Hansard: NA: Plenary: Election of Members of Pan-African Parliament; Designation of Representatives of Parliament in Southern African Development Community Parliamentary Forum; Designation of Members to the Judicial Service Commission
House: National Assembly
Date of Meeting: 24 Jun 2014
Summary
No summary available.
Minutes
UNREVISED HANSARD
NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
24 JUNE 2014
PAGE: 1
TUESDAY, 24 JUNE 2014
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
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The House met at 14:00.
The Deputy Speaker took the Chair and requested members to observe a moment of silence for prayer or meditation.
NOTICES OF MOTION
Start of Day
NOTICES OF MOTION
Mr G G HILL-LEWIS: Deputy 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 –
(1) debates the downgrade of South Africa's sovereign credit rating by international rating agency Standard and Poor;
(2) further notes the negative outlook given our economy by Fitch, and the first quarter contraction in South Africa's Gross Domestic product; and
(3) realises the impact this has on unemployment and how this trend can be reversed.
Mr A M MPONTSHANE
Mr G G HILL-LEWIS
Mr A M MPONTSHANE: Deputy Speaker, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the IFP:
That the House –
(1) debates the current state of malnutrition of a large number of learners at our public schools, especially those learners from the informal settlements and single-parent households;
(2) prevents health risks associated with it and derives measures that should be adopted to eradicate such malnutrition from our schools.
Ms D CARTER
Mr A M MPONTSHANE
Ms D CARTER: Deputy Speaker, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of Cope:
That the House -
(1) debates the root cause of the ills affecting local government, the reasons for the failure of the Turnaround Strategy; and
(2) finds government's ability to provide basic requirements for functional, accountable, responsive, effective, efficient, developmental and clean government.
Mr S G MMUSI
Ms D CARTER
Mr S G MMUSI: Deputy 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 ways to improve the living conditions of farm dwellers, including the provision of subsidised houses and other basic services.
Ms D H MATHEBE
Mr S G MMUSI
Ms D H MATHEBE: Deputy 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 measures geared at strengthening South Africa's postgraduate training in research and innovation as means to improve the country's global competitiveness.
Ms A STEYN
Ms D H MATHEBE
Ms A STEYN: Deputy 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 specific ways to create an enabling environment to ensure that agriculture creates 1 million jobs by 2030.
Mr M Q NDLOZI
Ms A STEYN
Mr M Q NDLOZI: Deputy Speaker, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the EFF:
That the House debates the conditions and remuneration of mineworkers.
Mr T J BONHOMME
Mr M Q NDLOZI
Mr T J BONHOMME: Deputy 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 strengthening measures to promote food security as a way to reduce our dependence on food imports.
Ms P BHENGU
Mr T J BONHOMME
Ms P BHENGU: Deputy 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 growing the small and medium-size enterprise sector vigorously so that they can assist in economic growth and job creation.
Mr N M KHUBISA
Ms P BHENGU
Mr N M KHUBISA: Deputy Speaker, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the NFP:
That the House debates the high levels of protests, and the apathy with regard to service delivery.
Mr R A LEES
Mr N M KHUBISA
Mr R A LEES: Deputy 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 -
(1) debates the employment of South African Democratic Teachers Union members by the IEC to run national, provincial and local government elections;
(2) recognises the alignment of Sadtu with the ANC and the public directives from Sadtu leaders to its members to work for the election of ANC candidates.
[Applause.]
Mr F BEUKMAN
Mr R A LEES
Mr F BEUKMAN: Deputy Speaker, I hereby give notice that on the nextsitting day of the House I shall move on behalf of the ANC:
That the House debates strengthening organised crime-fighting units to actively combat serious crimes such as human and drug trafficking.
Ms C Q MADLOPHA
Mr F BEUKMAN
Ms C Q MADLOPHA: Deputy 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 addressing the cross-border crimes, which are piracy and counterfeit goods.
Mr J R B LORIMER
Ms C Q MADLOPHA
Mr J R B LORIMER: Deputy 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 effective methods of preventing lengthy strikes in the mining sector and the impact that prolonged strikes has on our economy.
Thank you. [Applause.]
Mr M G P LEKOTA
Mr J R B LORIMER
Mr M G P LEKOTA: Deputy 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 role of the presiding officers and the hon members of the House to maintain and strengthen the decorum of the House so that Parliament can play its appropriate role in raising the stature of our nation.
Thank you. [Applause.]
The DEPUTY CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY/Motions without notice
Mr M G P LEKOTA
CRASH OF AIR FORCE AIRCRAFT IN MPUMALANGA
(Draft Resolution)
The DEPUTY CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Hon Deputy Speaker, I move without notice:
That the House –
(1) notes with great sadness the passing on of Major T J Maila, Captain M A Wembie, and Captain Francois Hugo, the three South African Air Force members who were killed in a tragic aircraft crash in Mpumalanga on Tuesday, 17 June 2014, in Lydenburg.
(2) further notes that two of their colleagues, Sergeant C B Mabusela and Corporal GD Ramasilo, who were also in that aircraft, are critically injured and remain in hospital;
(3) believes that the deceased died in the line of duty whilst they were participating in atraining camp in the Lydenburg area;
(4) acknowledges their commitment and sacrifice in putting their lives at the service of their country, as well as the subsequent pledge to sacrifice their lives for the defence of their country and its people;
(5) welcomes the idea of the formation of a board of inquiry to investigate and determine the cause of the incident so that families can find closure as well as to prevent an incident such as this one from happening again; and
(6) conveys its condolences to the families of the deceased and their friends and we wish the injured soldiers a speedy recovery.
Thank you.
Agreed to.
Mr M G P LEKOTA
The DEPUTY CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY
Mr M G P LEKOTA: Deputy Speaker, on the nest sitting day of the House I will move on behalf of Cope:
That ...
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hold on, hon member! We are done with notices of motion. WE are now dealing with motions without notice.
Mr M G P LEKOTA: Thank you, Deputy Speaker.
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION PARTY:/
DEPUTY SPEAKER/DEPUTY CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY
SOUTH AFRICAN NATIONAL BLOOD SERVICE LIFTS THE BAN ON BLOOD DONATION BY GAY MEN
(Draft Resolution)
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION: Hon Deputy Speaker, I move without notice:
That the House –
(1) notes that on 5 May 2014, the South African National Blood Service, SANBS, lifted the ban on gay men in South Africa donating blood;
(2) further notes that a new, non-discriminatory policy has been put in place that favours people in monogamous relationships, regardless of sexuality;
(3) acknowledges that the old policy made it nearly impossible for gay men to donate blood and was widely criticised as being discriminatory;
(4) congratulates the SANBS for their progressive efforts in treating all South Africans fairly and equally; and
(5) encourages all healthy South Africans between the ages of 16 and 65 who lead a sexually safe lifestyle to participate in the vital community service of donating blood regularly.
[Applause.]
Agreed to.
Dr W G JAMES
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION PARTY
PASSING AWAY OF AUTHOR, POET AND HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVIST MAYA ANGELOU
(Draft Resolution)
Dr W G JAMES: Hon Deputy Speaker, I move without notice:
That the House –
(1) notes the passing of American author, poet and human rights activist Maya Angelou on 28 May 2014;
(2) further notes that Ms Angelou was a wordsmith warrior of great distinction for equality, tolerance and peace, and that with her work she bound South Africans and Americans together in a powerful thread of struggle and resolve;
(3) acknowledges that the world has lost one of the greatest writers of the American civil rights era;
(4) further acknowledges her role in the struggle for justice, education and equality; and
(5) conveys its sincere condolences to the family and friends of Ms Maya Angelou.
Lala ngoxolo, rus in vrede; may her soul rest in peace!
Agreed to.
The DEPUTY CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY/
Dr W G JAMES
PASSING AWAY OF METRO F M DISC JOCKEY EDDIE MAKHOSONKE ZONDI
(Draft Resolution)
The DEPUTY CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Hon Deputy Speaker, I move without notice:
That the House –
(1) notes with sadness the passing away of 47-year-old Metro FM Disc Jockey and radio legend of 18 years, Eddie Makhosonke Zondi, on Sunday, 15 June 2014;
(2) further notes that Mr Zondi passed on after complaining of chest pains and was taken to hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival;
(3) believes that Eddie Zondi will be fondly remembered for his romantic selection of music during his programme on Sunday afternoons on Metro FM;
(4) further believes that South Africa has lost a man whose music legacy will forever live on in their hearts for generations to come;
(5) acknowledges his invaluable contribution to the music industry; and
(6) conveys its condolences to Zondi's family, friends and fans.
Agreed to.
Mr M WATERS
The DEPUTY CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY
SOUTH AFRICA'S BABY BOKS PLAY AGAIST ENGLAND IN THE JUNIOR WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP IN NEW ZEALAND
(Draft Resolution)
Mr M WATERS: Hon Deputy Speaker, I move without notice:
That the House –
(1) notes that on Friday, 20 June 2014, South Africa's Baby Boks played against England in the final of the Junior World Championship in New Zealand;
(2) further notes that the Baby Boks only just missed out on a consecutive World Cup win after being narrowly beaten by England, 21-20;
(3) acknowledges that the Baby Boks' performance throughout the tournament is a clear indication of the wealth of young talent that is being developed at schools and clubs across our country;
(4) congratulates the coach, Dawie Theron, on his team's impressive performance throughout the tournament, beating hosts New Zealand twice in their own backyard; and
(5) further congratulates the entire team for flying our nation's flag high and making South Africa proud.
[Applause.]
Agreed to.
Mr M G P LEKOTA
Mr M WATERS
SISTER MARY PAULE TACKE HIJACKED, RAPED AND MURDERED IN MTHATHA
(Draft Resolution)
Mr M G P LEKOTA: Hon Deputy Speaker, I move without notice:
That the House –
(1) notes that-
(a) sister Mary Paule Tacke, an 82-year-old Catholic nun, was hijacked in Mthatha last week, raped and murdered;
(b) she devoted years and years of her life to educating many African children at the Mariazell Institute; amongst whom the Minister of Basic Education, Dr Angie Motshekga;
(c) at the time of her brutal death, she was working with homeless orphans and children without homes in the area of Libode in Mthatha;
(d) Sister Mary Paule is a household name in the history of the education of Africans in this country; and
(2) condemns, without reserve, violence against women and, in particular, against defenceless 82-year-old women such as Sister Mary Paule.
Agreed to.
Mr M S SESHOKA
Mr M G P LEKOTA
RETIREMENT OF SOUTH AFRICAN HOCKEY LEGEND, PETIE COETZEE
(Draft Resolution)
Mr M S SESHOKA: Hon Deputy Speaker, I move without notice:
That the House –
(1) notes the retirement of South African hockey legend Petie Coetzee from all forms of competitive hockey;
(2) further notes that she holds the record as the all-time international leading goal scorer in hockey, with 282 goals;
(3) acknowledges that Petie made her international debut in 1995 and was named South African hockey player of the year in 1997, and again in 2002;
(4) wishes her well in her retirement after serving the national hockey team with distinction over a record-breaking total of 287 test matches; and
(5) congratulates her on being a great servant of sport in South Africa.
Agreed to.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon members, the practice is that your motions are supposed to be consulted on among the Whips, but since there hasn't been an objection to any motion, please give them to the service officers to pass them on to the Table. They know where to take them. Thank you.
Dr D W MACPHERSON
Mr M S SESHOKA/The DEPUTY SPEAKER
ROLE OF FAITH-BASED ORGANISATION LUNGISANI INDLELA VILLAGE IN CARING FOR AND NURTURING ORPHANS IN KWAZULU-NATAL
(Draft Resolution)
Dr D W MACPHERSON: Hon Deputy Speaker, I move without notice:
That the House –
(1) notes the incredible work that the Lungisani Indlela Village, LIV, is playing in caring for and nurturing orphaned children in KwaZulu-Natal;
(2) further notes that models of partnership between government, business and faith-based organisations such as LIV can make a difference in bettering our society;
(3) recognises that government alone cannot deal with the estimated 5 million orphans in South Africa; and
(4) congratulates the founders of LIV, Mr Tich and Mrs Joan Smith, on their dedication to bettering the lives of orphans in South Africa.
Agreed to.
The DEPUTY CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY/Mbombela Stadium
Dr D W MACPHERSON
SPRINGBOKS DEFEAT WALES IN MBOMBELA STADIUM
(Draft Resolution)
The DEPUTY CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Hon Deputy Speaker, I move without notice:
That the House –
(1) welcomes the victory of the Springboks in their defeat of Wales in Mbombela Stadium on Saturday, 21 June 2014;
(2) remembers that while the touring side of Wales played with unbridled vigour, the Boks dug deep to snatch victory in the dying minutes of the encounter;
(3) recalls that a penalty try awarded to South Africa, after a shoulder charge by Wales fullback Alex Williams on Cornel Hendricks, ultimately led to the 31-30 victory; and
(4) congratulates the Springboks on the character they showed in never giving up and in chasing victory until the last seconds of the game.
Agreed to.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon members, I just want to voice a word of welcome to the people in the gallery. We appreciate it especially because when we debate, we appreciate their presence.
Everybody who comes here makes us feel proud that this institution is yours and your presence confirms that in a big way. Thank you very much for joining us. [Applause.]
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY
The DEPUTY SPEAKER
RESUMPTION OF PROCEEDINGS ON FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT OF PARLIAMENT AMENDMENT BILL
(Draft Resolution)
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: I move:
That the House resumes proceedings on the Financial Management of Parliament Amendment Bill from the stage it reached on the last sitting day of the Sixth Session of the Fourth Parliament.
Agreed to.
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY/Point 14 of Minutes
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY/Point 13 of Minutes
EXTENDED PUBLIC SITTINGS MAY SIT AS AGREED TO BY NATIONAL ASSEMBLY PROGRAMME COMMITTEE
(Draft Resolution)
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: I move that, notwithstanding the hours of sitting of the House as provided for in Rule 23(2), the Extended Public Committees may sit as agreed to by the National Assembly Programme Committee.
Agreed to.
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY/Point 15 of Minutes
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY/Point 14 of Minutes
SEQUENCE OF PARTIES TO MAKE MEMBERS' STATEMENTS
(Draft Resolution)
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: I move-
That the House resolves that the sequence of parties to make members' statements today be as follows: Group 1 - ANC, DA, EFF, ANC and IFP; Group 2 - NFP, Cope, ANC, UDM, ACDP, Agang SA, ANC, DA and ANC; and Group 3 - FF Plus, AIC, PAC, APC, ANC, DA and ANC.
Agreed to.
MEMBERS' STATEMENTS - Ms G TSEKE
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY
PLATINUM MINING STRIKE ENDS
(Member's Statement)
Ms G TSEKE (ANC): The African National Congress welcomes the recent agreement to end the five-month long platinum strike in the platinum mining sector, which is expected to be signed today, Tuesday. The workers' unions announced on Monday that the five-month platinum sector strike was officially over and it would sign wage agreements with the platinum producers on Tuesday, 24 June.
On Monday about 20 000 union members met at the Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace in Phokeng near Rustenburg and endorsed a wage settlement that would increase the basic salary of the lowest-paid worker by R1 000 over a period of three years, excluding other benefits.
The end of the strike would pave the way for peace and stability to be restored and for mining operations to return to full productivity. The resolution of the strike averted what could have become a human catastrophe, though the economy had already suffered.
