercise was mere window dressing, a waste of taxpayers’ money, and that nothing will come of it.
This negative posture becomes even more worrying when one takes into account a finding by D Powell, in an article in The Magazine of Local Government of October 2009, entitled, “What is wrong with local government?” I quote:
Local government is the least trusted of all public institutions in the
country and that has been the case since the first municipal elections
in 2000.
The message is quite clear. We dare not prove the cynics right, because many of our people feel that they are being left behind and they do not believe that the government hears their pleas for improvement in their living conditions. In order to restore some of the trust that the people have lost in local government and in Parliament, it is very important that the work of the ad hoc committee does not become yet another exercise in futility. To fail the people will be to deepen their frustrations and anger, and to erode even further whatever little faith they may still have in local government.
It is important to remind this House of the many individuals and organisations that came to this Parliament when we invited them to do so, to tell us about their problems. We have to remember how seriously the people took our call, as manifested in their sincerity and their faith in our ability to redress their anguish as they engaged with us in the many public gatherings we attended with them.
How can we redeem ourselves? Firstly, we must recognise that party politics, a core element in democracy, is the most divisive of all institutions in a democracy. However, while we still have the current system, we must strive to take party politics out of municipal administration. How distressing it was to learn that one municipality was dysfunctional and had been placed under administration because of interparty rivalries and, even worse, because of factionalism within the governing party. In one instance, a house of a former mayor was torched, allegedly by members of her own party. This act of violence has not done anything to enhance the quality of life of the people involved.
To ensure that a municipality can deliver on its mandate, local government must employ people for their skills, experience, potential and, most importantly, their fitness for purpose. It is a very simple mandate, involving efficient, prompt, top quality service delivery and clean governance, with officials held accountable at the pain of consequences.
I do believe that all of us in this House now acknowledge that cadre deployment and jobs for incompetent pals and close relatives have failed the country. A new approach is needed, where we can employ the best skills we have from all our people in this country, regardless of their political party affiliation.
Colleagues have touched on some of our experiences during oversight visits around the country. Two incidents stand out for me. They show what could happen when we stop caring about the people we claim to serve and let greed drive our behaviour.
During a visit to the Eastern Cape, our team went to the township of Komga in the Great Kei Local Municipality. There we saw RDP houses that were said to have been built around 1998-99. The four-walled structures were built of very poor quality material, and had only one door and two small windows, one at the back and one in front. The houses have no flooring and no dividing walls. I could not help but ask myself how we could do that to our people.
On a trip to Nala Municipality in the Free State we visited Monyakeng Township. The Monyakeng sewer treatment works was being constructed and yet household toilets were connected to the water system. The waste had nowhere to flow but into the street, causing very serious health hazards for the residents. One grandma called us to her house to show us her brand new blocked toilet. How could anyone do something like that to our people?
In conclusion, Madam Chairperson, this House and the Minister for Co- operative Governance and Traditional Affairs must ensure that the work of the Ad hoc Committee on Co-ordinated Oversight on Service Delivery produces positive outcomes for all the people of our communities, particularly for those areas with serious problems which were visited by the committee. We must restore trust and confidence in our municipalities. They are the forefront of local administration. Their success is the success of this nation. There is no more time to waste. I thank you. [Applause.]
Mrs W J NELSON: Hon House Chairperson, hon Minister and Deputy Minister and hon members, the Portfolio Committee on Social Development was afforded the opportunity to be part of the Ad hoc Committee on Co-ordinated Oversight on Service Delivery. This gave us the opportunity to interact and meet with the communities on the ground throughout the country and to hear firsthand about the quality of services being rendered by the Department of Social Services and its agencies.
It is necessary to inform the House that, in all instances, we had a delegation from the department as well as the SA Social Services Agency, Sassa, in the stakeholder engagement sessions.
Inputs from the public hearings were varied. We had instances where a community was very satisfied with services rendered. On the other hand, we also had instances where a community raised concerns around services rendered.
Challenges raised include long queues and inadequate facilities at pay points; a shortage of social workers, leading to welfare cases not being finalised quickly; stipends for caregivers not paid regularly; confusion around whether applications for funding should be made at the Department of Social Development or at the Department of Health; inadequate information supplied to applicants when applying for grants, resulting in them having to return to the offices more than twice; and a concern around the registration of NGOs, which results in funding problems and a duplication of services rendered. Concerns were also raised around the funding of early childhood development centres.
In addressing the above-mentioned challenges and problems, the Department of Social Development and the agency have put various measures in place. The SA Social Services Agency has embarked on different strategies aimed at the improvement of service delivery. Steps were taken to improve the grant application processes and reduce the turnaround time, and to promote customer care service at offices and service points.
They also piloted the improved grants administration process, Igap, which was very successful. In areas where Igap is not yet implemented, they have reduced the 90 days for completion of applications to an average of 12 days.
To manage the influx of clients to offices, they have implemented a queue management system as well as a booking system for grant applications and disability assessments.
In addressing the shortage of social workers, the department has come up with a turnaround strategy which focuses on the provision of scholarships for those interested in pursuing a career in social work. To date, over 6 000 undergraduate students have benefited from the programme and over 600 graduates have been placed in various provinces. It must be borne in mind that this is an ongoing process.
With regard to the application for stipends of caregivers, there are different roles and responsibilities for each department, and this needs to be clarified for communities. Social Development has, however, put some interventions in place to address these challenges. Information pamphlets and brochures are printed and distributed in the dominant languages used in a particular province. The department and Sassa have embarked on a campaign in which they are now purchasing slots on community radio stations to inform members of communities of services rendered as well as documents required to access such services.
With regard to the nonprofit organisation registrations, there is a national database that is updated on a monthly basis to check compliance with the Nonprofit Organisations Act requirements. These lists are sent to provinces annually and it must be noted that funding comes from provinces. We also agree that more work needs to be done in this area.
Regarding ECD centres, subsidies are paid by provincial departments. We are aware that there is a disparity in the amount that is being paid and we have been informed by the Department of Social Development that they are currently reviewing the costing mechanism for ECD subsidisation.
Hon members, the ANC government has put a basket of services in place to address the challenges of poverty among vulnerable people in our country. We have developed and implemented various programmes and, further to that, have developed policies and guidelines as to how this should be implemented. For instance, the child support grant is the largest social assistance programme in terms of the number of beneficiaries, with just over 9,8 million recipients receiving that grant. The age extension was implemented last year following the realisation that thousands of children between the ages of 15 and 18 years continue to live under the harsh conditions of poverty. By June this year the total number of CSG extension beneficiaries stood at over 393 000. Contrary to common belief, members, most beneficiaries are older women who, in most cases, become the primary caregivers of children born to teenagers.
It should be borne in mind that the objective of this grant is to ensure that caregivers of children living in extreme poverty are able to access financial assistance in the form of a cash transfer, to supplement rather than replace household income.