As the ANC, we pledge our support for the healing process that needs to unfold in the aftermath of the violence and losses suffered during the protracted strike. I thank you. [Applause.]
Mr I M OLLIS (DA)
Ms G TSEKE (ANC)
PLATINUM MINING STRIKE: RE-EXAMINATION OF THE LABOUR RELATIONS AMENDMENT BILL
(Member's Statement)
Mr I M OLLIS (DA): Deputy Speaker, the DA welcomes the resolution, similarly, of the strike in the platinum sector. We call on all parties to implement the agreement to ensure that the dignity of the workers is restored and that production can return to normal so that we can continue to create jobs as a country.
The strike must be a lesson for this government. We must re-examine the Labour Relations Amendment Bill and allow for the democratisation of labour relations so that members of unions can have both the right to strike and the right to work if they so choose. This requires once and for all the re-introduction of the secret ballot before a strike is called.
I call on the Minister of Labour, hon Mildred Oliphant, to do what she would not do in the last session of Parliament, which was to bring the Labour Relations Bill back and let us fix it in the interest of our workers and creating jobs for millions of people who are still stuck in poverty in South Africa.
We further call on the President to put his money where his mouth is and to put into action his promise of government action on the workers' living conditions, such as housing, etc. South Africa currently has the worst labour relations in the world. Let us make the changes. We need to get people working. I thank you. [Applause]
Ms N P SONTI
Mr I M OLLIS (DA)
WORKERS LOST AND CAPITALISTS WON AT MARIKANA
(Member's Statement)
IsiXhosa:
Ms N P SONTI (EFF): Ndiyanibulisa nonke bahloniphekileyo kule Ndlu yoWiso-mthetho. Mna ndifuna ukuqonda ukuba kanye-kanye ngubani ophumeleleyo eMarikana? Ingaba ngabasebenzi okanye oongxowankulu? KwiNtetho kaMongameli engoBume beSizwe sabuza umbuzo singamalungu e-EFF wokuba kuphethe bani? Ingaba kuphethe abasemagunyeni kwezopolitiko okanye oongxowankulu? Sabuza loo mbuzo kuba iimfuno zabasebenzi azikafezeki. Babuyele emsebenzini ngenxa yendlala. Oku kuthetha ukuba indlala yomntu omnyama isetyenziswa ngurhulumente ukunyanzelisa, uyathanda akuthandi.
English:
Hon Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Labour, Mrs Yengeni ...
IsiXhosa:
... le ndlala yaba bantu yindlala yeenyanga ezintlanu. Ibingaqali phofu, ngoba sebetoyi-toya nje yile mali ingabonakaliyo nengazoneliyo iimfuno zabo. Umbuzo mnye ke, wena rhulumente, njengomkhuseli wabasebenzi uphi, uthini xa kunje? Hayi, nditsho ndithi baphumelele oongxowankulu eMarikana. Imali iphuma eMarikana iyokutshona kude lee eLondon babe bona abayisebenzayo bekekela ukuya emakhaya ngezisu ezithe nca emqolo, kube kusithiwa mabavuyele urhulumente omnyama. Babhubha abasebenzi befela intlupheko kodwa akukabikho tshintsho.Kusekho indlala, akukho zindlu, akukho manzi nazindlela. Enkosi.
The MINISTER OF JUSTICE AND CORRECTIONAL SERVICES: Deputy Speaker, on a point of order: I just want to check if it is question time or statement time, because the member is clearly asking a question in statement time.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon member, it is her manner of speaking. Thank you very much. She has already finished anyway.
Ms N KHUNOU (ANC)
Ms N P SONTI
GOVERNMENT INTERVENTION IN EVICTION OF LWANDLE COMMUNITY
(Member's Statement)
Ms N KHUNOU (ANC): The ANC welcomes the intervention by the government during the time the community of Lwandle, next to the N2 highway near Somerset West, was evicted. Both the National Ministers of Transport and Human Settlements and their deputies visited Lwandle before the Mayor of Cape Town and the City intervened.
The South African National Roads Agency, Sanral, evicted part of the Lwandle Informal Settlement and the City of Cape Town did not make any arrangements for temporary accommodation of the evicted people. When the people of Lwandle needed their Mayor and Premier, they had both abandoned them. The Mayor of Cape Town and the Premier issued public statements that it is not their responsibility, but that of national government agency, Sanral, and national government. [Interjections.]
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order, hon members! Order!
Ms N P KHUNOU: The people of Lwandle suffered terribly during those cold and rainy days of their eviction. Their shacks were demolished and set alight. Many lost their personal possessions and were left with nothing but the clothes that they were wearing. Through the intervention of the national government, the people of Lwandle are moving out of cold community halls. Emergency housing is being provided on the land they were evicted from as a temporary measure. They will then be integrated into the housing programmes of the City of Cape Town. The Housing Development Agency is leading the intervention of national government.
The national government will in the coming days finalise ... Thank you. [Time expired.]
Ms S NKOMO (IFP)
Ms N KHUNOU (ANC)
IFP SUPPORTS CALLS BY SHUKUMISA CAMPAIGN
(Member's Statement)
Ms S J NKOMO (IFP): The IFP supports calls by the Shukumisa Campaign and Community Law Centre of the Western Cape for the assurance by government that programmes and legislation put forward during the Fourth Parliament by the Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities be continued with and not allowed to lapse.
Our women continue to face a barrage of crises such as gender-based violence, workplace discrimination, occupational segregation, gender-based wage gaps and many more issues that require urgent government attention. The IFP calls upon this fifth democratic Parliament to prioritise the welfare of women to ensure that their rights are protected and to adopt a women-centred approach in this Parliament. Our women deserve nothing less. Thank you.
Mr N KHUBISA (NFP)
Ms S NKOMO (IFP)
NFP APPLAUDS ARMCO WORKERS AND EMPLOYERS FOR REACHING AGREEMENT THAT ENDS STRIKE
(Member's Statement)
Mr N KHUBISA (NFP): The NFP wishes to applaud Arabian American Oil Company, ARMCO, workers and employers of Lonmin Anglo American Platinum and Impala Platinum for reaching an agreement which in effect brought an end to the strike that lasted five months. The NFP commends mineworkers for relentlessly and steadfastly standing, and fighting for their rights.
The NFP is gratified that about 70 000 mineworkers will now resume work. The employers, it is hoped, will do everything to ensure that mineworkers become shareholders of the wealth that is generated in the mining industry and that decent family houses and other benefits are provided to mineworkers.
The employers and producers must also make sure that the people who reside in the proximity of mines benefit by way of being provided with clinics and schools, and that issues of sanitation and environmental awareness are attended to and that the government ensures that a conducive environment is created even for the mining and engineering sectors so that they can come back to the negotiation table. Thank you. [Applause.]
Dr Z LUYENGE (ANC)
Mr N KHUBISA (NFP)
SEVEN OF TOP TEN IN COMRADES MARATHON 2014 ARE SOUTH AFRICANS
(Member's Statement)
Dr Z LUYENGE (ANC): The ANC congratulates Bongumusa Mthembu on winning the 2014 Comrades Marathon, which was held in KwaZulu-Natal recently. The triumph of Mthembu in the 89th Comrades Marathon over about 89km downhill is remarkable in a race known for testing one's endurance and strength.
We are happy for young Bongumusa that in the month when we celebrate the youth, he has won this title on behalf of the youth and that his name has been registered in the history books as one of the most outstanding ultra-marathon runners internationally.
We are also happy as the ANC that we, as a sporting nation, were able to secure seven spaces in the top ten and that three of our runners were in the top three. We congratulate Ludwick Mamabolo, who came second and Gift Kelehe, who came third. We also call on the business community to sponsor the various athletics clubs so that we can ensure the development of our athletes. Thank you. [Applause.]
Ms C N MAJEKE (UDM)
Dr Z LUYENGE (ANC)
DRUG-RELATED SITUATION IN ELDORADO PARK
(Member's Statement)
Ms C N MAJEKE (UDM): The UDM is concerned about the drug situation in Eldorado Park, South of Johannesburg. As a result of that situation children are sent to rehabilitation centres, but keep going back on drugs and are furthermore in and out of jail and hospital, all of which could be avoided if drugs are eradicated.
This situation is partially caused by the rehabilitation centres that are not up to standard. There is little visibility of police in the area and there are allegations that some of them work with the drug dealers. Despite the fact that promises were made to provide better rehabilitation centres in the area, as well as to establish factories to alleviate poverty, none of these has been established. The UDM calls on government to intervene very strongly as order needs to be restored in Eldorado Park. Thank you.
Ms J M MALULEKE (ANC)
Ms C N MAJEKE (UDM)
NORTH WEST MUNICIPALITIES SET UP WASTE MANAGEMENT PROJECT
(Member's Statement)
Ms J M MALULEKE (ANC): The ANC believes that over the last 20 years of freedom South Africa has made great strides in supporting young South Africans so that they can actively participate in the mainstream economy. As such, the ANC supports the initiative of the North West's four municipalities of Tswaing, Mamusa, Maquassi Hills and Moretele for setting up the project that stands to benefit 100 young people. The project is funded through the Extended Public Works Programme grant, and is focusing on waste management, which includes waste recycling in or removal from areas such as schools, sidewalks, parks and central business districts, amongst others.
The project will run over a period of 10 months and a monthly stipend will be paid to the young people. At the end of the project, they will receive certificates of competence in basic waste management.
The ANC believes that this project will assist municipalities to raise awareness about waste management and encourage youth to take part in waste management ventures, whilst creating temporary employment for young people.
This supports the ANC's policy assertion of increasing the number of training and skills opportunities for young people throughout state-owned enterprises and other government entities. Thank you. [Applause.]
Ms G BREYTENBACH (DA)
Ms J M MALULEKE (ANC)
CONCERNS REGARDING PROCESS FOLLOWED IN APPOINTING NATIONAL DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTION
(Member's Statement)
Ms G BREYTENBACH (DA): Recent allegations in the media around National Director of Public Prosecutions, Mr Nxasana, raise serious concerns, not only with regard to the process followed in appointing this national director, but also with regard to whether the National Prosecuting Authority, NPA, is being abused to advance political ends.
The ANC Chief Whip, the hon Stone Sizane, was empowered by parliamentary Rule 22(3)(1) urgently to constitute the Justice Portfolio Committee so that this matter could immediately be investigated, but he did nothing. It is deeply concerning that neither the ANC in Parliament nor the members of the executive have taken any steps since the start of this crisis to resolve the matter. Where is President Zuma? Why has there still been no action on these serious allegations? With every passing day the reputation of one of the most important state institutions is diminished. That should not surprise us. Until such stage as the ANC respects the independence of the NPA it will stumble from one crisis to another. If we as Parliament do nothing we will equally be implicated in the scandalous state of affairs. Thank you. [Applause.]
Mr J MTHEMBU (ANC)
Ms G BREYTENBACH (DA)
DEPICTION OF ANC VOTERS AS DOGS ON TWITTER
(Member's Statement)
Mr J M MTHEMBU (ANC): Deputy Speaker, we were shocked and dismayed, as the ANC when, after the recent elections DA member of Parliament, hon Mike Waters, posted on his twitter account a depiction of ANC voters as dogs. [Interjections.] What is even more worrying is the fact that the DA sees nothing wrong with this. [Interjections.] They have never even called this member of their party to apologise for this disrespectful remark.
This is terrible behaviour on the part of any member of this legislature. This is not only racist and disrespectful to South African voters, but it is our view that it also shows disrespect to the voters and has brought disrepute on this House.
It will therefore be prudent and appropriate for this House, through its relevant committee, to take action against Mr Waters for bringing this House into disrepute. Thank you.
Mr P J GROENEWALD
Mr J MTHEMBU
LAND REFORM AND REDISTRIBUTION
(Member's Statement)
Afrikaans:
Mnr P J GROENEWALD (VF Plus): Agb Adjunkspeaker, in die aanloop tot die verkiesing het die Minister van Landelike Ontwikkeling en Grondhervorming, die agb Nkwinti, uitsprake gemaak in terme van grondhervorming, en aangekondig dat hulle met 'n 50% aandeleskema gaan kom in terme van grondherverdeling.
Die VF Plus wil sê dat dit 'n onverantwoordelike uitspraak was. Dit is 'n uitspraak wat nie behoorlik deurdag is nie, want hierdie tipe van voorstelle skep totale onsekerheid in die landbougemeenskap. Die boere kom na ons toe en sê dat hulle nou eerder in Australië en in ander lande gaan boer, want daar is onsekerheid of hulle nog hul grond het.
Dit het ook 'n nadelige effek op kommersiële banke, wat produksielenings aan boere toestaan waar die grond as sekuriteit moet dien. Hierdie produksielenings word dan bevraagteken in terme van daardie sekuriteit.
Ons doen 'n beroep op die ANC om eers te verseker dat die hervedeling van grond wat reeds gedoen is, en waarvan die Minister erken het 90% 'n mislukking was, eers 'n sukses van gemaak word alvorens daar verder gegaan word met die verdeling van grond.
Tweedens vra die VF Plus dat die agb Minister asseblief, asseblief, nou vir ons die grondoudit moet bring sodat ons kan sien hoeveel wit boere kommersiële landbougrond het, en hoeveel swartes kommersiële landbougrond het. As dit nie daar is nie, kan hy nie teikens stel nie, want dan tas hy in die duister en voel hy in die wolkies rond. Dankie.
Mr X MABASA
Mr P J GROENEWALD
ANC COMMEMORATES 59 YEARS OF THE FREEDOM CHARTER
(Member's Statement)
Xitsonga:
Nkul X MABASA (ANC): Muchaviseki Xandla xa Xipikara, ANC yi tlangela lembe ra vu59 ra Tsalwa ra Ntshuxeko. Nakambe vandla ra ANC ri kombela vaakatiko leswaku va tlangela Tsalwa ra Ntshuxeko hi ti26 Khotavuxika tanihi xitsundzuxo xa malembe ya 59 ri ri kona. Vandla ra ANC ri teka Tsalwa ra Ntshuxeko tanihi pulani leyi yimelaka ntsakelo ni swilaveko swa vaakatiko va Afrika-Dzonga, naswona ri tlhela ri ri teka tanihi xivono lexi xi hambaneke na tipholisi ta xikhale ta xihlawuhlawu.
English:
The Freedom Charter was drawn up during the dark days of apartheid rule, in difficult times and conditions in the history of our country. It was not only formulated as the basic demand for human and political rights, it was also a document that spelled out the kind of society that was envisaged to replace apartheid, including ideals such as sharing the wealth of the country and adequate housing, education and health care for all.
Thus, the 59th anniversary of the Freedom Charter provides an adequate opportunity for all South Africans to celebrate and take pride in the achievement of the freedom that we are enjoying now as we continue our journey to build a united nonracial, nonsexist, prosperous and democratic South Africa - a South Africa that belongs to all who live in it, black and white, united in diversity, as stipulated in the Freedom Charter.
The ANC believes ... Viva ANC! Viva Freedom Charter! [Time expired.] [Applause.]