In strengthening the collaboration between the Departments of Basic Education and of Social Development in the provision of early childhood development, the departments fulfil their roles according to applicable legislation. At the end of March 2010 over 16 000 ECD sites were registered, with just over 719 000 children benefiting from these sites and about half of the children being subsidised by government. In the attempt to address the scourge of alcohol and drug abuse the ANC, at its 52nd National Conference, called for a concerted national effort to address the drug problem in our country. This can only be effectively addressed by eradicating poverty, escalating education and implementing other development programmes.
The Department of Social Development is therefore reviewing the institutional arrangement of the Central Drug Authority, CDA, with the view to strengthening and optimising its functioning. The CDA is a body set up specifically to advise government on drug-related issues and to implement the national drug master plan.
The ANC-led government has championed the Prevention and Treatment of Substance Abuse Act which highlights the negative effects of illicit drugs and places particular emphasis on education and prevention, especially among young people and their parents.
In conclusion, we have put various legislation programmes and guidelines in place to ensure that services are rendered to the most vulnerable and needy of our country. We can proudly say that, under this ANC-led government, current reports suggest that most of the targets under Goal One …
Speaker, working together we can surely do more! I thank you. [Time expired.] [Applause.] Mr R B BHOOLA: Thank you, Chairperson. The MF welcomes the report, but cherishes the hope to see that the reality of implementation of the recommendations takes place. However, the MF notes with great sadness that the broad suffering masses continue to endure hardship.
Service delivery protests show communities are frustrated and agitated. Lack of competent skills, fraud, corruption, nepotism, etc were just some of the concerns creating a negative destructive force to the delivery of quality services for all our people.
It is absolutely imperative that the people chosen must be capable people, and there must be skills development delivery. However, this cannot be achieved if those Sector Education and Training Authorities, Setas, that are given monies have become cheaters. They cheat and indeed that must be re-examined. Indeed, there must be complete dedication about uplifting the lot of the poor people.
The nondelivery problem is putting the wrong people in the job. South Africa must move away from colour. The selection of councillors who cannot read agendas and cannot take decisions is another area of great concern.
Let me give you an example. On land matters in eThekwini Municipality the housing committee chairperson has been deferring matters for the past eight months. Apart from other municipalities in the report, in Umdoni Municipality, after 16 years of democracy, people continue to live in informal settlements under difficult and inhumane circumstances. People living in houses for over 21 years continue to wait for the houses to be transferred. Some are compelled, indeed, to sign acknowledgement of debts nullifying government’s policies of housing subsidies and debt relieve. Actually, where is the better life for all? Where is the creation of wealth assets for the poor?
Councillors are directly involved in tenders. What about Mike Sutcliffe using section 36 of the Supply Chain Management Act to give R1 billion worth of contract, which makes up 25% of the entire contract? The MF will support the report. [Time expired.]
Mrs C DUDLEY: Thank you, House Chairperson. The reasons for service delivery protests are complex and neither obvious nor universal, and the ACDP commends the ad hoc committee on the depth of their inquiry and on their comprehensive recommendations, including complaints response, management mechanisms and the strengthening of systems to curtail corruption and improve oversight and monitoring.
In looking a little more broadly at enhancing the quality of service delivery, the ACDP considers the possibility of a distinctive role for business, perhaps through corporate social investment. It is true that many companies have up till now regarded corporate social investment, CSI, as little more than a means to points on the Black Economic Empowerment scorecard. As a result many CSI initiatives folded, wasting millions of rands once a company finished its funding commitments.
More recently, however, CSI has moved from being an ad hoc reactive to being more strategic, proactive and beneficial as the relevance of investing in communities is being recognised. Perhaps this would be a good time to set up an industry body, not just to ensure that companies claiming BEE points adhere to their commitments, but to bring needy communities and even municipalities together with relevant businesses and to offer critical guidance for innovative and self-sustaining programmes in order to maximise the benefit in communities.
Another important consideration is the effects of climate change. Government’s present struggle with service delivery will seem like a picnic by comparison. Droughts, the flooding of certain crops and fish species no longer thriving as they did before, are already adding to the stresses of the poor. The impact on food production and quality of life are becoming increasingly negative.
Government and Parliament have been accused of showing no signs of making this matter an urgent priority. While the President’s interministerial task team has made and done its reporting, we see no material change on government’s agenda. The Integrated Resource Plan, IRP 2, which is the energy plan for the country over the next 25 years, has once again been delayed while plans to build Medupi and Kusile and discussions around nuclear plants go ahead.
The country is at a watershed. We could turn around our energy industry, as Australia has done, over a matter of a few years from close to nothing in 2007 to a billion dollar industry in 2010. By using concentrated solar power and wind we could, within two to three years, set up plants to the equivalent of four Medupis.
Government has managed to give the impression that it is biased and listens only to the lobby which argues that renewable energy cannot provide base load power and that the industry has not yet proven itself. These are allegations which are blatantly untrue. Government is procrastinating over urgent decisions relating to crucial issues and the people of South Africa continue to go without. However, we will and we have supported the initiative to interrogate service delivery problems and we will approve the report. Thank you.
Mrs F F MUSHWANA: Hon House Chairperson, hon Ministers present, Deputy Ministers, hon members, I salute you. Hon Kenye talked about health and I’ll talk about education. The mobilisation of communities to raise awareness and participation in the education of our children is one of the components of the 10-point plan of education adopted by the ANC in 2009.
For any country to prosper, education has to be prioritised. A prosperous nation is one in which everyone is literate; there is at least one employed person in every family; school-going age children are all going to school; their parents show an interest in the education of their children; and parents are willing to assist in any manner informed by their capacity and their support, ranging from encouraging their children to be at school every day, to listening to their educators and being their identity within the schools. Every child in every school paints a picture of their parents in words and deeds.
During 2009 the Ad hoc Committee on Co-ordinated Oversight on Service Delivery was deployed to all nine provinces to monitor and offer support to service delivery. However, I took an interest in education. In the identified municipalities we sought to establish the status of education in those areas. Young people were vocal in their wish for more further education and training colleges in rural areas. We noted in different provinces that delivery of education was driven from the two levels as reflected in the configuration of education, that is, basic and higher education.
We have noted that the 16 different education departments are things of the past. Thanks to the ANC, the ANC-led government has managed to end disparities as far as the education departments of old are concerned. Our children receive the same education, and that education needs to be viewed as every person’s business for this country to achieve maximum expectations.
In our Polokwane Conference we stated, and I quote:
… precisely because patriarchal oppression was embedded in the economy, social, religious, cultural, family and other relations in all communities.
We need to use the democratic organs of people of power which have been created by our Constitution and successive legislative amendments, starting with the principle of the South African Schools Act which is informing our turnaround strategy.
Let’s talk about the support of children. Children need to be supported by their parents. Parents don’t have to be educated to do that. Parents will just inform their children to go to school. When they are at school they will be able to learn. After realising that education is important - as the ANC, we are saying that parents must assist us out there by telling their children to go to school - teachers will be able to do their job.
Another strategic resolution from Polokwane stated that:
Amongst the most vulnerable in society are children, and the national democratic society should ensure their protection and continuous advancement.
The whole society includes everyone in South Africa, including my brothers and sisters sitting this side. We should all assist to make sure that we change the education status of this country.
His Excellency President J G Zuma gave clear marching orders to schools as to what is expected of learners, educators and parents. We urge parents and all those organs to participate. He also reminded us that the unions, the SA Democratic Teachers’ Union, Sadtu, the National Professional Teachers Organisation of South Africa, Naptosa and the “Suid-Afrikaanse Onderwysersunie” [SA Teachers’ Union] have also pledged that they would be supportive.
Machangana va ri “Khoma hikwaleyo”. Loko ho khomisana hinkwerhu swi hi vava swa vana va hina, ngopfu swa dyondzo, vusiwana laha tikweni leri ku nga va ntsheketo eka malembe lawa ya taka.
Un’wana na un’wana a vi na vutihlamuleri eka dyondzo ya vana va tiko leri. Vatswari a hi yeni etinhlengeletanini. Tinhlengeletano a ti vitaniwi hi nkarhi lowu vatswari va nga ta kota ku ti nghenelela. Vafundhisi etikerekeni a va hlohloteli vana ku dyondza. (Translation of Xitsonga paragraphs follows.)
[The Shangaan people say that we must work together. If we can work together being concerned of the wellbeing of our children, particularly in education, poverty in this country will be a thing of the past.
Everybody must take the responsibility in respect of the education of this country. We, as parents, must go to meetings. Meetings should be called when it is convenient for parents to attend. Pastors in churches must encourage children to learn.]
It may not necessarily be easy, that is why in Polokwane we agreed that, and I quote:
Revolutionary democracy shall not find social relations of the new order right and ready for harvesting.
Therefore, we call on all of us to participate positively. Let’s rid our streets of children of school-going age by taking them to school. Let us make it our business to assist less fortunate children and pay for one school trip for a particular child, buy them uniforms and so forth. All organisations, if they call themselves organisations, should ensure that they assist at least one child per annum.
This country will only change if all of us participate by doing what we can. Remember, being positive, or rather positivism, is contagious. If we are positive, everybody there will be. Together we can do more. Before I go down I need to talk … [Laughter.] … and remind hon members, my colleagues sitting here, and hon Ndude of Cope that the undercapacitated personnel you are talking about are all receiving training. The ANC is taking care of them. In no time, I believe, they will be more capacitated than you. [Laughter.] [Applause.]
I also want to talk to hon J J McGluwa of the ID, or is it the DA? You see all the voters are smart. There is no one who can vote if they are not smart. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
Mr L M MPHAHLELE: Hon Chairperson, from the outset, let me state unequivocally that the PAC supports the report.
However, the Pan Africanist Congress of Azania is concerned with the quality and quantity of service delivery. Yes, houses are delivered here and there, to be washed away by moderate rains because of poor workmanship. The lifespan of a bridge worthy of the name is 50 years. Yet, our bridges collapse even before they are commissioned. We deliver stillborn bridges.
The local government is a strategic point of service delivery. What happened to the town clerk, the city engineer … [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms M N Oliphant): Order, please!
Mr L M MPHAHLELE: … and the town planner of yesterday? These are the key functionaries who went through rigorous, specialised training.
The municipal manager, the director of infrastructure and the director of development are cadres deployed on a political mission. No wonder service delivery is politicised, not professionalised.
The most vocal communities are the ones that are serviced. The rural communities, where millions of our people are trapped in poverty, are considered last because they are not as vocal as their urban counterparts. Even the media elects to ignore them.
The issuing of tenders has …
Corruption is the biggest hindrance to service delivery. Thank you. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
Mrs S P KOPANE: Chairperson, after these visits, I am really convinced, like never before, that financial constraints are not the main reasons for the poor service delivery by municipalities. Crime, corruption and poor financial management are the problem in local governance. Maybe it is time for all of us to ask ourselves the following questions: Why are people protesting? Why is service delivery not rendered to the people of South Africa? What happened to the Batho Pele principles?
Bobodu le manyofonyofo le tsamaiso e mpe ya ditjhelete, le ho hirwa ha bahlanka ba phahameng ka lebaka la kamano tsa bona tsa dipolitiki kapa feela hobane ho batlwa tekano ya bong, ke tse ding tsa dintho tse amang phumantsho e fokolang ya ditshebeletso. Hantle ntle mona re bua ka ntho e hlokolotsi, eleng phano ya ditshebeletso. Phano ena ke motheo wa tokelo tsa botho.
Ho hloleha ha bommasepala ho ikobela melawana ya mohlahlobi e moholo wa ditjhelete, ke enngwe ya dintho tse bakang mathata kahare ho bommasepala ba bangata. Ho hlahelletse hore bommasepala ba bangata ba fane ka ditlaleho tsa bona tsa ditjhelete kamorao ho nako. Ha ba bang bona ba sa ka ba itshwenya le ho tlisa ditlaleho tsa mofuta o jwalo. Ho hong hape ke hore bommasepala ba hloleha ho bokella ditefello tsa phano ya ditshebelletso. Mohlahlobi e moholo wa ditjhelete o boletse hore bommasepala ha ba tsebe ho laola dikoloto tsa bona le ho etsa phaello, hore ho tle ho tsejwe ho fanwa ka ditshebeletso.
Mona ho bonahala hantle hore tlhokeho ya bokgoni ke yona e emeng tseleng ya hore phumantsho ya ditshebeletso e etswe ka tsela e nepahetseng. Ho boetse ho na le lesisitheho la sepolotiki ha ho lokelwa hore ho bokellwe ditefello, haholoholo ho bao ba nang le bokgoni ba ho lefa mmasepala. (Translation of Sesotho paragraphs follows.)
[Corruption and bad financial management, employment of top officials based on their political ties or only because of the desire to fulfil gender quotas are some of the things that affect service delivery. In fact, here we are dealing with a critical issue which is service delivery. Service delivery is a basic human right.
The failure of municipalities to adhere to the regulations of the Auditor- General is one of the things that create problems in many municipalities. It has since come to light that many municipalities released their financial reports late. Some of them did not even bother to bring such reports. The other issue is that municipalities have failed to collect municipal rates. The Auditor-General has mentioned that municipalities don’t know how to manage their debts as well as saving money so that they could deliver services.
It is quite clear that here that lack of capacity is an obstacle for provision of service delivery to be done properly. There is also no political will when it comes to the municipal rates, especially from those who can afford to pay them.]
Chairperson, municipalities have become virtually synonymous with illegal tendering practices and unauthorised loans to councillors. The obvious consequence of corruption is that it leaves less money for service delivery. Municipalities have generally become a haven for those who have no fears about plundering state resources.