Ms P T VAN DAMME
Mr X MABASA (ANC)
VIOLENCE IN LWANDLE AND SANRAL DECISION TO EVICT PEOPLE FROM THE LAND
(Member's Statement)
Ms P T VAN DAMME (DA): Hon Deputy Speaker, the DA condemns the violent and inhumane way in which the SA National Roads Agency Limited, Sanral, an entity of the national Department of Transport, evicted people from their homes in Lwandle in the City of Cape Town. This is unacceptable, but Sanral chose to evict people without making the necessary arrangements to accommodate them. It is a disgrace that Sanral chose to carry out these evictions in the middle of winter, right in the middle of a particularly cold spell in Cape Town.
We commend the City of Cape Town for the excellent work it has done to clean up the chaos caused by Sanral. The City of Cape Town had to step in and provide temporary accommodation, food and blankets. We also condemn the manner in which the Human Settlements Minister attempted to score political points in the aftermath of Sanral's act. Her actions were politically motivated, proven by the fact that she ignored other violent evictions that took place in Bokamoso in the Free State during the very week she had attempted to shift the blame for Lwandle.
This was an inhumane exercise carried out to make space for Sanral's distractive e-tolling plans for the Western Cape. We will continue to fight to make sure that every South African can live in dignity and free from e-tolling. [Applause.]
Ms T E KENYE
Ms P T VAN DAMME
ANC WELCOMES HANDING OVER OF 100 RDP HOUSES
(Member's Statement)
Ms T E KENYE (ANC): Hon Deputy Speaker, the ANC welcomes the handing over of 100 Reconstruction and Development Programme, RDP, houses by the City of Johannesburg to shackdwellers of Elias Motsoaledi Informal Settlement in Soweto.
The houses measure 40 square metres and boast insulated ceilings to keep them warm when the temperature drops and keep them cool in summer. There is a concrete apron around the house to channel rainwater instead of the commonly used gutters, downpipes and rainwater drainage.
The handing over of the houses has restored dignity to the beneficiaries of the Elias Motsoaledi Informal Settlement. The beneficiaries will no longer be vulnerable to the wet and cold weather, as well as experience the difficulties of flooding in their shacks.
This initiative is in line with the ANC policy assertion that all South Africans shall live in decent conditions in suitable human settlements, and will further contribute one million housing opportunities for qualifying households over the next five years. I thank you. [Applause.]
MINISTERIAL RESPONSES/MINISTER OF LABOUR
MEMBERS' STATEMENTS/ Ms T E KENYE (ANC)
PLATINUM MINING STRIKE ENDS
(Minister's Response)
IsiZulu:
UNGQONGQOSHE WEZABASEBENZI: Ngiyabonga Sekela Somlomo, sonke asibonge ukuthi isiteleka sasezimayini siphelile. Sekela Somlomo kunemibuzo emine eqondene noMnyango Wezabasebenzi. Ngiyethemba ukuthi uzonginikeza imizuzu eyenele.
Okokuqala, mangiphendule ilungu elihloniphekile u-Ollis ngithi abasebenzi banelungelo lokuteleka. Kufanele afunde isigaba 26(2) soMthethosisekelo waseNingizimu Afrika kanye nesigaba 36(2) esinikeza abasebenzi ilungelo lokuthi bateleke uma bengavumelananga nabaqashi. Okwesibili, kunoMthetho Wobudlelwano Babasebenzi lapha eNingizimu Afrika okunguwona osiza abasebenzi uma bexoxisana nabaqashi kufanele baxoxisane kanjani. Ngakho-ke njengoba i-DA isho ukuthi ivikela uMthethosisekelo kufuneka iwuhloniphe uMthethosisekelo kanye namaLungelo oMthethosivivinywa. Okwesithathu ...
English:
... the ANC's manifesto is very clear in stating that we must investigate the modalities of the national minimum wage. As the Department of Labour, we have started doing that. We are working together with our social partners and I believe that members know how the National Economic Development and Labour Council, Nedlac, and these social partners work. As the Department of Labour, we don't take decisions alone. The hon member is familiar with the International Labour Organisation, ILO. I think other members ...
IsiZulu:
... kufuneka avale imilomo yawo alalele ukuthi kuthiwani ngoba awazi. Kungcono uMnumzane Ollis ngoba useke waba yingxenye ye-ILO [Ubuwelewele.] Okwesine, Somlomo ngithe ngizophendula imibuzo emine ngacela ukuba unginikeze imizuzu eyenele.
SekunesiVumelwano soHlaka lweziNgxoxo zamaHolo esizoyilandela esayindwe yizinyunyana kanye nabaqashi. Okwesihlanu, kunesiVumelwano SoBambiswano ngeziNgxoxo zamaHolo, phecelezi i-Agreement on Central Collective Bargaining, okwavunyelwana ngaso phakathi kwezinkampani zePlatinum kanye nezinyunyana okufaka phakathi i-Amcu ngonyaka owedlule. I-Amcu yase icela ukuba ivunyelwe ukubamba izingxoxo nezinkampani ezintathu. Yingakho kube naleso sivumelwano. Ngicabanga ukuthi ilungu elihloniphekile akufuneki lintaze nencwadi yemiThetho ngoba nami ngiyayazi imiThetho yale Ndlu. Ngiyabonga Sekela Somlomo. [Ihlombe.]
The MINISTER OF JUSTICE AND CORRECTIONAL SERVICES
The MINISTER OF LABOUR
CONCERNS REGARDING PROCESS FOLLOWED IN APPOINTING NATIONAL DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS
(Minister's Response)
The MINISTER OF JUSTICE AND CORRECTIONAL SERVICES: Deputy Speaker, I want to confirm to the hon member of the DA that indeed the matter of the National Director of Public Prosecutions is in hand and is being dealt with in the executive sphere of government.
It would be highly premature for him to propose that the matter serve before this House. Is he not aware of the separation of powers? The law prescribes the manner in which it is to be dealt with. [Interjections.] It is supposed to be dealt with in the executive sphere. So, what's your problem?
Anyway, just to confirm that in due course we shall be in a position to take members of the public into our confidence, and of course, at that point the DA would also be appraised as to the developments with regard to the matter. Stop politicking and speculating about things which are not before you! [Interjections.] Thank you very much.
The MINISTER OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT AND LAND REFORM
The MINISTER OF JUSTICE AND CORRECTIONAL SERVICES
LAND REFORM AND REDISTRIBUTION
(Minister's Response)
Die AJUNKSPEAKER: Bab' uNkwinti, gaan u dit in Afrikaans sê?
The MINISTER OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT AND LAND REFORM: Nee, Adjunkspeaker. Ek gaan nie Afrikaans praat nie.
English:
I will speak in isiXhosa and English. "The white ox has got all the pasture; the black ox has nowhere to graze." John Langalibalele Dube, the first President of the ANC, in responding to the 1913 Natives Land Act, said this. [Interjections.] The situation remains practically the same. So, it is unsustainable and we can't go on with it.
The 1955 Freedom Charter stated that: "Land shall be shared among those who work it." That was stated by the people of South Africa. As black people, particularly African people in the country, we have been bending over backwards. It is time that all of us took responsibility for the progress of all South Africans because South Africa belongs to all who live in it, black and white. [Applause.]
The racial and national disaggregation of the land audit is happening. We are busy with that. Actually, we have done quite a lot of work with regard to it, particularly in the Western Cape to start with, because it is easy to deal with that. [Interjections.] It is easy to deal with that.
Lastly, in the 2010-11 financial year, I agreed that 95% of land which was restored to people was unproductive. That was about four years ago. Today, 27% of that land is productive. In fact, over the last three years, we have produced at least three millionaires – people who have cash in the bank. They are black. [Applause.] We are actually rekindling the class of black commercial farmer which was destroyed by the 1913 Native Land Act. Thank you very much. [Applause.]
The DEPUTY MINISTER OF MINERAL RESOURCES
The MINISTER OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT AND LAND REFORM
PLATINUM MINING STRIKE ENDS
RE-EXAMINATION OF THE LABOUR RELATIONS AMENDMENT BILL
(Minister's Response)
The DEPUTY MINISTER OF MINERAL RESOURCES: Deputy Speaker, members have raised the issue of transformation in the mining industry as a major issue that needs to be looked at. Maybe what we should do is take members back to 2002, when this House passed the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act, MPRDA, as major transformative legislation to ensure that there is transformation in the mining industry.
In 2004, we started a process of 10 years, where we set a target of at least 26% for mining employers in this country, to ensure that there is proper ownership and distribution. Those 10 years ended in May this year. So it is imperative that we know that the law is on our side in ensuring that the single-person hostels are actually converted into family units or bachelor flats; the question of skills and the representation of black people in the senior management of mining is accomplished, as well as the issue of procurement. As we have been doing in the past five years, we are monitoring to ensure that there is total compliance.
We also want to ensure that all the bottlenecks that have been created by municipalities ... because some of the problems that the mining industry has complained about were the regulatory issues in the municipalities ...as far as the housing issues are concerned are dealt with. Some are genuine. I must also add that some of them have done very well, but there are those that are still lagging behind.
As the Department of Mineral Resources, we are quite determined to ensure that there is total transformation and that we enforce compliance with what the law provides. We also want to thank those who participated in ensuring that the strike ends, because the institutions of government and others, especially in the Department of Labour, unions and bosses, have also ensured this success.
I thank the members for raising this matter because it's quite important. Thank you very much. [Applause.]
Mr N A MASONDO
The DEPUTY MINISTER OF MINERAL RESOURCES/Minister's Responses
TRIBUTES TO THE LATE MR M B COETZEE, SECRETARY TO PARLIAMENT
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon members, I believe it is the hon member's maiden speech. [Applause.]
Mr N A MASONDO: Hon Deputy Speaker, hon Ministers and Deputy Ministers present here today, hon members, the Coetzee family, guests and citizens, I, like many others, was shocked and saddened when I heard of Mike's passing, despite having known that he had been suffering from cancer for a long time.
IsiZulu:
Siyaye sithi ngesiZulu ukufa akujwayeleki.
English:
Hardly any family in the world is spared from death, yet every time it occurs we are left with pain and hurt. I have known Mike as an activist of long standing for many years, and he was in my eyes, especially in later years, an exceptional cadre located in the administration and management of Parliament pursuing the same struggle, a better quality of life for all South Africans in general, the working class as well as the poor in particular. To the family we say ...
IsiZulu:
... akwehlanga lungehli. Izinyembezi zenu zingezethu nathi. Njengoba kuye kwenziwe sithi, asibhonge emswaneni.
English:
Please find solace in the fact that his life was lived to the full, and he fought the scourge of cancer with all the courage he could muster, and did so with dignity to the end.
So much has been said about this son of the soil, about his engagement and participation in the struggle for national liberation. So much has been said about his exposure to the black consciousness organisations in his youth and his involvement in setting up a SA Student Movement branch - what is described in his obituary as a crucial influence in shaping his progressive consciousness, namely the death in detention of Steve Bantu Biko in 1977.
He made his mark with his participation - as a BSc student at the University of the Western Cape, known to many in those days as "Bush" - in the political recruitment of students; clandestine discussions and learning groups; the spread of the message of the Freedom Charter as espoused by the ANC; and the never-ending debates on Marxism-Leninism and the understanding of the theory of the revolution and organisation.
His graduation, organically, from student politics or student activities into more mature political action such as the consumer boycotts as experienced in the red meat industry, the Fatti's and Moni's boycott and later his participation in the Hanover Park Civic Association that became part of the Cape Areas Housing Action Committee, popularly known as Cahac.
So much has been said about his recruitment into the ANC underground in 1981. His was a critical, unassuming approach and conduct in a process that led to the formation of the United Democratic Front - working closely with comrades such as Henry Fazi, Derrick Schwartz, Arnold Stofile, Gugile Nkwinti, Stone Sizani, Matthew Goniwe and many others following the historic call by the then President of the ANC, Oliver Reginald Tambo.
We all know of that fateful day of 27 June, when Matthew Goniwe, Fort Calata, Sicelo Mhlauli and Sparrow Mkhonto were assassinated by the security police and their bodies mutilated and burnt beyond recognition. The subsequent display at their funeral in Cradock of the flags of the Communist Party and the ANC that were unfurled in an unparalleled display of defiance led to the declaration of the State of Emergency in 1985, renewed in 1986, 1987 and 1988.
At that time thousands of people were detained and many were severely tortured. Mike was one of them. As we heard at the memorial service and at the funeral, he was hung over the Van Stadens Bridge, in his words, "to instil the fear of God so that you would reveal what they wanted".
Mike was, as we know, also part of the Chemical Industrial Workers Union, CWIU, an affiliate of the Federation of SA Trade Unions, Fosatu, and helped to nudge this federation towards the formation of the Congress of SA Trade Unions, Cosatu.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that all along Mike had distinguished himself as a selfless cadre who acted in the interest of his country and people, a man whose integrity remained intact to the end. There is so much to learn from, and his example of leadership that can be emulated. At the memorial service, the local chairperson of Nehawu spoke of the empathy that Mike had with workers' issues and his ability to engage issues and seek a win-win solution.
Being part of the Gauteng Provincial Legislature and SA national Parliament speaks volumes about Mike's ability to be relevant and plays a meaningful role in different periods of the struggle for national liberation. This he did without losing sight of the context.
This National Assembly is elected to represent the people and to ensure a government by the people under our Constitution. It does this by choosing the President, providing a national forum or platform for public consideration of issues by passing legislation, scrutinising and overseeing executive action. This legislature broadly ensures the making of laws, public involvement and participation as well as accountability.
We can only truly guarantee the legacy of Michael Benjamin Coetzee by doing all the things he lived and died for. Let us continue to improve the quality of life of all our citizens and ensure that the potential of each person is achieved. Let us build a united and democratic South Africa, a South Africa that truly belongs to all who live in it.
So, we salute Mike, the militant young man, community activist, social and political agitator, committed administrator and radical humanist.
IsiZulu:
Sithi yebo ziyofa izinsizwa nezintombi e-Afrika, kepha ziyosala izibongo!
English:
Thank you very much. [Applause.]
Mrs S V KALYAN
Mr N A MASONDO
Mrs S V KALYAN: House Chairperson, it is with much sadness and a very heavy heart that I stand here today on behalf of the DA to pay tribute to Mr Michael Benjamin Coetzee, who passed away after a courageous battle with cancer. When I learnt of his passing, I contacted a senior official to confirm it, and she replied that it was a sad day for the administration of Parliament. I echo that statement and would like to add that we, as parliamentarians, are also poorer for this loss.
Each of us who knew, worked, and socialised with Mr Coetzee had our own individual relationship with him. When I met him some 15 years ago, I was intrigued by his self-confidence and self-assuredness and wondered about the source of it. As I came to know him, I discovered that the confidence came from his vast and comprehensive knowledge. He was a highly efficient person who understood his job and what was required of him. His experience in different work sectors and his impressive struggle credentials equipped him well for the task at hand. His work ethic was impeccable, and he was a disciplinarian of note. He did not let the controversy of his predecessor deter him and, in a short space of time, he restored full confidence to the Office of the Secretary to Parliament in a quiet and dignified manner.
What particularly endeared me to him were his unfailing courtesy, humility, and fairness. Michael handled his diagnosis of cancer in the same way as he did his work. He was both pragmatic and realistic as the disease progressed, and he explored all the treatment options available to him. Although the disease ravaged his body, causing him huge pain and discomfort, he remained resolute, upbeat and cheerful. I could see his laboured breathing and slow footsteps as he led the procession into the Chamber on 21 May, when we were being sworn in. In my heart, I knew it was just a matter of time before he succumbed to his illness. You know, the body and the mind are incredibly intricate machines, and it was sheer willpower and dedication to his job that got him through that day.
Every single one of us seated here today knows of someone or has lost someone dear to cancer. This disease calls on your inner strength in huge doses. It not only ravages the body, but it also takes its toll on the family. It is not easy to see your loved ones suffering the after-effects of chemotherapy or their going bald or losing their appetite and their strength. He spoke often about his family's support, and to Bridgette, his wife, I want to say, he was so proud of your achievements and the fact that he gave you the space to soar. I believe that he was truly the wind beneath your wings. To Matthew, his son, he spoke so proudly of you as well, and I do not think that you could have asked for a more loving and dedicated dad.
Chairperson, I am proud to say that Mr Coetzee enriched my life, and it is truly a pleasure to have counted him not only as a work colleague, but as a friend too.
Dear Michael, your work here is done, my friend. You wore your illness like a badge of honour. I know that your spirit will guide and look over us. Knowing you, you are probably mobilising and signing up all the angels in heaven for some cause or the other. May your soul rest in peace. Om Shanthi, shanthi, shanthi. [Applause.]
Mr G A GARDEE
Mrs S V KALYAN
Mr G A GARDEE: Hon Chair of Chairs, the EFF extends its heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family, colleagues and associates of the late Mr Michael Coetzee, a combatant and a fighter to the end.
SiSwati:
Lalani ngelinceba bakwa-Coetzee, dvudvu nine bekunene.
English:
While going through his obituary at the memorial service that we attended last week, it is clear that a spear had fallen. Many spears have fallen ever since the time of land dispossession and wars of resistance, and some of those spears were not worth picking up. However, this is one spear that must be picked up, just like the spears of our struggle heroes and fighters, Ngungunyane, Hintsa, Dingane, Sekhukhune and many other great martyrs of our heroic struggle.
In the short space of time that we have been present in Parliament, we came to conclude that Mr Michael Coetzee's conduct was the epitome of a nonpartisan public servant. Despite his roots in the life and culture of the party that the EFF contested robustly, he conducted himself impartially, and was not hostile or biased towards the glorious movement of the left. Of particular mention is his readiness to go the extra mile, assisting the EFF's advance team long before other parties landed in Parliament for the swearing-in ceremony.
He directed his officials to leave no stone unturned in ensuring that the EFF was well-orientated prior to the actual on-board training of new members. The EFF is proud of his legacy and looks forward to a continuation of the same by his team consisting of Mr Xaso, Adv Phindela, Mr Mahlangu, Mr Nkuna and Ms Linda Harper. He instructed and directed her to leave no stone unturned in assisting the EFF.
Once upon a time there lived a man called Methuselah. He was born and lived for 969 years. He died, and that is all that can be said of him. However, in Commissar Michael Coetzee, a commissar of the glorious underground structures, trained in Lesotho, no words, pages and times are enough to fully write his story. We dip our banner in salute of a fallen hero.
From Walt Whitman, I read:
My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still;
My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will;
The ship is anchor'd safe and sound, its voyage closed and done;
From fearful trip, the victor ship, comes in with object won;
Exult, O shores, and ring, O bells!
But I, with mournful tread,
Walk the deck my captain lies,
Fallen cold and dead.
We thank you. [Applause.]
Mr N SINGH
Mr G A GARDEE
Mr N SINGH: Hon Chairperson and hon colleagues, on behalf of the IFP, I pay tribute to a remarkable man who served our nation with distinction. Having listened to the words spoken at last week's memorial service, there is no doubt that the late Secretary to Parliament played a significant role in establishing and strengthening democracy.
During the memorial service, I had the privilege of expressing the IFP's admiration for Mr Coetzee. I noted that his passing was somehow unexpected, for even though he had been waging a long fight against cancer, he would always be available, always be in the office and always be hard at work. So, we often forgot that his health was not what it should be.
Cancer didn't slow him down, but neither did it make him self-focused or less patient with those around him. We in the IFP experienced his cordial efficiency time and again. And we admired the way he performed his duties with such dignity and fairness.
Having already expressed our admiration and our deepest condolences, I would like to honour Mr Michael Coetzee today by challenging us to fight for individuals like him, those who are fighting for their lives against a formidable, but beatable disease.
Millions of South Africans are living with cancer, and many are dying, not because of cancer, but because of its treatment. This is close to my heart for I lost both my parents to cancer, while my wife and mother-in-law are in remission. I know that many in this House can relate to this, for you would have friends or relatives that have also gone through this dreaded disease.
Cancer is set to claim more lives than HIV and Aids. It is fast becoming the pandemic of this generation, yet the medical profession has found no cure and is treating cancer with a standard protocol that has proven ineffective, generally debilitating and often fatal. Our laws will not allow them to look elsewhere, or try something new even in the face of promising results. Thus the IFP, through the hon Dr Mario Oriani-Ambrosini, is challenging this House to change the legislation. We are challenging government to adopt and consider the Medical Innovation Bill and pilot it to implementation.
The Bill enables doctors to offer alternative treatments to people like Mr Coetzee, who could not be cured by conventional treatment, but may have been helped to live longer and more comfortably if the law had allowed it. This Bill is not just about decriminalising and liberalising cannabis for medical and industrial use, it's also about allowing the Minister of Health to authorise, establish and resource pilot, innovative cancer treatment centres where doctors are allowed to administer innovative, unproven but harmless cancer treatments wherever other treatments cannot provide a cure, and on the basis of the patient's informed consent.
This is about making South Africa a global leader in cancer research and treatment, and it's about supporting the National Health Insurance initiative. One was heartened to hear the deputy secretary-general of the ANC, Ms Jessie Duarte, saying at the memorial service last week that our government should indeed invest more in cancer research.
As legislators, let us commit to fighting cancer and to enabling those who can to find a cure. Let us do this in honour of Mr Michael Coetzee and millions others. Let us not allow his passing, and that of many others, to have been in vain. It is said, when one closes one's eyes, it should open the eyes of others. Let us commit to being those eyes. Thank you. [Applause.]
Mr A M SHAIK EMAM
Mr N SINGH
Mr A M SHAIK EMAM: Hon Chairperson, hon Ministers and Deputy Ministers present today, hon Members of Parliament, members of the gallery and of the media, I stand here before you today on behalf of the NFP to pay tribute to the late Secretary to Parliament, Michael Benjamin Coetzee.
Some of us may remember the late Michael Coetzee as the Secretary to Parliament and others may remember him for different portfolios he held whilst employed by Parliament. There is so much to the name Michael Coetzee - an academic, a unionist who represented South Africa at different levels of engagement with different representatives from different countries.
We are seated here today as a result of sacrifices made by many South Africans to liberate us from the inhuman prejudice of the past. One such South African was none other than the late Michael Benjamin Coetzee. His commitment to the struggle for a free South Africa, in which all South Africans can live side by side in one united South Africa and be treated with dignity and respect, is evident in his refusal to testify against our late struggle icon Oliver Tambo. His detention was testimony to his fight for a free South Africa.
Although he was detained and subpoenaed to appear in court in 1983, he refused to testify, as a result of which he was identified as a hostile witness. He committed himself until the final days of his life. Such was the character of our late Michael Benjamin Coetzee.
On behalf of the NFP, our leader, the Deputy Minister of Science and Technology, V Z Msibi, and the national executive committee of the NFP, we extend our deepest condolences to the family of the late Secretary to Parliament, Michael Benjamin Coetzee. May Almighty God grant you the strength and courage to overcome this great loss.
To our late Secretary, Michael Coetzee, rest in peace, our comrade, colleague, our struggle icon and hero. May you be blessed with the highest abode in heaven! I thank you. [Applause.]
Mr M L W FILTANE
Mr A M SHAIK EMAM
Mr M L W FILTANE: Hon Deputy Speaker, hon members, Ministers and Deputy Ministers here present, this is a message from the UDM.
It is indeed an honour for us as a party to be accorded this opportunity to pay tribute to a stalwart as great and grand as Michael, the former Secretary to Parliament. When death strikes, families freeze. This Parliament was no different from his personal family, because we are part of that family of his.
We highly appreciate the opportunity, particularly regarding the fact that we are here talking about a man of such stature by his deeds. Shakespeare writes thus about such circumstances in life:
There is a tide in the affairs of man,
Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune ...
Another South African leader, who may not be popular nowadays, said, "there are consequences which are too ghastly to contemplate".
Parliament took the tide, which was in the form of Michael, and that is why we are here today. Wise parliamentarians of the early 2000s identified that tide in Mr Coetzee, and they took it at its flood. As South Africans, we are benefiting from his great mind. So is the world. Michael was that axis. He was that backbone. He was indeed that light. During his time, I am told, trains ran on time.
In his epitaph, if we were to be given the opportunity, as parliamentarians, we would steal a line or two from Thomas Gray, and scribble:
Full many a gem of purest ray serene
The dark, unfathomed caves of ocean bear ...
That is what should go in his epitaph.
The period from 2002 to 2012 was particularly painful, whilst, at the same time, being a period of growth on the part of this Parliament that we are. It was painful in the sense that that was when he started to become ill, and slowly his membranes could not take it anymore.
This brings us to the vital point that a normal human being is composed of four elements. Three of those are the body, the brain and the spirit. While his body succumbed, albeit slowly, his brain kept on generating great ideas, and now, his spirit will linger on for years to come.
What a unique birth when he was born! What a priceless contribution during his life! What a life he led. What a Parliament he helped to develop. Alas, what a loss to the nation!
To the family, we say, as Robert H Schuller did: "Tough times never last. Tough people do. Be tough."
Thank you. [Applause.]
Dr C P MULDER
Mr M L W FILTANE
Dr C P MULDER: Hon Chairperson, we have heard from colleagues from different parties today about the life of Mr Coetzee. Now, normally, we have motions of condolence for Members of Parliament and we remember some of our colleagues. It is different today, however, because it is one of our senior officials. It is the Secretary to Parliament, and I don't think that this has happened since we arrived in 1994.
All our colleagues have basically paid tribute to the life of Mr Coetzee. In the end, regardless of his struggles and where he came from, he acted as the Secretary to Parliament. He fulfilled that role as Secretary to Parliament in such a dignified way, in which he treated all members equally, obviously, and he did his job in such a sterling way that everybody was quite happy and rather excited to have Mr Coetzee become Secretary to Parliament under very difficult circumstances a couple of years ago.
Afrikaans:
Ek wil van die VF-Plus se kant af aan die mense wat eintlik vandag vir my saak maak 'n paar woorde rig – en dit is die familie van mnr Coetzee. As ons vandag hier klaar gepraat het, dan gaan ons aan met ons werksaamhede en ons gaan aan met ons program, maar dit is sy familie en sy nagelatenes wat huistoe gaan en mnr Coetzee is nog steeds nie daar nie.
Ek wil aan hulle sê ons dink aan hulle in 'n moeilike tyd. Dit is nie maklik nie. Daar gaan moeilike dae wees, maar u kan gerus huistoe gaan en weet dat u geliefde sy deel gedoen het. Hy het sy werk verrig met waardigheid en met eer. Hy het opgetree met respek in hierdie Parlement en almal eer hom vir daardie gedagtenis. Baie sterkte vir u in die moeilike tye wat voor mag lê, maar weet dat ons ook van die Parlement se kant af, as lede, sal dink aan u en ook steeds hulde sal bring aan die nagedagtenis van mnr Coetzee. Baie dankie. [Applous.]
Mr M G P LEKOTA
Dr C P MULDER
Mr M G P LEKOTA: Chairperson, Comrade Mike Coetzee left this world as he lived his life – he left quietly, and he had served quietly. He never sought the limelight, but he was always there where work had to be done to advance the cause of democratising South Africa.
I recall him well from the launch of the United Democratic Front back in August 1983. In our campaign he worked to build the United Democratic Front in the Eastern Cape. We were recruiting communities, civics, business formations, and church formations. He was very helpful, guiding us in areas that we did not know, ensuring that he identified people who would be critical to making this task a success.
Michael was an accomplished public servant in that sense, even at that time, because to identify people in society, however different the roles they play, who can nevertheless be brought together to form a current that will change things for the better, is not an easy thing to achieve. Yet, he had this capacity. He was one of the leading activists, very young, generally self-effacing, but his influence was always telling.
Public servants are those people. They do not want to be known for their political views or how brilliant they can be or this, that or the other. They want to take all the different people and take them in a direction that shapes a society. That was Comrade Michael.
I know that, as we go to the elections, we never think about these kinds of people who don't want to be known for who they support, where their views are, but who are concerned that when the people have elected who must lead the country, they will bring their skills, their know-how, their dedication and hard work to ensure that those policies for which the people have voted are implemented, and therefore that the country and the people succeed. That is what makes a public servant.
I think, as we talk here today, that we must reflect quietly on how much we owe the men and women who do this. We do not even know what exactly their views are, and so on. However, they ensure that when we get here, each one of us gets water if we need it. Each one of us has paper and a pen if we need it, and so on. Those are the critical people who sustain governments and administrations. The political leaders come and they pass through. Administrations remain in place. They are an essential element that stays from term to term, serving the people selflessly.
Today, we are remembering one of the best amongst us. I hope that our Department of the Public Service and Administration can continue to build and cultivate this culture so that we produce an outstanding generation of public servants that will sustain our democracy, even when it comes to political advice on the things that need to be done, to sustain the Constitution and therefore the democracy. They are the vital elements.
He died young, and as our forebears and elders say...
Sesotho:
Sejana se se tle ha se jele...
English:
... because people put it there; they admire it, and before you can use it, you know, it may fall and break, and then we lose it. What it really means is that extremely useful, productive people who understand their mission tend to die far too early.
I say this because our democracy is still growing. I hope we can find a substitute of his calibre. May God rest his soul in peace. [Applause.]
Rev R K J MESHOE
Mr M G P LEKOTA
Rev R K J MESHOE: House Chairperson, hon members, on behalf of the ACDP, I wish to convey our deepest condolences to the family and friends of the late Michael Coetzee, especially to his beloved wife, Bridgette, his son, Matthew, and his mother.
In support of today's Order on the Order Paper, I also want to pay my respects to and honour an extraordinary man, a man who earned the admiration and respect of members of all political parties, parliamentary staff, his colleagues, and all who knew him. Our former, late Secretary to Parliament, Michael Coetzee, undoubtedly left behind a memorable and enviable legacy.
A motion that was moved by the Chief Whip of the Majority Party regarding the appointment of Mr Coetzee to serve as Secretary to Parliament in October 2012 is testament to this legacy. His appointment was unanimously approved by the National Assembly and the NCOP after his exemplary leadership as Deputy Secretary for 12 years. It was easy for members to reach this unanimous decision, because members of both Houses had come to know his work ethic, passion, competence, diligence and commitment to the efficient running of the institution of Parliament.
Michael Coetzee accepted the appointment to serve as Secretary to Parliament even though he was already ill, because he wanted to finish the good work he had started in the transition process from the Fourth to the Fifth Parliament. Even though concerns about his health were raised by his family, who would have preferred him to retire and spend more time at home, recuperating, he continued to work regardless.
His commitment, passion and diligence were unwavering. He successfully led his team to put in place the necessary administrative mechanisms and instruments for the functioning of the new term of Parliament. The ACDP will always remember Michael Coetzee for his humility, friendliness, approachability, discipline and professionalism.