The challenges facing those municipalities are that contractors were paid before the projects were completed. According to the quantity surveyors, 77% or more of the money was paid to contractors, while 40% of the work was done. As a result, those contractors disappeared and left the projects unfinished.
It was also reported that, in most of the tenders, no performance agreement was signed between the municipality and the contractors. During the investigation process, significant documents regarding the projects were destroyed or went missing because the officials were involved. This impacted negatively on the investigations.
Millions are stolen from municipalities and nothing is done to recover it. As a committee, we fully agree that the perpetrators must be brought to book and all findings from the auditors and forensic investigations must be implemented.
The officials and councillors who resign while they are being investigated must be blacklisted by government to prevent them from being employed elsewhere until their investigations are completed.
An exorbitant amount is paid in salaries to officials and councillors. It exceeds spending on service delivery. Bonuses are also paid to councillors despite their failures to run the municipalities.
Municipal resources are spent on the luxurious and lavish lifestyles of the mayors and senior officials – like expensive cars and social parties – while basic responsibilities, like water, electricity, sanitation and roads, are not attended to. That is why people are angry and protesting. Municipal infrastructure grants are only used for the running costs of the municipalities instead of infrastructure projects. The unfunded mandates also pressurise municipal budgets.
Motsamaisi ya kgabane wa dipuisano, ha re ntse re nonya setjhaba maikutlo, re utlwile setjhaba se lla ka hore mmuso ha o se kgathalle ebile ha o se sekehele tsebe dillong tsa sona. Sena se bakile merusu e sa hlokahaleng, e bakileng mathata ho phatlalla le naha. Bomajoro ba bang ha ba hlomphe setjhaba haholoholo ha ba bua le sona, mme ba tletse lenyatso. Sena se halefisa setjhaba le hofeta.
Ha ke phetela Motsamaisi wa Dipuisano, ke batla ho lemohisa Ntlo ena e kgabane hore nako e fihlile jwale, ya hore mmuso wa rona o tlohele ho nyatsa le ho kgella dikelello tsa setjhaba sa haeso fatshe. Batho ba bulehile mahlo mme ba ke ke ba dula ba thetswa, ba fedile pelo ke ho hloleha ha mmuso ho phethisa thomo ya bona. Ke a leboha. [Mahofi.] (Translation of Sesotho paragraphs follows.)
[Hon Chairperson, as we were canvassing the nation’s opinion we heard the nation’s cry about the fact that government does not care about it and does not even listen to its grievances. This has led to unnecessary violence, which has caused problems nationally. Some mayors have no respect for their communities when they address them and they are very arrogant. This attitude angers the nation a lot.
As I conclude, Chairperson, I would like to make the honourable House aware that the time has now arrived for government to stop ignoring and undermining our nation’s intelligence. The people have become wiser and cannot be fooled forever. They are running out of patience at the government’s failure to fulfil its mandate. I thank you. [Applause.]]
Mr G J SELAU: Hon Chairperson, I am deeply hurt that this Parliament decided to delegate its members to go throughout the country in order to hear what people are saying are the causes of the problems that we were seeing as Parliament. The debate started very well at the beginning, with those who were present and those who went around and did what Parliament sent them to do. Until such time that those that were not part of this work started to come to this podium, things turned around and the debate degenerated.
But the reality is that the ANC-led government inherited a politically, socially and economically skew society from the apartheid regime in 1994, in which very few people, particularly whites, were economically empowered. They had access to better education and lived in beautiful and big houses with electricity and sanitation. On the one hand, they had infrastructure of the first world class, and on the other hand the majority of the nation, predominantly black people, were living in horrifying, rural and very poor areas of this country with no electricity and/or sanitation at all. They depended on wood fires as energy, later paraffin and coal stoves, and candles.
Those who stayed near the cities and towns were forcefully removed and dumped in remote areas far away from the developed areas. Those who found employment in mines, factories and shops were given no accommodation, but were expected to be at work on time, and give the best of their ability without even adequate training. This later resulted in migration into these areas as money was the source of life for their families. Subsequently, informal temporary settlements engulfed entire urban areas of our country, a challenge we are still continuing to grapple with in South Africa. The hard reality is that this challenge cannot be overcome overnight, though government is doing its best in this regard.
The previously disadvantaged section of our society, which forms the majority of the people of South Africa, is getting impatient with the slow machinery of the state to deliver services. That is the hard reality. Let me take this opportunity to focus my attention on the portfolio of energy, to which I am deployed, particularly as it affects the previously disadvantaged people of South Africa and beyond.
Remember, energy is regarded as the cornerstone of economic development in our society. The Department of Energy reported that much work has been done in the area of electrifying households to the extent that we are left with 20%-25% to reach the universal access to electricity countrywide. This, however, is not without challenges: Firstly, in the deep rural areas of our provinces, electricity is still a dream to come true in that there is no infrastructure, at this stage, for them to access it, and this is what we inherited.
Secondly, the informal settlements in urban areas have people who are engaging in very dangerous activities of illegal electricity connections. This was evident during our recent visit, as the parliamentary Ad hoc Committee on Co-ordinated Oversight on Service Delivery, to such areas.
Thirdly, internationally, universities and other key institutions of science, engineering and technology are engaging each other. This is to exchange ideas and develop technologies in various areas of energy and efficiencies, such as reliability and resistance, cleaner coal grid energy and the development of grid energy in the form of alternative sources like solar, wind, hydro, natural gas, nuclear and others, which are still at infancy level. These initiatives are aimed at ensuring that our children should find a foundation as regards energy supply and demand challenges as the society grows in years ahead.
Finally, coming back home, I wish to draw the attention of our august House to this extract from the Ad hoc Committee on Co-ordinated Oversight on Service Delivery. Local government is the centre of gravity. Integrated development plans should be central in development planning. An intergovernmental structure like the financial and fiscal commission needs to be established to consider plans, synchronise and budget. This will ameliorate the concern that departmental officials do not attend the independent development planning, IDP, meetings or junior officials, who do not have authority to make concrete decisions, are sent to attend IDP meetings. This intergovernmental structure will ensure co-ordinated planning and implementation against developmental trajectory. Thank you. [Interjections.] [Time expired.] [Applause.]
Mrs D F BOSHIGO: Hon Chairperson, hon Ministers and Deputy Ministers, and hon members, last year, the Fourth Democratic Parliament, which was aptly characterised as an activist Parliament, took the correct decision to establish an Ad hoc Committee on Co-ordinated Oversight on Service Delivery. The establishment of this committee was intended at finding empirical evidence on the underlying reasons for the so-called service delivery protests, which engulfed our municipalities in South Africa. The committee was ushered in under the theme: Working together to ensure the delivery of quality services to the communities.