To his wife, his son and all family members, we want to thank you for giving Michael Coetzee to Parliament, and also for giving him the space he needed to contribute towards building and entrenching democratic values in our Parliament. May the Lord bless you all, comfort you, and heal your broken hearts in this time of tremendous loss. I thank you. [Applause.]
Mr M M TSHISHONGA
Rev K R J MESHOE
Mr M M TSHISHONGA: Hon Chairperson, hon Ministers and Deputy Ministers, hon members of the House and ladies and gentlemen, I am not sure whether you know that there are people who do not die. While death is a common denominator, there are two kinds of people. The first kind is born, they eat, they grow up and they create problems. No one remembers them. The others, like Michael Coetzee - by the way he is my namesake - was not one of the above. He was born, he ate, grew up and served humanity by providing solutions. He had the correct self-knowledge to serve humanity. He was a real servant.
I engaged with him for only two days, but I learnt a lot from him. We had an appointment to meet the following day, but he was no more. However, as I have said, he is still alive. He had love. It is said that service is love made visible and, indeed, he manifested that.
Xitsonga:
Hi Xitsonga hi ri: "Mitirho ya vulavula". Mitirho ya Michael Coetzee ya vulavula naswona yi ta ya emahlweni yi vulavula.
English:
Someone said: "Whoever knows the all and possesses the all, but fails to serve humanity lacks everything." Michael Coetzee was not one of them.
Our deepest condolences go to Mr Coetzee's family. May he rest in peace. We know that he lives on. Thank you. [Applause.]
Mr N T GODI
Mr M M TSHISHONGA
Mr N T GODI: Chairperson, comrades and hon members, I rise on behalf of the APC and, indeed, on my own behalf to express our condolences to Mr Coetzee's family, relatives, colleagues and comrades. Your pain is our collective pain for, in the African tradition, we share the joy, we share the pain.
Mr Coetzee was an honourable man. He was honourable, not as a meaningless or arbitrary title, but through concrete practice and by force of example, in the first instance, as a freedom fighter, where he distinguished himself as a brave, dedicated and committed activist. It was in the dangerous, yet fulfilling course of the struggle that his character was formed. It was in the crucible of struggle that his consciousness was broadened, thus preparing him for the national responsibilities he was to assume later.
As we celebrate freedom, it is the memory of activists like Mr Coetzee that we should never forget. There is no doubt that Mr Coetzee served Parliament well, firstly, as the Deputy Secretary and later as the Secretary to Parliament. His tenure at the helm of Parliament's administration had no noticeable controversies or upheavals.
Therefore, the APC hopes that those he has left behind will continue to run this important institution of our country in a way that honours his memory. We must all serve with humility, dignity and integrity, as Mr Coetzee did. Mr Coetzee was indeed a true leader and it was with people like him in mind that Sobukwe described true leadership, and I quote:
True leadership demands the complete subjugation of self, uprightness of character, integrity, courage and fearlessness and above all a consuming love for one's people.
May his soul rest in peace. I thank you. [Applause.]
Debate concluded.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): That concludes the speakers' list. The presiding officers associate themselves with the sentiments expressed by the members of this House on this matter.
HOUSE CHAIRPERSON/PAN-AFRICAN PARLIAMENTa
Mr N T GODI
ELECTION OF MEMBERS OF PAN-AFRICAN PARLIAMENT
(Announcement)
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon members, I wish to remind you that of the five members nominated to the Pan-African Parliament, three are nominated from the majority party and three from the minority parties.
The following nominations were received for election as members of the Pan-African Parliament: Dr Z P Jordan, ANC; Ms T C memela, ANC; Dr H Mateme, ANC; Ms S V Kalyan, DA, and Mr N F Shivambu, EFF.
There were no further nominations.
Dr Z P Jordan, ANC; Ms T C Memela, ANC; Dr H Mateme, ANC; Ms S V Kalyan, DA; and Mr N F Shivambu, EFF, accordingly elected as members of the Pan-African Parliament.
The CHIEF WHIP OF MAJORITY PARTY/
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON/PAN-AFRICAN PARLIAMENT
DESIGNATION 0F REPRESENTATIVES OF PARLIAMENT IN SADC PARLIAMENTARY FORUM
(Draft Resolution)
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Chairperson, I move:
That the following members be designated to represent Parliament in the SADC Parliamentary Forum in terms of article 6(3) of the forum: Ms B Mbete, Speaker; Mr M S A Masango, ANC; Ms E M Coleman, ANC; Mr S Mokgalapa, DA; and Mr A M Shaik, NFP.
Agreed to.
Ms B Mbete, Speaker; Mr M S A Masango, ANC; Ms E M Coleman, ANC; Mr S Mokgalapa, DA; and Mr A M Shaik Emam, NFP accordingly designated to represent Parliament in the SADC parliamentary Forum.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON/JUDICIAL SERVICE COMMISSION
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON/ SADC PARLIAMENTARY FORUM REPRESENTATIVES
DESIGNATION OF MEMBERS TO JUDICIAL SERVICE COMMISSION
(Draft Resolution)
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): The election of members to the Judicial Service Commission takes place in terms of section 178(1)(h)of the Constitution. Six of the members of the Judicial Service Commission are designated from among the members of the NA. Section 178(1)(h) further determines that three of those designated members must be members of the opposition parties represented in the Assembly. I now call on the Chief Whip of the Majority Party to move a motion on the designation of members to the Judicial Service Commission.
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Hon Chairperson, I move:
That the House designates the following members to the Judicial Service Commission: Dr M S Motshekga, ANC; Ms A T Didiza, ANC; Mr D P Magadzi, ANC; Mr H C Schmidt, DA; Ms J S Malema, EFF, and Mr N Singh, IFP.
Agreed to.
Dr M S Motshekga, ANC; Ms A T Didiza, ANC; Mr D P Magadzi, ANC; Mr H C Schmidt, DA; Ms J S Malema, EFF, and Mr N Singh, IFP accordingly designated to the Judicial Service Commission.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON/ MAGISTRATES COMMISSION
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON/JUDICIAL SERVICE COMMISSION
DESIGNATION OF MEMBERS TO MAGISTRATES COMMISSION
(Draft Resolution)
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Chairperson, I move:
That the House designate the following members to the Magistrates Commission: Mr M D Kekana, ANC; Ms C C September, ANC; Mr W Horn, DA; and Mr A M Tshishonga, Agang SA.
Agreed to.
Mr M D Kekana, ANC; Ms C C September, ANC; Mr W Horn, DA; and Mr A M Tshishonga, Agang SA, accordingly designated to the Magistrates Commission.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick)/Debate on Youth Day
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY/MAGISTRATES COMMISSION
20 YEARS OF DEMOCRACY: TOGETHER ADVANCING YOUTH DEVELOPMENT AND EMPOWERMENT
(Debate on Youth Day)
Mrs G K TSEKE: House Chairperson, firstly let me convey my sincere regards to you all in memory of the class of 1976. I am immensely honoured to participate in this debate in memory of the fallen martyrs of the class of 1976. Their resilience and superb conviction to die for the principle they so religiously believed in serve as a lifetime motivation that calls on us to continue to realise the vision of a fully free and democratic society. We will not fail in our cause to do so.
This task becomes an easy one to execute because we as the ANC are the toughest, evergreen branches of the tree, rooted in the true African soil, a tree that continues to be nurtured and nourished by the blood of the likes of Solomon Mahlangu, Hector Pieterson, Hastings Ndlovu, Lily Mithi and an endless list of true soldiers in the combat line. They passed on with their boots poised to tread the then promising path to freedom.
Hon Chairperson, in my reflection throughout this debate, I challenge you, hon members, through the hon Speaker, to bow our heads in honour of their spirit and shout from the rooftops, saying: Your drumming voices amidst the struggle still echo the fresh call to continue to consolidate our acts together as a nation and to preserve the glue that holds us together across racial lines, free from prejudice and all forms of discrimination. We dare not fail in this regard.
Our resolute decision to commemorate the tragic events of 16 June 1976 was not in vain. It was informed by, among others, historic importance as a reminder of the painful passage that the African people have travelled to attain freedom. The decision also had multi-prolonged benefits for South African society, and the youth in particular.
Hon members, the purpose of this afternoon's discussion is located in the historic impact of the commemoration of June 16 year in and year out. A litany of racial laws promulgated by the apartheid regime triggered a lot of discomfort for the African people in the seventies, especially that of Bantu education, the education system that was designed to train and fit Africans for their role in the newly evolving apartheid society. In 1953, the Bantu Education Act of 1953 was promulgated as a pillar among apartheid projects to separate black South Africans from the main, well-resourced, education system. Among other things, this law was one of the many measures used by the apartheid regime to cause South African blacks to receive an inferior education, one that would merely prepare them for manual jobs.
In 1974, for example, the racist government gave the instruction that Afrikaans, alongside with English, should be the medium of instruction in schools. As a reaction to this, black South African students began mobilising themselves to fight this unjust practice by the then government. On 16 June 1976, between 3 000 and 10 000 students were successfully mobilised by the South African Student Movement Action to stage a peaceful march in protest against the use of Afrikaans as the medium of instruction.
The trigger-happy police then started shooting randomly at the students. Amongst those in the frontline and the first casualties were the late Hector Pieterson, Lily Mithi and Hastings Ndlovu. From that moment, the streets of Soweto became the battlefield characterised by skirmishes between the police and students. From Soweto these tragic events mushroomed into the neighbouring townships like Tembisa, Kagiso and other parts of the country.
Workers were persuaded to stage a strike by mounting pickets at the railway station and bus terminus. Summarily, South Africa became a bloodbath, which was triggered and provoked by the racist and oppressive regime.
The young and innocent learners who are friends across the racial lines must be encouraged to remember that there was a time in this country when they could not be friends because they could not attend the same school. They could not stay in the same areas. They could not play at the same facilities. They must know this uncomfortable part of their heritage so that it shall never again be that they will ever be subjugated merely on account of their skin colour.
They must know that there was a time in South Africa when they were compelled to learn in a foreign language. They must know that there was once a gallant generation of fighters whose image and embodiment is the late Hector Pieterson and his many other living contemporaries, and that these forebears of the youth today resisted with everything at their disposal, including their lives, the imposition of Afrikaans as a language of learning and teaching. It is necessary that the youth of today should understand the historical context of some of the many problems which were caused by apartheid. They must know all these truths so that they can be vigilant to the misguided rhetoric of present-day peacetime warriors who distort history and project the ANC-led government as the cause of problems when it is engaged in cleansing the longest trail of colonialist baggage in Africa.
The youth must know that there was a time in South Africa when young black students could not further their education, a time when the doors of learning and culture were closed to them because they could not afford a university education. We must tell the youth that it is the ANC whose policies addressed these injustices of lack of access to education when it declared that their circumstances of birth would not determine their destiny. These truths must be told. Parents must also take responsibility to lead their children to an appreciation of their identity and essence. The profoundly rich African heritage of bedtime stories and fireplace anecdotes, fables and idioms must be rekindled even as we embrace modern-day play stations and social media platforms as forms of entertainment and engagement. Central to the act of learning is a people's language. In this regard, we have a long way to go in teaching the youth to love and appreciate their languages. After all, June 16 was about asserting one's identity and refusing to be subjugated through language. [Applause.]
At this date and time, we cannot whinge and whine and thus continue to deepen the cracks of racist tendencies, as perpetuated by the previous regime. We can only learn the positive lessons from the Soweto Uprising as outlined briefly. Hopefully you would agree with the ANC that events such as these are a good reminder of the realities that have made South Africa what it is today. Let the memory of the struggle heroines and heroes continue to inspire our youth to struggle for a South Africa where poverty, unemployment and equality will not be their legacy and heritage in years to come.
On one level, the commemoration of this day should be the glue that holds us together as a nation as we curse the bitter and painful past and say in unison: Our country will never ever be the same again. [Applause.]
Surely, commemoration of this day must be converted into a powerful instrument for nation-building, reconciliation and a convenient way of fostering social cohesion. It is true that all South Africans across all racial lines are the products of a true African womb. We must therefore learn to unite now more than at any other time before, because we managed to survive against all odds. By way of illustration, hon members will recall that the cynics and soothsayers made countless pronouncements that South Africa would plunge into civil war prior to the first democratic elections. What happened?
Who can forget the cynical statements about the lack of readiness and security prior to our hosting of the 2010 FIFA World Cup? Instead, we had a very successful World Cup in 2010.
Setswana:
Re bana ba mpa e le nosi, ga re ka ke ra kgaoganngwa ke sepe. Motswana o buile a re sedikwa ke ntšwapedi ga se thata, e bile 'tau di senang seboka di siiwa ke none e tlhotsa.
English:
No one can dispute that the exemplary spirit and tone set by the class of 1976 left a lasting inspiration for the young people of South Africa to actively take a keen interest in matters affecting them, especially in education. Commemorating this day is a very important anchor in the historical account of our past, which will always be part of us, but will never discourage us from looking forward to a better future.
By way of illustration, hon members will recall that there are strong and progressive student representative councils in institutions of higher learning. We also have a progressive Youth Alliance, which is very active, that consists of young people from different structures, and is able to deal with issues affecting people in education, unemployment, and other challenges in our country.
Commemoration of June 16 also helps to weave the social thread by organising and taking part in sporting and cultural activities that take place to foster racial unity, which help to mature our democracy, and, most importantly, deepen the efforts of reconciliation. Through constructive debates and cultural events scheduled for the commemoration of 16 June, society and youth in particular, are exposed to practices of a cultural nature among different races. This, therefore, makes solid the strides made by the ANC-led government of building a nonracial, nonsexist and democratic South Africa.
A series of events to celebrate the June 16 Uprising organised throughout the country therefore becomes a convenient catalyst to encourage tolerance and mutual existence and of diverse cultures being showcased. This stark reminder of the role played by the youth inspires us to join hands and attend all activities to pay homage to the fallen heroes and heroines by actively participating in sports.
One more important dimension of the commemoration of June 16 annually lies in the centrality of its importance with regard to how it could contribute to the changed face of our education system. To commemorate this eventful and tragic day is to acknowledge the historical value it bears to current society. In other words, the true history of South African politics is incomplete without a comprehensive narrative of the events of 16 June 1976.
It is a breaking point that remains a treasure in our education, and thus needs to be preserved. We can neither archive nor hide the stark reality of the enormous importance that the Soweto Uprisings had for the South African landscape. It has to be retold both as an oral history as well as a written one.
We have the backing that guarantees our right to commemorate important dates in our history. We are therefore encouraged to use this opportunity to learn a lot from the determination of the Class of 1976 as we commemorate this day.
Honourable Speaker, I affirm that the ANC-led government's decision to set aside time to reflect on the day in this debate, as an annual event, is a step in the right direction as it rekindles the rich treasure of the early days in the conception of our current democracy. It is a good story to tell and a good story to keep and transfer to all generations.
There is a dire need to conduct unconscious political education, and the correction of distorted facts is necessary. It is in the commemoration of such events that distorted historical facts are corrected at open public events organised by the government. Such a progressive and beneficial opportunity must not be missed and that is why I, on behalf of the ANC-led government, a party voted for by 62% of South Africans, urge all members and sectors of society to attend the commemoration of such events. It is an opportunity never to be missed.