Ye ke tabataba e swanetšego, e bile tshepedišong kamoka, komiti ye ya nakwana e be e nolofatša tšhomišano magareng ga dikgoro tša mmušo wa bosetšhaba, dikgoro tša diprofense le ditirelo tša tshepedišo go swana le Eskom le Sassa magareng ga tše dingwe. Se se bohlokwa kudu ke gore, komiti ye e šomišana le dikomiti tša diprofense go lekola gore ditirelo di a abja, gammogo le bomasepala le setšhaba. Tsenelelano ye e bontšhitše go ba le mohola go netefatšeng gore mahlakore kamoka a setšhaba a lemoga bohlokwa bja tšhomišanommogo go potlakiša kabo ya ditirelo.
Ka ntle ga dikatlego go bontši bja dimasepala, go nale ditlhotlo tše ntši tše di tšwelelago tšeo di tšwelago pele go hloriša kudukudu dimasepala. Le ge go le bjalo, ditlhotlo di amana gape le tshepedišo kamoka ya mmušo mabapi le thekgo ya bosetšhaba le diprofense go dimasepala. Tlhotlo ya ka mehla yeo e hlagišitšwego ka maatla ke setšhaba, e bile hlokego ya karabo ya mmušo go matshwenyego ao a hlagišitšwego ke maloko a setšhaba. Ditšhaba di belaela gore, le ge go hlagišitšwe matshwenyego ka mangwalo ao a balegago le dimemorantamo, matshwenyego a bona ga se a rarollwe. (Translation of Sepedi paragraphs follows.)
[In the whole process the ad hoc committee made it easier for the national government, provincial government, Eskom and Sassa to work co-operatively. This ad hoc committee works co-operatively with provincial committees, municipalities and the public to ensure service delivery. This integration has made the public aware of the importance of co-operation in speeding up service delivery.
Municipalities are encountering many challenges, including lack of adequate support by the national and provincial government. The main challenge raised by the public is lack of response by government to their concerns. The public is concerned that even after taking effort to raise their concerns in written form and in the form of memoranda they are still not attended to.]
The country witnessed intense community struggles, clashes with the police and the destruction of municipal buildings and houses of individual councillors. As Parliament, we need to condemn this behaviour; we need to underscore the fact that local government is at the coalface of service delivery. As such, frustrations are directed at them individually and to the community infrastructure. This is untenable and must come to an end.
There are systematic, structural and government or community interface problems crippling municipalities. Based on evidence, challenges which beset municipalities are not the functional areas of municipalities but provincial government and national imperatives. A thorny issue of incomplete houses is a provincial government competence. Another challenge, that of unemployment and lack of skills, is a structural challenge, which government in general has to respond to urgently.
A pressing challenge concerns the relationship of accountability between ward councillors and ward committees on the one hand and communities on the other. Councillors are accused of lack of responsiveness as well as the inability to champion community interest in council, and thus accountability to the people.
Go nale tlhotlo e nngwe e bohlokwa e lego hlokego ya hlokomelo ya diprotšeke le tshenyo ya neo tša melao ya taolo ya phepokgolego [supply chain management regulations]. Mathata a mantši ke diprotšeke tšeo di tlogetšwego di sa fela mola 100% ya tšhelete e lefilwe.
Borakontraka bao ba nago le molato, ba swanetše go ngwadišwa go lenaneo la difiwa la Letlotlo la Bošetšhaba la basenyi go ba thibela go hwetša mošomo o mongwe mmušong. Go swana le bašomedi bao ba itokollago mošomong ka maitšhireletšo goba ka lebaka la dinyakišišo tšeo di dirwago kgahlanong le bona, le bona ba swanetše ba ngwadišwe ke kgoro ya Pušotirišano le Merero ya Setšo, CoGTA, go ba thibela gore ba se hwetše mošomo lefelong le lengwe ka ntle go sephetho sa dinyakišišo, ba na le molato wa go jabetša goba boradia, gape ba swanetše go ngwadišwa lenaeong la CoGTA go thibela phatlalalo ya basenyi go tloga go masepala o mongwe go ya go o mongwe.
Go nale mengwako e mentši ya Lenaneo la Kagoleswa le Tšwetšopele, RDP, yeo e sa fetšwago dikarolong tše ntši tša naga, go fa mohlala, kua Nokeng tša Taemane go la Gauteng. Tlhohlo ye ke sešupo sa gore Kgoro ya Bodulo bja Batho e nepile ge e nyakišiša dithentara le go thuba mengwako yeo e senyegilego ka lebaka la bofokodi bja mošomo wa baagi. Komiti ya Nakwana e swanetše go thekga lenaneo le go phošolla bothata bjo bo lego gona gona bjale.
Tlhotlo ye nngwe ye thata yeo e nyakago šedi ya mmušo ke pelaelo\ ya gore dikgoro ga di ye dikopanong tša diIDP goba ba romela bašomedi ba maemo a tlase bao ba ka se kgonego go tšea diphetho. Mokgwa wo o nyaka hlokomelo ya tšhoganetšo go netefatša gore mmušo o ineetše go tsela ya mohlakanela ya thlabollo.
Diprofenseng tše dingwe go nale maano a thomilwego go netefatša gore diMEC di amega thwii lenaneong la kgotlaganyo ya diIDP, gagolo kua KwaZulu-Natal. Se se laola gabotse Mahlomo a Dikamano tša ka gare tša mmušo… [Tšhwahlelo.] [Nako e fedile.] [Legoswi.] Ke a leboga. (Translation of Sepedi paragraphs follows.)
[Another pressing challenge is a lack of projects monitoring and the contravention of supply chain management regulations. Many problems are caused by incomplete projects that have already been paid for 100%.
The contractors who are found guilty should be blacklisted at the offenders’ programme in the National Treasury to make it impossible for them to get another job offer from the government. The Department of Co- operative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Cogta, must also blacklist employees who commit fraud and resign to protect themselves or to avoid investigations against them. This should be done to prevent them to get another job offer before the completion of investigations and to stop the spread of corruption from one municipality to another.
There are many houses in the Reconstruction and Development Programme, RDP, that are still incomplete in many parts of the country, for example, Nokeng tsa Taemane in Gauteng. This proves that the Department of Human Settlements is right in investigating tenders and demolishing poorly constructed houses due to poor workmanship. The ad hoc committee must support this programme to solve the existing problem.
The fact that government departments do not attend integrated development planning, IDP, meetings and are also delegating junior staff members who cannot take decisions should be attended to. This matter needs urgent attention to ensure that the government is committed to integrated development.
There are plans in place in other provinces like Kwazulu-Natal to ensure that the Members of the Executive Council, MECs, are fully involved in the IDP programme. This controls effectively foundations of internal relations in government … Thank you. [Interjections.] [Time expired.] [Applause.]]
The LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION: Hon Chairperson, on a point of order: There was a structural and institutional malfunction during the hon member’s maiden speech that militated against many of us being able to give her maiden speech the necessary respect of listening to it. The interpretation is so poor that it is almost impossible to follow. I saw you with the interpretation at your ear and I tried also, but eventually gave up. And really, it is very, very difficult if we are going to have a situation where interpretation is of such a nature that we cannot follow the debate.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms M N Oliphant): Thank you, hon member, I think the relevant people will take care of that. The Table staff will take care of the issue of interpretation. Thank you.