Finally, a few days ago we all learnt that there are some who proclaim to hail from Soweto. Well, I guess that by now they must have had a very informed and reliable political baptism. They would therefore not grace this podium and whinge about the challenges that we all are aware of. We know the challenges facing youth as well as society.
I therefore expect them to be part of the constructive debate, as stated by the President of this country in his state of the nation address, by opening up to the realities around the need to jointly commemorate this eventful day to remind ourselves of the fact that we, as mankind, can rise above an oppressive and limiting environment and achieve what is good for our common good.
Members of this esteemed House, the days of whingeing and whining are gone. We need to join hands and build this nation together and continue being the social glue that helps in building the nation. Let us be part of the commemoration as one nation with a common history and destiny. We do this to leave a legacy, not to be compared with anyone else. As the ANC, we will expose the flame to those who still prefer the darkest passages. I refer to those on the left. The ANC lives and the ANC leads! This government is ready to take the youth forward. [Applause.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): The next speaker is the hon Mr Y Cassim, who is delivering his maiden speech. [Applause.]
Mr Y CASSIM
Ms G K TSEKE
Mr Y CASSIM: Hon Chairperson, this debate is in honour and remembrance of the youth of 1976, who rose up against the system that saw fit to use education as a means of oppression. The surest way to empower our youth is through quality accessible education. This includes access to higher education and training, the absence of which is oppressive to the majority of our young people even today.
This was most sadly illustrated in January this year, when half of the qualifying young people had their dreams, hopes and aspirations shattered by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme, NSFAS, shortfall debacle. Their calls and cries rang hollow at thetime, as hollow and empty as the bench of the hon Minister Blade Nzimande, who is not present with us in this important debate.
I stand here today, having dedicated my life to this struggle, to carry the hopes and dreams of our young members to the very benches of this Parliament. I stand here today not to fight, like some, for medical aid schemes, but to fight for the future of the people of our country and for the future of our country as a whole. [Interjections.]
I stand here to fight for Lebohang, a young woman who, three months into the semester at the University of Venda, received an SMS from NSFAS, telling her that although she qualifies for higher education, her government will not provide for her. She mandated me to ask the hon Nzimande what she should do. Should she continue attending classes, with nowhere to live, no food to eat and no money to register? Or should she travel back to Tzaneen without any taxi fare, back to her family and village, which has already celebrated her admission into university? [Interjections.] I find it sad and ironic that the name Lebohang, translated from the Sesotho language, means "be grateful".
I will address the hon Nzimande in his conspicuous absence. Hon Nzimande, Lebohang, like hundreds and thousands of young South Africans who were failed in this fashion and in other ways, has very little to be grateful for. You, hon Minister, are directly responsible. You knew that the NSFAS budget was insufficient to allow our people to pursue their future and build our country. You were warned countless times, but chose instead to ignore these warnings and to focus your political efforts on yourself and the hon President Jacob Zuma.
What is your plan, hon Minister? Next year, 50% of NSFAS applicants who were turned away at the beginning of this year will have to compete with a new batch of matriculants to pursue their future in the absence of a meaningful free higher education for poor students. This is why urgent action is needed. All you have done is burn through years with working groups upon working groups and committees whilst an entire generation is becoming confined to the fringes of our society. [Applause.]
Young South Africans cannot afford to wait for government to catch up to their needs. In the absence of any substantive plan, hon members, let me assist you with one. The DA has already developed a plan which will make free higher education for poor qualifying matriculants a reality. This starts by ensuring that R16 billion is urgently made available so that no student is prevented from furthering their studies just because they cannot afford to do so. [Interjections.]
This, by the way, is a constitutional imperative that this government has failed to practice. The entire cost of this funding must be converted into a bursary on the completion of a student's studies so that they are not burdened with a debt plus interest just because they come from a poor background.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Yes hon member, what is your point of order?
Mr Y CASSIM: It's a waste of my time Chair. Please ...
Ms N R MOKOTO: Hon Chairperson, I want to ask whether it is parliamentary to be aggressive, as they are being when members presenting their maiden speeches. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T FROLICK): Order, order hon members! Order! I indicated when the hon member took the podium that it is a maiden speech. However, it is his choice if he wants to be aggressive or if he wants to be interjected, as then that is part of the debate. And that is why there have been a number of interjections coming from the benches. Hon member, you have 30 seconds to complete your speech.
Mr Y CASSIM: Furthermore, the state must stand surety for loans for needy students who do not qualify for NSFAS. I invite you, hon members, to learn from the DA's alternative budget, which shows this is workable. [Interjections.] The amount of R21,4 billion can be saved by streamlining government departments as well as their projects; R30 billion can be saved by simply cutting corruption. Educating its citizens is the best investment a country can make.
The returns in revenue and economic growth are over one and eleven-fold respectively. There is no good reason why free higher education for poor qualifying students is delayed and continues to be delayed. There are only bad reasons. There is only a neglectful government. Thank you. [Time expired.][Applause.]
Mr M Q NDLOZI
Mr Y CASSIM
Mr M Q NDLOZI: Hon House Chair, fellow hon members, salutations to the Commander-in-Chief, and the people of South Africa. I would like also to salute the generation of 1976, who were the ancestors of the fighters that we went to salute when we formed the EFF before going to Marikana to salute the current fallen heroes who are fighting for economic emancipation in their lives. [Applause.]
We have been asked today to come and debate youth development. Let me first begin by describing and defining what the youth is. The youth is a generation of people who are in transition between childhood dependency and adulthood independence. This transition is largely about economics, where we enable a generation to succeed in becoming truly economically self-sufficient.
In South Africa, though, this has not been the case for many decades, particularly for black people. In particular, we know that black people have been working under precarious conditions for many years. Under apartheid the state ensured through the migrant labour system, firstly, but also through many laws that black people do not work under decent labour conditions. They work without pension funds, without medical aid schemes, housing allowances, and without prospects for education or to educate their children. This is not an accident or a dysfunction of an economic system. It was actually designed that way.
The apartheid government needed to make sure that at all times there are masses of black people who are available as cheap and easily disposable labour. It trapped for the longest possible period the majority of black people as permanent juniors. Therefore we call this process the process of "permanent juniorisation". You trap black people as people who must constantly be unable to be economically self-sufficient ... [Appluase.]... to depend on grants, to always live at the feet, begging for the crumbs that fall from the master's table.
The past twenty years, what has the democratic state done to crush this legacy of shameful black living and of blacks who cannot be proud of their lives? Firstly, the democratic government has kept that process of permanent juniorisation consistently uninterrupted. They have become part of those people who make sure that at all times capitalists find available en masse black people who are cheap and easily disposable.
How have they done this? They did this through the consistent and unapologetic, uninterrupted implementation of neoliberal policies. What are these policies? They are flexible labour, to make sure that the many people in this country who work in Edgars, who work in Shoprite, remain under labour brokers. What does that guarantee? Cheap and easily disposable black labour.
Secondly, they have ensured that and they celebrate it. They call for, from Growth, Employment and Redistribution, Gear, to the NDP, low wages. They have made it a point that the wages are low so that capital is able to celebrate coming to invest in South Africa, because it knows that it does not have to be responsible for preying on our people. They have kept them there, low, because the purpose of the democratic government is no different from the purpose of the apartheid government, and that is to make sure that as many as possible black people are available in their numbers as cheap and easily disposable labour.
Lastly, by the way, the majority of the workforce earns R3 300 or less. Under the ANC government as well, the unemployment rate has risen from 15% in 1994 to 35% today, or 37% – depending on which statistics you read - and the majority of these remain the youth, who are largely black young people.
According to Stats SA's labour market survey of 2014, this month, of those who are employed, young people are more likely to be employed on a contract of limited duration than on a permanent contract. The share of young people employed on a permanent contract also declined over the period 2008 to 2012 from 53,6% to 21,6%.
Members of the ruling party will come here to celebrate the Expanded Public Works Programme, EPWP, which is a programme of constantly availing, at the very lowest price, masses of black people and they make it a priority of the black youth to work at menial labour, the jobs that apartheid always wanted them to do, low-paid and on a temporal contract, because they must always be available at cheap rates, and they must be easily dismissible. [Applause.]
Capitalism in South Africa never wants to pay wages. And the terrified ANC government has now even made the offer to pay on their behalf the wages of our people. They have offered to take the taxpayers' money to pay them through what they call the youth wage subsidy. [Applause.] Why does the ANC government not force companies to pay decent wages and employ people directly on decent contracts, where they pay them and make sure that they have money to take their children to school; pay them decent wages to make sure that at all times they are able to have quality health care. They don't do that, because they are terrified. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
Mr M HLENGWA
Mr M Q NDLOZI
Mr M HLENGWA: Hon House Chairperson, unfortunately the youth of South Africa, 2014, do not have a good story to tell. Twenty years into our freedom and democracy, education is just as bad as it was in 1976. They are receiving poor quality education on your watch, hon Minister Motshekga. A 30% pass rate and you expect them to become something in life, yet the people who struggled for this country come to this very podium and tell us that: "We have got a good story to tell." [Laughter.] What good story is there to tell when we have over four million young South Africans who are unemployed? They come here and tell us that we must wage a new struggle. What struggle 20 years into our freedom and democracy? No sane, thinking person must accept that young people must struggle in a free and democratic South Africa and go through what the youth of 1976 had to go through under an oppressive regime. Why is this government adopting those tendencies and oppressing the young people of this country, forcing them into permanent unemployment? Yet, they come to this podium and say: "We have a good story to tell." [Laughter.]
When we look at the issue of HIV and Aids, and the denialism that this country went through under the ANC, we see that the ramifications of that have come back to haunt us. There are child-headed households and students without parents in tertiary institutions who have to go through long queues, red tape and bureaucracy just to get access to NSFAS funding. So, what the hon Ndlozi was saying here is that you have taken young people and you have put them into a culture of dependency, because it works in favour of the ANC to have voter fodder, because if they are dependent on you, they will vote for you. What a shame! [Applause.] And then you come here and say you have a good story to tell. [Applause.]
You have done the youth of South Africa a major injustice by removing anything that says their lives are going to be improved from your social conscience. As I was preparing for this debate, I said, why should I write a speech, because young South Africans are speaking for themselves. They are saying to the government: "Shape up or ship out!" because you are failing them. You failed them in 1994; you are still failing them today. The government does not even have a youth ministry or a youth department. This very Parliament does not even have... [Interjections.]
Mr J MTHEMBU: Hon Chair, would the hon member take a question? [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members! Hon member, are you prepared to take a question?
Mr M HLENGWA: No, I am not, hon Chair!
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): The hon member is not prepared to take a question.
Mr M HLENGWA: This very Parliament does not even have a Parliament to represent the interests of young people. So, how do you expect the majority of young South Africans, who are the majority of this country, to take anything we do here seriously when even this institution does not take them seriously? We do not want to hear this refrain and this rhetoric, because it does not make sense. It is old age! There is not a good story to tell. You have failed young South Africans. You should be ashamed of yourselves.
The message is very clear: Shape up or ship out. If you do not shape up, we will ship you out. [Applause.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members! The next speaker is hon Mncwabe, and he is also delivering his maiden speech.
Mr S C MNCWABE
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick)
Mr S C MNCWABE: Hon Chairperson of the day, hon members of the House, Ministers and Deputy Ministers, it is the submission of the National Freedom Party that, firstly, the issue of youth affairs should not be prioritised for the month of June only.
The youth represent a large number of the population of this country. We should be talking about these issues every day, not only when we commemorate the heroes of June 16. The youth of South Africa are facing the serious challenges of a skills shortage, a high rate of unemployment, HIV/Aids and drug abuse. Among these challenges, unemployment counts as a serious one. Even those who are employed are still the victims of labour brokers, which we say, as the NFP, should be scrapped by the government as a matter of urgency.
Our submission as NFP is that skills development is one of the important strategies to tackle the problem of the scarcity of labour. We therefore urge the Department of Higher Education to put up more funding for FET colleges and build more new FET colleges, especially in townships and rural areas. We all know that the country is still in need of a number of artisans, therefore FET colleges should become a priority for the current government.
We also wish to submit that this House should review the role of the National Youth Development Agency, the NYDA, its functions, duties, goals and objectives. This is the structure that was formed to help the youth of this country, but it is unknown to the youth of rural areas and those in townships. It is not visible and vocal in youth affairs. We only learnt about this structure when there were some corrupt activities going on. We therefore believe that we need to revisit the necessity of the structure, which continues to waste the money meant for the youth of this country.
We also wish to submit to the Department of Basic Education, hon Minister of Basic Education, that one of the things which we believe can tackle the issue of unemployment is to review the curriculum at the basic education phase and include important subjects like driving lessons as well as accredited computer certificates at matric level. We believe that should a young person leave school with a valid driver's licence and a recognised computer certificate accredited by Umalusi, together with a matric certificate, this could also help those who cannot afford a higher education to get employment at that particular level. Lastly, Comrade Chair... Thank you, sir. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): The next speaker is the hon Steenkamp, who is also delivering her maiden speech. [Applause.]
Ms J STEENKAMP
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick)
Ms J STEENKAMP: Hon Chair:
They would just see us walking out of class and would try to stop us, and we would tell them, 'Wait, this is our day.'
Teboho Mohapi, one of the pupils of the class of 1976, spoke these words. We are celebrating Youth Month because of brave young men and women like Teboho, one of the brave young people in Soweto who stood up against an oppressive regime and demanded a better future. They demanded a more beautiful future. We must honour their legacy.
Today, in the present time, we must ask ourselves if we are indeed honouring that legacy. They fought and died so that our generation could make a "bokamoso ba rona". [a better future for all.]
The problem is that after 20 years of democracy, we have not arrived at that better future yet – "bokamoso bo bontle!" Where I come from it means "a beautiful future". That is exactly what the DA is fighting for. Yet, we look around and we see staggering youth unemployment, a struggling basic education system plagued by students not having textbooks, students not having teachers in class and a lack of political will to implement the desperately needed policies.
The NYDA was created by government more than four years ago and was meant to "usher in a new era in youth development". However, the agency only ushered in a new era, or rather generation, of corruption led by ANCYL and Young Communist League cadres like Andile Lungisa and Yershen Pillay.
The NYDA's CEO unjustifiably earns R1.8 million per year - an almost presidential salary for what - a glorified party planner? [Interjections.] The NYDA has failed South Africa and its youth. The agency's own report clearly illustrates that it failed to meet 95,5% of its targets in the past, but they never failed to award themselves with millions of rands in bonuses.
I will quote Kurt Cobain: "The duty of youth is to challenge corruption." [Interjections.]
Mr A M MUDAU: Chairperson, can I ask a question? [Interjections.]
Ms J STEENKAMP: No! [Laughter.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon member, in future, if you want to alert my attention, you must first wait until I recognise you, before you interrupt the speaker. Once I have recognised you, then I will allow you to speak, after hearing from the speaker if he or she wants to take a question. Can we observe that in the future, please! Continue, hon member.
Ms J STEENKAMP: So, Kurt Cobain says: "The duty of youth is to challenge corruption."
Therefore, I, Johni Bontle Steenkamp, am standing here in front of you today, a 27-year-old member of the youth of South Africa, and I am telling you that the NYDA is squandering money while South Africa's youth is desperately in need of help as they are living in poverty.
Afrikaans:
Ons soek meer werk vir ons jong mense! Ons soek regte ontwikkeling en ons eis meer beurse!
English:
We want more skills development! We want better schools! We want better lives! We do not want the NYDA! [Interjections.]
I want to share with you a vision for a better future for young people, a future where we do not just talk and make promises, but where we deliver and implement a more beautiful future, as set out in the National Development Plan, NDP, and echoed by our Bokamoso Bo Bontle initiative.
We call on President Zuma's administration to enact the NDP by funding and enabling a high-quality education system byincreasing National Student Financial Aid Scheme, NSFAS, to R16 billion. We could easily afford this if government just stops wasting money on fancy cars, elaborate parties, and cut corruption. We must ensure that every school delivers quality basic education by having the annual national assessments of Grades 3 to 9 externally administered and marked. We must also increase the number of internships and training opportunities for the youth to R1 million per year by partnering with the business community of South Africa.
Afrikaans:
President Zuma, die tyd het gekom om oor te gaan tot aksie! Die uitvoerende raad van die Nasionale Jeugontwikkelingsagentskap moet afgedank word. Die geld moet geimplimenteer word waar dit 'n werklike verskil kan maak vir die jeug – vir alle jeug van Suid Afrika! Ons moet die geld spandeer op beurse, ondersteuning vir jong entrepreneurs, internskappe, vaardigheidsontwikkeling en die Jeug Loonsubsidie. [Tussenwerpsels.]
English:
Wait, this is our day! Stop talking about it and start making that beautiful future happen! Thank you. [Applause.]
Ms T V TOBIAS
Ms J STEENKAMP
Sesotho:
Mof T V TOBIAS: Mohlomphehi Modulasetulo, Maloko a Palamente a hlomphehang, baena le dikgaitsedi, dumelang. Modulasetulo ke kopa o mphe monyetla hore nke ke tswe lekoteng hanyane mme ke hlalosetse bana ba heso batjha hore tse ding tsa dintho tseo ba di buang mona ha se tsona. Ke rata ho qala ka ntate Ndlozi.
English:
He quoted economics. In economics there are different models. For example, the Keynesian model and other different models. But even economists themselves do not agree on any model. The bad example that he made was that, "young people are in transit from being children to being adults." Therefore, it does not amaze me when you stand here and behave like a kindergarten child. One of the experiences that you learn as a young person, - as you demand education, hon members from the DA - is to understand the policies of government. [Interjections.] One of the most important things is to understand that the ANC-led government has actually invested the biggest slice of the fiscus in education. I do not know what you want. [Interjections.]
Secondly, I will pardon your ignorance on the National Student Financial Aid Scheme, NSFAS even though Minister Blade Nzimande once stood on this podium and requested Members of Parliament to bring to him anybody who has a challenge with NSFAS so that he could address the matter immediately, but you have not brought anybody so far. [Interjections.] So, I will understand if those new members who do not read any government documentation do not understand what the fiscus is, how much we have allocated, and the employment statistics. I can share some of them with you.
Today, hon members, I dedicate my speech at the celebration of Youth Day to a former member of this august House and my former leader in the progressive movement, the ANC, Comrade Kgaogelo Lekgoro, whom I learned has passed on this week; a cadre of our movement who died, not having betrayed his ideals for contrivance, demagogy or any other machinations. Even though at the time of his passing away, he was not holding a position of power, he remained true to his convictions. He remained a disciplined cadre of the ANC.
The ANC remains the glorious party of the revolution. It is the generation of Nelson Mandela and Oliver Tambo that inspired the youth of 1976 to take the baton forward. When we speak of youth participation we limit it to the 1976 generation. We forget that, in actual fact, it is the very same ANC that moved from passive resistance to a radical approach. It is the very same policies of the ANC that spoke about economic freedom in our lifetime. [Interjections.] It was also the generation of Peter Mokaba, that ... [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members!
Mrs T V TOBIAS: You know, Floyd and Julius, I can engage you outside. [Laughter.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Will you refer to the hon members as hon members, please, hon Tobias?
Mrs T V TOBIAS: I apologise, House Chair. It is the generation of Peter Mokaba, Rapu Molekane and Kgaogelo Lekgoro that understood the fact that for the National Democratic Revolution, NDR, to arrive at its logical conclusion, it had the responsibility to develop the youth. The responsibility to bring the NDR to its logical conclusion cannot exchange hands. I repeat, the responsibility to bring the national democratic revolution to its logical conclusion cannot exchange hands. It is only the party of the revolution that carries the mandate. [Interjections.]
The ANC therefore remains the relevant party in setting the national agenda. The ANC will continue to mobilise all progressive forces, especially the youth, and rally them behind the vision of building a nonracial, nonsexist, democratic, united and prosperous society. The youth of today should take lessons from the youth of yesterday, who implemented the task of the national liberation movement with discipline, agility and the ability to learn from their predecessors. Therefore, it would be suicidal for any revolutionary to lack clarity of thought in understanding the basics of any revolution.
The ANC ushered in a developmental state post-1994.By definition the developmental state is a progressive tool to implement the NDR, and thus has a positive impact on the lives of ordinary citizens. It therefore develops the capacity to achieve the strategic goals of bettering the lives of the people. It also changes the quality of life of the masses and is biased towards the motive forces of our struggle. Through its progressive social programmes, it mobilises social forces and all structures of society by transforming society, and it achieves this through a competent patriotic Public Service with high levels of education and raised productivity levels. This is reflected by the high intake of youth in its employ, and it also translates into economic beneficiation.
Therefore, the youth of this country remain an essential component of a progressive motive force that our government continues to mobilise through guidance and development, but above all, the youth themselves must not sit in a corner and wait for government to intervene in their plight. The youth of Nelson Mandela's time took it upon themselves to change their lives around through sacrifice and selflessness.
The developmental state gave itself the role to transform society by playing an active role in the development of our people. Government not only drafted regulations, but has also committed huge amounts in funding for training and financing huge infrastructure development projects and incentives through the micro-financing of small business. Therefore, greater participation of youth in the economy will yield good results, and we need the commitment of the youth to serve the South African masses. Business should also commit itself to supporting government in economic development to accelerate movement towards a people-centred social system.
It is through the role played by the youth that the South African government can relate to the market forces. Currently, the developmental state is building a professional and committed cadre. I want to pause there to reflect on what someone said, "buy investors". How on earth can you say that a developmental state that has injected so much money in social development can be equated to a market-orientated state? It is a fallacy. [Interjections.] A poor capitalist state would not provide the poor with social grants, free housing, free education until matric level, free education through NSFAS and bursaries; that's the reality that we do not want to accept. [Applause.]
Of course, we understand you are playing to the gallery, and that you aspire to be on this side of the House one day. [Interjections.] That is not going to be possible for the coming two or three decades. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members!
Mrs T V TOBIAS: So you should understand that as long as you don't bring fundamental theoretical change in terms of policy shift away from what the ANC stands for, there is nothing new that you are bringing to the table. [Applause.]
We are accelerating economic freedom; we are a more responsive government; our economy is labour-absorbing; we are deracialising the economy; we are pursuing a 5% economic growth; we have invested in an infrastructure development programme, and we are also stabilising the mining sector. We have just won the deal. Now applaud us! [Applause.] It was through government intervention, through Minister Ngoako Ramatloti, that today the five-month long platinum belt strike has come to an end. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
Mr N L S KWANKWA
Ms T V TOBIAS
Mr N L S KWANKWA: Hon House Chair, you know, comrades, we should not waste time with semantics. No one disagrees with the fact that, in terms of revenue allocation, education is a priority in South Africa. But, where we disagree is on the question whether we are getting returns on investment. As soon as we do not agree on that ...
Isixhosa:
...siza kuba nengxaki kuba uza kufumanisa ukuba...
English:
... we are only going to regurgitate our manifesto, without addressing the problem. The fact of the matter is ...
IsiXhosa:
... asifumani sivuno kutyalomali kwaye sisemsileni kwizifundo zezibalo nenzululwazi kwilizwekazi i-Afrika.
English:
We cannot celebrate that. That is a fact.
June 16, 1976, signifies the contribution of the youth in the fight for the self-evident right to determine our own destiny. The youth of 1976 fought bravely to disentangle ourselves from the apartheid regime's oppressive entanglements. We owe this generation a big debt of gratitude for the freedom we are now enjoying.
Fellow compatriots, in remembering the heroism of the youth of 1976, we should first consider the appropriateness of the fiery and dramatic start to the fifth democratic Parliament last week, where pelting each other with a litany of expletives seemed to take the place of a meaningful discourse and the economic advancement of our people.
If we allow mud-slinging and name-calling to become a permanent interlude, instead of a meaningful discourse, we run the risk of going down as the generation of leaders that derives a perverse pleasure from behaving in ways that constitute a perversion of the true meaning of democracy - the same democracy for which the generation of 1976 fought for.
We should therefore get all hands on deck to come up with proposals that ensure the building of a truly better life for all, especially the youth. We should focus on the youth, because 20 years into our democracy, the youth face a kaleidoscope of new challenges such as poverty, unemployment, and alcohol and drug abuse.
The UDM believes that advancing youth development should not only be to reduce the red tape that stifles youth entrepreneurship and introduces targeted incentives that are critical in job creation for youth, but that youth development finance institutions should also be compelled to help young entrepreneurs to meet their conditions for finance agreements. This is the only way to close the big gap between loan approval and loan disbursement rates for youth.
On skills development, we believe that government should work with the private sector and forge a closer working relationship with tertiary institutions to improve both the work-readiness of graduates and the quality of internship programmes. It is futile to place thousands of young people in internships around the country if all they do is to make photocopies and fax documents for the duration of their internships.
As a nation, if we fail to prioritise youth development and empowerment, we will continue to carry an unhappy youth that is filled with a heavy load of detritus. Thank you very much. [Applause.]
Adv A D ALBERTS
Mr N L S KWANKWA
Afrikaans:
Adv A D ALBERTS: Voorsitter, die jeug in Suid-Afrika, insluitend dié op die kontinent van Afrika, is deel van 'n geskiedkundige demografiese dividend wat Afrika, insluitend Suid-Afrika, of 'n geweldige ekonomiese hupstoot kan gee, of 'n geweldige faktor in die destabilisering van state, insluitend Suid-Afrika, kan wees.
Europa, die VSA, asook nou China in 'n mate, kon die demografiese dividend effektief aanwend vir die skep van enorme ekonomiese groei en ontwikkeling tot voordeel van al hul burgers.
English:
South Africa is struggling effectively to use its demographic dividend arising from the youth. Instead of super-economic growth, we are dealing with the following statistics: As much as 50% of employable persons under the age of 25 are unemployed - the under 25's constitute 30% of the total number of unemployed persons; 60% of school-leavers left without obtaining matric; the average time spent looking for a job equals 806 days: and young people are competing in a pool of 6,5 million job seekers.
This struggle means that South Africa can in the foreseeable future face significant unrest stemming from frustrated youth. The answers are obvious. We need economic growth that creates jobs fast and sustainably. However, the stated statistics have an underlying reality of cause and effect that can be found in government policies that, after 20 years of democracy, simply do not work.
Afrikaans:
Die regering se beleid skiet vêr te kort in die volgende areas: Eerstens, basiese onderwys is so swak dat diegene wat uit daardie stelsel kom, veral arm swart jong mense, beskou word as onaanstelbaar, behalwe vir ongeskoolde arbeid. Dit is 'n nasionale skande en mens kan net wonder of die regering opsetlik die massas ongeskool wil hou ten einde hulle makliker te beheer. Die eerste stap in die regstel hiervan is die instel van moedertaalonderrig, meer klem op Wiskunde en Wetenskap en die daarstel van hoër slaagstandaarde.
English:
Secondly, affirmative action and broad-based black economic empowerment, the BBBEE, have become instruments that for the most part empower ANC cadres only. These instruments do not allow for growth, but merely redistribute the existing wealth. They merely replace the previous extractive regime with another one that is based on race.
The last time I checked, there was a difference between the mathematical functions of division and multiplication. Instead, the solution in unlocking wealth can start with government handing state-owned land to the poor, whether black or white.
Afrikaans:
Die aanspreek van die beleidsprobleme sal ekonomiese ontwikkeling moontlik maak deur middel van die jeug as demografiese dividend. Die vraag is egter of die regering die korrekte beleidsopsies gaan volg, dié wat bewese is en groei verseker het in 'n land soos Suid-Korea, of dié wat lei na hel op aarde, soos in Noord-Korea. Die keuse is in u hande. Dankie, Voorsitter.
Mr W M MADISHA
Adv A D ALBERTS
Mr W M MADISHA: Hon Chairperson, every year around 16 June, the youth of South Africa are reminded of the heroic efforts of the young people of 1976 who stood their ground against the apartheid regime and against the efforts of the government to dehumanise them by forcing them to learn in a language that was not their own.
The youth of today still battle with the government, but it is a different battle. The youth are fighting against unemployment, illiteracy, poor education, HIV and Aids.
The 20 years of democracy find the youth of South Africa still fighting for their place in the economy of the country. They find a youth that is unable to create wealth, a youth that is living in debt. It finds a youth that is still fighting to get a decent education. The fight against the oppression of a foreign language is now replaced by the fight against an indifference to education.
The 20 years of democracy find young women who are still dependent on the state for survival, who have very few choices and little control over their future, their lives, their careers or even their own bodies. Violence against women and children is greater than it has ever been.
The 20 years into democracy has found an entire generation without hope. The young people are daily faced with poor nutrition, poor living standards, poor teaching, few opportunities and little encouragement. This has created a poverty trap.
After 20 years of democracy, we still have serious deficits in our education. An inadequate number of learners take up mathematics. Most school-leavers lack competency in reading, comprehending and writing. Technical education is also inadequate. Those who have mathematics, strong writing capabilities and the right technical skills are ready to contribute to the economy. Unfortunately, skills demanded in the workplace are the very skills that continue to be seriously in short supply.
Today, as we debate this most important topic, we must accept that the quality of the education our children get is satisfactory to those who will be seeking to employ them... Thank you. [Time expired.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon members, the next speaker is the hon Dirks, who will be delivering his maiden speech. [Applause.]
Mr M A DIRKS
Mr W M MADISHA
Mr M A DIRKS: Hon House Chair, hon members and members of the public, good afternoon On 7 May this year, the youth of this country went out in their hundreds of thousands to vote for the ANC to continue to deliver services to them. They renewed our mandate to continue improving their lives in this country.
This ANC democratic government has committed itself to transforming the post-schooling system, including the inherited apartheid social and economic structure, in order to bring about a new social order. We as the ANC have a working plan in place to move the youth and people in general of this country forward. We have therefore committed ourselves to building a comprehensive system that integrates universities, further education and training, FET, colleges, sector education and training authorities, Setas, the National Skills Fund and public adult learning centres.
The Freedom Charter, which is the blueprint for the democratic revolutionary forces, calls for the doors of learning, culture and training to be opened to all. Immediately after the 1994 democratic breakthrough, we were faced with the mammoth task of radically opening those doors according to the mandate that was given to us by the people. The ANC government had to do that knowing very well that education and training is a key and vital component of national unity, nation-building, reconciliation, social cohesion and, more importantly, youth development.