Mr T BOTHA: Hon Chairperson, I would like to start by correcting hon Mushwana who alleged that hon Ndude suggested that the municipalities are incapacitated. It is, in fact, the ad hoc committee report which states that the municipalities are incapacitated.
Cope welcomes and supports the ad hoc committee report on service delivery, but wishes to draw the attention of the House to specific concerns which, notwithstanding the recommendations of the report, will remain a challenge for the government.
It goes without saying that appropriate institutional arrangements and intergovernmental relations are a cornerstone of effective and efficient service delivery co-ordination. This supposed appropriate institutional arrangement is often predicated on the assumption that there is a stable political environment within which such institutions exist and operate. However, in some of the communities we visited it cannot be said that the conditions for a stable political environment are conducive to smooth service delivery.
This was the experience we had in Thembisa, the informal settlement in Johannesburg. Four residents had erected shacks on one stand without even one of them holding a title deed. Only one of the four shacks had been provided with electricity. Furthermore, electricity was illegally connected to the other three shacks, which means that if one resident is not home, the rest cannot have access to electricity. This is a recipe for social conflict and has the potential to trigger protest in these areas.
Short-term solutions to the current crisis that do not contribute positively to a permanent long-term solution should be discarded. These are simply contributing to the mounting crisis in these areas.
To illustrate my point further, I wish to draw the attention of the House to a potential time bomb. A large number of people in this country, particularly in the low-income groups, have been allocated houses to which they hold no title deeds. In fact, they do hold title deeds, but the irony is that these houses are occupied by people who are either politically connected or who use force to occupy them illegally.
This was the experience in Diepsloot, where a number of people occupied houses illegally. They are even busy extending these houses, yet the rightful owners are in the queue waiting to get houses. The challenge is that the people who hold the title deeds are neither able to gain access to their houses, nor are they entitled to join the housing waiting list. Such incidences are on the increase and critical attention must be paid to this impending disaster.
The situation is further exacerbated by people illegally selling RDP houses without registering such transfers with the Deeds Office. This will make it difficult for both the government and the Deeds Office to trace the legal owners of these properties in the future, as illegal transactions continue without transfers being registered.
Lastly, I wish to draw attention to the issue of bulk municipal infrastructure funding. As a consequence of historical circumstances, South Africa inherited an enormous backlog in bulk infrastructure. Even though municipalities are capable of providing water and sanitation through their allocated budgets, they cannot fully address these backlogs within the regulated timeframes and context of their own normal operational budgets.
Cope therefore wishes to call on the government to create a special fund to address these backlogs. If this does not happen, we may in future have to ask the question which Ringo Madlingozi asks in his song: “Whose song will the future sing?” Thank you. [Applause.]
Mrs M WENGER: Madam Chair, hon Minister Sexwale, considering the numerous violent demonstrations throughout the country, it was necessary that an oversight visit be done, particularly to the so-called hot spot areas in all nine provinces. However, the visits, done quite some time after the protests, did not give us the exact impact. Hon Selau, I was part of the delegation. However, you failed to inform us of the corruption and maladministration that you were talking about.
Service delivery protests turned violent in many areas. They have brought political instability, not to mention the vandalism of municipal buildings, libraries and clinics. These very communities now want the same structures and buildings that they themselves have destroyed to be replaced. Most municipalities cannot afford to do this. Will this result in another round of protests?
Many of the protests were due to maladministration, cadre deployment, corruption and political infighting between the factions of the ruling party. It was evident that the leadership had lost touch with the residents on the ground and had taken refuge in their ivory towers, forgetting about the plight of the people. There is also a lack of understanding of the functions of the different spheres of government, and municipalities often bear the brunt of nondelivery by district councils and provincial government. Municipalities have become an easy target for demonstrators. Districts and provincial departments very seldom come to their rescue, but, rather, hide behind the back of the municipalities.
Whilst municipalities are responsible for providing internal reticulation, bulk infrastructure lies with the districts, which have failed dismally. Municipalities, particularly medium- and low-capacity municipalities, cannot afford to budget for and install bulk services which run into billions.
People living in glass houses should not throw stones.
A HON MEMBER: Hear, hear!
Mrs M WENGER: It is rather strange that the hon member from the ad hoc committee seems to be concentrating on Khayelitsha instead of highlighting the shortcomings of the other eight provinces. Hundreds of instances in ANC- controlled municipalities show that they have not complied with any of the norms.
In the Rammulotsi Township near Viljoenskroon in the Free State there are still dozens of open toilets after nine years of ANC rule. Take Protea South, where 548 toilets are being shared by 8 000 families. The national norm is 1:5. Here it is 1:15 families. Further to this, for 15 years, the council has failed to provide sanitation, and is currently in defiance of a court order that was handed down last year.
This week, in a KwaZulu-Natal newspaper, The Mercury, a front-page article carries the story that a prominent ANC member’s daughter was awarded a contract for 50 container toilets ordered by the eThekwini Municipality at a cost of millions of rands, on the basis that they were needed for an informal settlement. The toilets are still lying opposite a police station in Sydenham.
We have seen sewage spillages, nonexistent stormwater drainage, leaking pipes, a total absence of refuse removal, inaccessible roads, no electrification, and huge unemployment particularly amongst school leavers. Communities are not experiencing any difference in or change to their lifestyles. However, they clearly see the wastage that occurs, particularly on the part of the political leadership and administration who have, in many instances, become arrogant and inaccessible to people and communities.
It does not help, either, when a mayor calls the disadvantaged people in her community “stupid”, or where she refers to the youth as “lazy drunkards”, instead of assisting them to improve their lifestyles and empower them with skills. These kinds of allegations by community leaders cannot be ignored, and action must be taken if we are to improve the living conditions of our communities.
Political infighting between community development workers, CDWs, and ward committee members and councillors is evident far and wide. CDWs and ward committee members have suddenly become aspirant councillor candidates, and instead of strengthening and supporting the councillors, they are undermining them.
The ad hoc committee had its work cut out, and its term has now come to an end. But what about the report-back to the communities? We have heard it time and time again during public hearings that on a continuous basis representations from ministry, province, the NCOP and Parliament make promises, yet no one does a report-back to them. Unless the report-back is done, communities will continue to distrust the different structures.
The absence of the Minister and the Deputy Minister of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs is most unfortunate, considering the importance of this report. Thank you. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
Mr P S SIZANI: Hon Chairperson, hon members, many speakers who came to this podium shied away from looking at the oversight instruments that are available along the three spheres of state, which deserve to be reinforced. I beg your indulgence, hon Chairperson, to look into this matter this afternoon, but before I do that, let me quote the President of our country when he said:
You will recall that during the inauguration we committed ourselves to the service of the nation with dedication, commitment, discipline, integrity, hard work and passion. We called for faster service delivery. We said the dreams and hopes of all the people of our country must be fulfilled. We said there was no place for complacency, cynicism and excuses.
These are the words of the President opening the ANC Lekgotla on 15 to 18 January 2010, drawing the line on the sand for all elected and deployed cadres to serve the population diligently. He warned that “there must be no social distance between the people and their government, and the people must not be ignored.” He said, ”We should identify the weaknesses and work out the correction measures and rectify them.”
The Ad hoc Committee on Co-ordinated Oversight on Service Delivery visited many local municipalities to identify these weaknesses in line with this injunction and constitutional imperative, which outlines the framework for oversight by Parliament in terms of section 55(2) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa.
It is common cause, at least among those who participated in this oversight fact-finding mission, that many weaknesses have been due to the social distance between the people and their government, particularly in many of the areas visited by the ad hoc committee. I will draw your attention to one thing I’ll come back to, hon Wenger. The hon Waters, hon Smith, hon Ndude, hon Steyn would attest to the fact that the toilets in Du Noon do not meet the national standards. That is the problem.
I think we must collectively agree that our oversight function must focus on how we can pressurise all three spheres of government to maintain and perform their functions properly instead of throwing stones at them. Because the more we criticise them, the more we weaken them. We should instead support them. I suggest that this throwing of stones is, in fact, especially by those who live in glass houses, and does not make sense either to them or to us.
Members of Parliament who went to Taung in the North West and those who came with us to Thulamela and Molemole in Limpopo will confirm that there are huge dams, the Taung and the Nandoni Dams. They are full of water, but the villages around them have no water, no water in the taps, no water for irrigation and there is no water for the animals.
Hon Chief Whip, there has to be a way, in terms of the Constitution, to make us in this Parliament work with our colleagues in the provincial legislatures and standing committees at local level. There is absolutely no reason why these people should sit there hoping that one day, God willing, this water that they see in this dam will come to their homes when they vote every five years. Our colleagues, who provide this oversight function, see this thing everyday and do nothing. I think this throwing of stones here is not helping. And this function of the ad hoc committee that this Parliament has created must continue rather than come to an end as a once- off event.
Section 55(2) of the Constitution states that the National Assembly must provide for mechanisms to ensure all organs of state in the national sphere of government are accountable to it. What is this oversight function that we provide that makes these departments account to us when these things are there for 16 years and we always talk about them in this podium but do nothing?
This is a constitutional imperative given to us as an oversight function, but we talk about it and do nothing. This means that the ad hoc committee must submit a clear report of its findings to this House for Parliament to demand an explanation of incomplete projects originally created to better the life of affected communities.
Similarly, all relevant portfolio committees of this House and those of provincial legislatures must take steps to follow these matters up in order to correct these weaknesses so that the dedication the President spoke about, the commitment that we are supposed to show in our tasks, the discipline and integrity, hard work and the passion that we deployees of this nation must show in our work will be seen in practice, not only on the podium. [Applause.]
Hon members, councillors reported that state-owned enterprises, especially Eskom and the water boards in particular, are a law unto themselves. They choose which villages to electrify; they choose which villages will get water, without talking to councillors, without even due regard to the mayor of the town.
When these fights between the mayors and councillors with the communities take place, all these other spheres fold their arms as if they have nothing to do with that fight. Yet Eskom is the provider of electricity, water boards are in charge and not local authorities, and yet the communities fight against councillors because they are the face of government nearest to the people. What is the oversight function of Parliament in this regard? Remember, water and electricity are a national competence. When people fight for water and electricity, we behave as if it has nothing to do with us.
It is important to note that these councillors, although they have their weaknesses, also have their problems, including corruption. There has to be a way which will insist on the structural and institutional co-operation between councillors and traditional leaders. We were told that there are townships, hon Sexwale, that are built between towns and outside villages.
Those people who are regarded as the poorest of the poor in the village are taken out of the social network of the villages, away from the villages, which means they have nobody to look after them because they do not belong to the traditional leader or the town, so it is a township in the middle of nowhere.
We create, suddenly, social problems that have nothing to do with what they experience in the village. Do you know what the problem is? These people cannot negotiate a livelihood outside the village because the only skills they have are those skills they acquired from birth in the village, and suddenly they must depend on social grants outside their villages where there is no work. Why is it allowed for townships to be built outside the village nowhere close to the town? We saw this thing with our own eyes when we visited North West and Limpopo. Why is it allowed?
We were horrified in Molemole Municipality to learn that a corpse had been in a mortuary for months because the traditional leaders would not allow that Zimbabwean citizen to be buried anywhere in the village, not because they could not bury that person, but simply because they had a fight with the councillors who want to regulate land use planning. Now this dead person could not be buried. We had to abandon our task and create a negotiating process to reconcile the two people for the dead person to be buried.
The point here is that we must create a mechanism to regulate the working relationship between the traditional leaders and the councillors, especially with relation to land, commonages, graveyards, grazing land and even fields for the cultivation of food. The majority of people in townships do not work, anyway, so the land available must be put to use to produce food for food security. [Applause.] [Time expired.]
Debate concluded.
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Hon Chairperson and hon members, I move:
That the Report be adopted.
Mr W P DOMAN: Chairperson, we also agree; but can it just be put in the minutes that we are not necessarily agreeing with all the recommendations of the report?
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms M N Oliphant): That will be noted. Hon member, is that a point of order?
Mr P S SIZANI: Chairperson, no … yes, it is a point of order: We spent close to an hour last night in the ad hoc committee, dealing with the concerns raised by the hon Doman. We changed the report and they told us that they have accepted the report. I don’t understand what is happening today. What happened between last night and now?
The LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION: Chairperson, if the hon member was there right to the end of the meeting … [Interjections.] … he would recall …
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms M N Oliphant): Hon member, I didn’t give you the floor. Can you please take your seat?
The LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION: Chairperson, I will do so; but I just wanted to answer him.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms M N Oliphant): Hon members, you have agreed that the report be adopted. The DA said that we should note their concerns, because they do not agree with some recommendations in the report. Therefore, they have a right to do so. I have already indicated that we will note their concern.
What will happen afterwards will be discussed at the relevant committee. We cannot debate that in this House. [Applause.] Hon member, is that a point of order?
The LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION: Chairperson, yes, it is a point of order: The hon Sizani got your attention and you asked him if it was a point of order; and he said no. Then he changed his mind and said it was a point of order. Actually, he didn’t make a point of order, but you allowed him to speak and conclude. When the hon Doman wanted to speak, you didn’t give him an opportunity to respond. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms M N Oliphant): Hon member, I had to respond, because I had already given the ruling on the issue. I hope that the hon Doman is happy that we have agreed that his concern will be noted.
Motion agreed to.
Report accordingly adopted.
The House adjourned at 18:40. ____
ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS
ANNOUNCEMENTS
National Assembly and National Council of Provinces
The Speaker and the Chairperson
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Assent by President in respect of Bills
1) South African Reserve Bank Amendment Bill [B 10 – 2010] – Act No 4 of 2010 (assented to and signed by President on 8 September 2010).
TABLINGS
National Assembly and National Council of Provinces
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The Minister of Finance
(a) Government Notice No R 381 published in Government Gazette No 33171 dated 14 May 2010: Amendment of Schedule No 3 (No 3/660), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(b) Government Notice No R 437 published in Government Gazette No 33211dated 28 May 2010: Amendment of Schedule No 1 (No 1/1/1405), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(c) Government Notice No R 438 published in Government Gazette No 33211 dated 28 May 2010: Amendment of Schedule No. 1 (No 1/1/1406) in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(d) Government Notice No R 439 published in Government Gazette No 33211 dated 28 May 2010: Amendment of Schedule No 1 (No 1/1/1407), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(e) Government Notice No R 440 published in Government Gazette No 33211 dated 28 May 2010: Amendment of Schedule No 2 (No 2/325), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(f) Government Notice No R 441 published in Government Gazette No 33211 dated 28 May 2010: Amendment of Schedule No 3 (No 3/1/662), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(g) Government Notice No R 454 published in Government Gazette No 33211 dated 28 May 2010: Exemption in terms of the Financial Intelligence Centre Act, 2001 (Act No 38 of 2001).
(h) Government Notice No 471 published in Government Gazette No 33241 dated 04 June 2010: Exemption in terms of the Financial Intelligence Centre Act, 2001 (Act No 38 of 2001).
(i) Government Notice No R 622 published in Government Gazette No 33382 dated 14 July 2010: Amendment of Rules (DAR/72), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(j) Government Notice No R 623 published in Government Gazette No 33382 dated 14 July 2010: Amendment of Schedule No 2 (No 2/326), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(k) Government Notice No R 624 published in Government Gazette No 33383 dated 15 July 2010: Amendment of Schedule No 1 (No 1/1/1410), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(l) Government Notice No R 604 published in Government Gazette No 33370 dated 16 July 2010: Amendment of Schedule No 1 (No 1/1/1409), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(m) Government Notice No R 606 published in Government Gazette No 33370 dated 16 July 2010: Amendment of Schedule No 3 (No 3/662), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(n) Government Notice No R 616 published in Government Gazette No 33370 dated 16 July 2010: Amendment of Schedule No 2 (No 2/327), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(o) Government Notice No R 630 published in Government Gazette No 33385 dated 23 July 2010: Amendment of Schedule No 4 (No 4/332), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(p) Government Notice No R 639 published in Government Gazette No 33385 dated 23 July 2010: Regulations made under section 121 of the Income Tax Act, 1962 (Act No 58 of 1962).
(q) Government Notice No R 637 published in Government Gazette No 33394 dated 23 July 2010: Amendment of Schedule No 1 (No 1/1/1411), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(r) Government Notice No R 638 published in Government Gazette No 33394 dated 23 July 2010: Amendment of Schedule No 2 (No 2/328), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(s) Government Notice No R 653 published in Government Gazette No 33400 dated 30 July 2010: Amendment of Schedule No 1 (No 1/1/1408), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(t) Government Notice No R 655 published in Government Gazette No 33400 dated 30 July 2010: Amendment of Schedule No 2 (No 2/329), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(u) Government Notice No R 656 published in Government Gazette No 33400 dated 30 July 2010: Amendment of Schedule No 2 (No 2/330), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(v) Government Notice No R 672 published in Government Gazette No 33423 dated 30 July 2010: Amendment of Rules (DAR/73), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(w) Government Notice No 710 published in Government Gazette No 33457 dated 13 August 2010: Amendment of Regulations, in terms of the South African Reserve Bank Act, 1964 (Act No 90 of 1989).Amendment of Schedule No 1 (No 1/1/1413), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(x) Government Notice No R 738 published in Government Gazette No 33481 dated 20 August 2010: Amendment of Schedule No 1 (No 1/1/1412), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
(y) Government Notice No R 739 published in Government Gazette No 33481 dated 20 August 2010: Amendment of Schedule No 1 (No 1/1/1413), in terms of the Customs and Excise Act, 1964 (Act No 91 of 1964).
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The Minister of Basic Education
(a) Report and Financial Statements of the South African Council for Educators for 2009-2010, including the Report of the Independent Auditors on the Financial Statements and Performance Information for 2009-2010.
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The Minister of Communications
(a) Report and Financial Statements of Vote 21 – Department of Communications for 2009-2010, including the Report of the Auditor- General on the Financial Statements and Performance Information of Vote 21 for 2009-2010 [RP 126-2010].
(b) Report and Financial Statements of the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) for 2009-2010, including the Report of the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements and Performance Information for 2009-2010 [RP 210-2010].
c) Report and Financial Statements of the National Electronic Media Institute of South Africa (NEMISA) for 2009-2010, including the Report of the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements and Performance Information for 2009-2010.
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The Minister of Science and Technology
(a) Report and Financial Statements of the National Research Foundation for 2009-2010, including the Report of the Auditor- General on the Financial Statements and Performance Information for 2009-2010.
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The Minister of Trade and Industry
(a) Trade Agreement between the Government of the Republic of South Africa and the Government of the State of Kuwait, tabled in terms of section 231(3) of the Constitution, 1996.
(b) Explanatory Memorandum to the Trade Agreement between the Government of the Republic of South Africa and the Government of the State of Kuwait.
(c) Agreement on Economic, Commercial and Technical Co-operation between the Government of the Republic of South Africa and the Government of the State of Qatar, tabled in terms of section 231(3) of the Constitution, 1996.
(d) Explanatory Memorandum to the Agreement on Economic, Commercial and Technical Co-operation between the Government of the Republic of South Africa and the Government of the State of Qatar.
(e) Bilateral Agreement on Economic, Trade and Technical Co- operation between the Government of the Republic of South Africa and the Government of the United Arab Emirates, tabled in terms of section 231(3) of the Constitution, 1996.
(f) Explanatory Memorandum to the Bilateral Agreement on Economic, Trade and Technical Co-operation between the Government of the Republic of South Africa and the Government of the United Arab Emirates.
(g) Trade Agreement between the Government of the Republic of South Africa and the Government of the Republic of Yemen, tabled in terms of section 231(3) of the Constitution, 1996.
(h) Explanatory Memorandum to the Trade Agreement between the Government of the Republic of South Africa and the Government of the Republic of Yemen.
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The Minister of Transport
(a) Report and Financial Statements of the Airports Company South Africa (Ltd) (ACSA) for 2009-2010, including the Report of the Independent Auditors on the Financial Statements and Performance Information for 2009-2010.
(b) Report and Financial Statements of the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) for 2009-2010, including the Report of the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements and Performance Information for 2009-2010.
(c) Report and Financial Statements of the South African National Roads Agency Limited (SANRAL) for 2009-2010, including the Report of the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements and Performance Information for 2009-2010 [RP 81-2010].