Education and training is a critical cornerstone of the National Democratic Revolution. As a result the President, in his state of the nation address, raised the issue of education and the government's plans for education. He said that Grade 12 learners who gained entrance to university would increase from 172 O00 in 2013 to 250 O00 in 2019. [Interjections.] He raised the issue of 12 new education and training colleges that are to be built. We have opened a new medical school campus at the University of Limpopo and we have also built new universities in the provinces of Mpumalanga and the Northern Cape. [Interjections.] These are the issues that the President raised in his state of the nation address in tackling the issues of education.
The hon member of the IFP came here to the podium and asked us what good story we have to tell. [Interjections.] The hon member of the IFP forgets that from 1995 they ran the KwaZulu-Natal government. He forgets that from 1994 till 2004 they ran KwaZulu-Natal into the ground and in the process they reduced themselves to a regional party based in Ngoma. [Interjections.] We as the ANC are offering the youth of this country quality education. [Interjections.]
Then you find the hon leader of the EFF ... I see the DA has also jumped on the bandwagon ... who says that the two universities are high schools. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members!
Mr M A DIRKS: The hon leader of the EFF says that the two universities that the ANC built are high schools. I think that statement that the hon member of the EFF ... [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members!
Mr M A DIRKS: ... made in this House is an insult to every young person who will walk through the gates of those universities to obtain their degrees. [Applause.] We have a plan. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members!
Mr M A DIRKS: What does the hon leader of the EFF offer the young people of this country? What does the hon member of the EFF offer the young people of this country? He offers them snake oil. The hon leader of the EFF is a typical snake oil salesman. [Interjections.][Applause.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members!
Mr M A DIRKS: As we celebrate all these progressive strides that the ANC government has made in youth development, we cannot help but signal the role that was played by the different generations in the revolution, most notably the young revolutionary democrat, a disciplined soldier, the leader of young people par excellence, Solomon Mahlangu, who was hanged by the brutal apartheid regime. Indeed, he paid the supreme sacrifice, his life, in calling for equal education for all and in fighting for the freedom of his people. When he went to face the hangman, his last words were:
My blood will nourish the tree that will bear the fruit of freedom. Tell my people that I love them. They must continue the fight.
Today, as we speak, it is the blood of Solomon Mahlangu that is nourishing the tree of education in this country. Our post-schooling system is indeed on the right track. [Interjections.]
Would you like to ask a question, hon member?
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members! Hon member at the podium, please address the Chairperson, and don't respond directly to members.
Mr M A DIRKS: Our democratic government is investing so much in young people and responding to the clarion call which was made by the late president Oliver Tambo, when he said:
A country, a movement, a people that does not value its youth does not deserve its future.
We are taking into account ... [Interjections.] ... that we need to grow our economy ... [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon members! Hon member at the podium, will you take your seat, please. Hon members, let's allow the hon member to continue with his speech and not drown him out with interjections. Allow him to be heard, just as you want to be heard when you are at the podium. Continue, hon member.
Mr M A DIRKS: ... by investing in the post-schooling system in general, and in both the EFF ... FET colleges and Setas ... [Laughter.][Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members! Hon members! Hon members, you are now disrupting the debate. That is not correct. Five years in Parliament is a long time and we have just started. Continue, hon member.
Mr M A DIRKS: Hon Chairperson, the noise and disruption that comes from this side ...
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Continue with your speech, hon member!
Mr M A DIRKS: ... by investing in the post-schooling system in general and in both the FET colleges and Setas in particular. Our vision 2030 is crystal clear and has acknowledged some of our shortfalls as a country. Approximately three million young people between the ages of 18 and 24 are not accommodated in either the education and training system or the labour market. By 2030, we aim to raise university entrants to 1,5 million, a projected participation rate of 23%, as opposed to the 2011 enrolment of 899 120, a 16% participation rate in colleges or other post-schooling institutions.
In 1995 only 40 000 students were funded by the Tertiary Education Fund for SA, the Tefsa, with a budget of R154 million. Today our democratic government has increased the funding by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme to R9,7 billion for 430 000 students in 25 public universities. [Time expired.][Applause.]
Ms C DUDLEY
Mr M A DIRKS
Mrs C DUDLEY: Chair, youth in South Africa are young women and young men between the ages of 14 and 35 - most of them going through dramatic changes in their life circumstances and facing challenges and threats that are unique to them.
Forty-two percent of the population of this country are under 35 and prioritised attention has been focused on youth development through policies, institutions and endless programmes, yet the challenges and needs of young people seem to increase. Even where policy is good, we lack a capacity to implement it.
Young people are telling me that, after 20 years of democracy in South Africa, enhancing youth development means very little to them - especially to those who are not in major cities.
The biggest challenge, they say, is the lack of opportunity for employment. We are all painfully aware that statistics reveal very high unemployment amongst all demographic groups in South Africa, including the youth. Young people are saying that the biggest obstacle is that government is not doing enough to invest in skills development at the secondary education level. Our country needs, they say – and a very passionate a young man told me this - artisans, plumbers and electricians. As a developing country we need engineers too. Clearly we have not done enough to convince and fund young people to get the education and skills they need to qualify as artisans and engineers, amongst other things. Greater investment is needed if youth are to get the chance they deserve to escape and avoid the poverty trap.
The Sectors for Education and Training Authorities, Seta, created some years ago to address issues of skills development, have not had the impact envisioned or required. To add insult to injury, Setas continue to underspend their budgets.
Now, sadly and very importantly, the agency established by the Presidency to deal with youth issues is perceived by young people to have done very little. The National Youth Development Agency, NYDA, needs a serious revamp to include young people from all walks of life and different political parties if it is to become a credible body. The NYDA does not have a good story to tell and there are good stories to tell.
The lack of accountability has been one of the main problems. Government agencies must serve all citizens in the country, not just a select few.
ACDP Youth continue to call for greater emphasis on multiparty participation as they are convinced that this will bring greater accountability and more ideas to the agency with the prospect of more being achieved.
It is critically important that people in positions impacting on youth development have the required expertise and knowledge of youth development. A lack of capacity to link youth with skills and finance, even where youth desks exist, seems to be a contributing factor to the lack of success.
At a municipal level, youth officers operate with substantial but inadequate annual budgets that are very quickly exhausted by youth summits or conferences and transport to Youth Day celebration venues, as, increasingly, youth development is being regarded as an event rather than a process. The bottom line is that democracy and youth programmes are costly and there is no way around it. Thank you. [Time Expired.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): The next speaker is the hon Gana, who is also delivering his maiden speech. [Applause.]
Mr S M GANA
Mrs C DUDLEY
Xitsonga:
Nkul S M GANA: Ndza khensa mufambisi wa ntirho.
English:
Mr S M GANA: Hon members, fellow South Africans, I stand before you this afternoon as a proud South African who is committed to building this country and to ensuring that everyone has access to opportunities to better the quality of his or her life. I stand before you as a beneficiary of the efforts and heroism shown by the 1976 generation of young men and women.
Hon members, as we celebrate and commemorate Youth Month, we can all agree that the freedom we enjoy today is due to a significant degree to the efforts of the youth of 1976. We are harvesting the inheritance left behind by that generation of fearless young men and women.
Our duty today is to build on that inheritance and leave for future generations an even richer and brighter endowment. However, we cannot get there if we cannot ask and honestly respond to the question whether our individual and collective actions as leaders bring hope and inspiration to millions of young people in our land.
I know a lot has been done, yet so much more still needs to be done, done better and with more honesty. Last week, I read a report about primary school learners having to pay R2 to cross a makeshift bridge in the East Rand to get to school. This is 20 years into our democracy. We regularly read similar stories.
I can relate to the struggles of those learners from the East Rand. I used to walk 6km from Lefara to Mhlaba village on a daily basis, having to cross a river that had no bridge. As this was in the early 90s, it can perhaps be forgiven. But we cannot forgive our young people having to endure such difficulties in 2014, 20 years after the dawn of our democracy. [Applause.]
We have to ask what inheritance we are leaving behind for these learners, when we cannot give them the simplest instruments to make something of their lives when they are older. What do we expect them to think when they read about the billions of rands that are wasted and stolen each year when they don't have a proper bridge so that they can get to school safely? Will they be wrong to think that their inheritance is being stolen by leaders who are supposed to protect and nurture their future?
Hon members, we can't claim to be serious about improving the lives of our young people without improving the quality of their education and their access to it. Our education system must be geared towards equipping our learners to act and think independently so that they can be the architects of their own exit from their current difficult conditions.
We have to make available to them every possible resource so that they can successfully compete with the youth of other nations of the world when it comes to scientific and industrial innovations. This means a fundamental shift in the purpose of our education system – from preparing people for the labour market to producing scientists, businesspeople and industrialists.
That we have many young people with potential there is no doubt. There are many bright young people who are coming up with many innovative products, but they are not being showcased. For example, we have Ludwick Marishane, a young man from Limpopo, who developed a waterless bath solution and won the entrepreneur award in 2011. We have many such Ludwicks in South Africa, but we need to produce many more and provide better support for their development.
If we are to address the youth unemployment crisis that we face as a country, we have to encourage, support and celebrate innovations by our young people so that we can industrialise the products they develop.
As we discharge our responsibilities as members of this House, as leaders, we must at all times be guided by the desire to ensure that the sacrifice of the 1976 generation, some of whom are in this Chamber, is not in vain. The best way to do that is to do all we can to help our young people realise their dreams so that they can also receive their part of this rich inheritance.
Xitsonga:
A hi tirheni hi ku tshembeka hi mikarhi hinkwayo tani hi varhangeri va Afrika-Dzonga. Vantshwa i vumundzuku bya tiko rerhu. Ndza khensa. [Va phokotela.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): The next speaker is the hon Mahambehlala, who is also delivering her maiden speech. [Applause.]
Ms T MAHAMBEHLALA
Mr S M GANA
Ms T MAHAMBEHLALA: House Chairperson, hon Deputy Speaker, Ministers, Deputy Ministers present today, hon members of this august House and guests in the gallery, allow me to greet you all. I am proud to have been given this opportunity to address this House on a subject close to my heart as a former youth league member, namely the role of the youth in building consciousness and patriotism in order to espouse solidarity and revolutionary commitment.
Hence, I make so bold as to state that I am the product of a revolutionary movement that has moulded me to such a degree that today I can stand at the podium in this august House. [Applause.]
For the youth of today, it is not enough to shout from the sidelines and be content with shouting the loudest. The answer lies in being involved in resolving the problems of the people. This is the best school, which not only defines the place and role of the youth, but a school where self-discipline, solidarity with other oppressed people and revolutionary consciousness is forged.
The power of the youth in nation-building is like a double-edged sword, which can swing to either the right or the left, depending on the intent of the person swinging the sword. Thus, even the youth, in its impatience, must still be disciplined and guarded. [Applause.]
Youth power is a recognised force in the world and therefore all development and education programmes should focus on the youth, particularly young women, in developing countries. No government worth its salt can ignore the plight of the youth.
I am proud that our own government dedicates a paragraph to the place and role of the youth and talks of the Youth Lens, the lens that cascades to all aspects affecting the youth, such as health, productive rights, education, employment and their role in the economy, amongst others.
The power of youth can therefore be utilised either as a constructive or destructive force by any nation. But for the youth to be relevant, it must actively participate in the constructive process of engaging all citizens in building social cohesion, economic prosperity and political stability in an inclusive and democratic way. [Applause.]
Fellow lawmakers, Youth Month has rightly become synonymous with the 16 June 1976 Uprising, when a young group of learners took to the streets in defiance against racist laws being shoved down their throats through the school curriculum.
Our country will always be deeply indebted to the generation of 1976. As a product of the youth movement, I have come to cherish the daring and bravery of the generation of 1976, who was not only content with protests, but dared to join the ranks of our revolutionary army, uMkhonto weSizwe. [Applause.]
They are the generation that took up the cudgels of the founding heroes of the youth league. These include heroes such as Duma Nokwe, Oliver Tambo, Walter Sisulu, Anton Lambede, Albertina Sisulu, Nelson Mandela and Henry Makgothi, to name but a few, who found the path along which generations to come will move South Africa forward.
As the 1944 generation showed us, it takes the best of the best to be real revolutionaries. Only true patriots who are revolutionary- conscious will serve as catalysts for change and provide remedies or solutions to the problems that they have studied.
Youth aspirations need to be championed with vigour and facts. It would be of no use if in our advocacy we reduce our aspirations to sound bites. The youth should not cling to ideas that sound revolutionary, but should produce novel ideas that reflect realities and are capable of being sold for the betterment of their own living conditions. [Applause.]
Perhaps the youth of today should take a leaf from the tenacity of people such as O R Tambo, Duma Nokwe, Onkgopotse Tiro and Steve Biko who, at the height of colonialism and apartheid, valued education and achieved higher performance levels in difficult subjects. [Applause.] These were revolutionary intellectuals, not because they wore overalls and berets, but because of their deeds. [Laughter.]
The logo of the ANC Youth League, produced by young MK artists in exile, fascinates me.I It states: Fight, produce, and learn. This to me was a far-sighted invention in the camps of MK. It is relevant to this date - the youth must learn and learn in order for our country to develop; it must produce and produce in order for our country to industrialise; and fight and fight all vestiges of backwardness, disease and ignorance in order for our country to advance to higher levels.
If we effectively do these things, the youth will continue to produce great lawyers like Duma Nokwe, great mathematicians and musicians like O R Tambo. And these heroes were not just content with their school books, they also fought to change the world and rid the country of apartheid. Despite their academic prowess, as true patriots they studied the nation's problems with vigour.
Young people in our era need to raise their hands and be counted. In the post-apartheid South Africa there is no reason not to be patriotic. Avenues to imbue consciousness are plenty. Youth from all creeds need to be visible and combat moral disintegration amongst Africans by upholding high ethical standards. That is what revolutionary commitment to the future of this magnificent country implies. [Applause.]
Since the advent of democracy, many young people have struggled to develop an identity that is South African rather than one that is geographically, politically, ethnically or racially defined. The National Youth Development Agency, NYDA, must promote the values of good citizenship and patriotism that assist young people to develop a positive identity and connectedness.
It should engage a cross-section of young people – the unemployed, students and the disabled – that are from a variety of cultural, religious and educational backgrounds. The NYDA should therefore seek to expand opportunities for all young people who wish to serve. The National Development Plan, NDP, dictates the necessity to strengthen youth service programmes as it is through such programmes that young people can forge unity.
In his address to the youth on Youth Day, hon Minister Nathi Mthethwa said:
The NDP 2030 alludes to the fact that the youth bear the brunt of unemployment.
The plan identifies the need for economic growth and jobs, education and skills as well as youth development. This can also be realised through the support of initiatives such as the Youth Enrichment Programme as part of youth development in arts and culture.
The programme will create jobs for young people through the skills they will acquire for the duration of the project. The Department of Arts and Culture has supported youth skills development in the North West, Gauteng, Limpopo and the Eastern Cape. This year the project will be rolled out in Mpumalanga and the Western Cape. [Applause.]
This was also emphasised in President Zuma's state of the nation address, wherein he mentioned the need to implement a youth accord - labelled by the hon Van Damme as crumbs for the youth. Well, such a label could not be more misplaced; crumbs are what the DA government gives the young people of the Western Cape. [Applause.]
She conveniently ignores the Ministry of Higher Education and Training's direct intervention to tackle what has become a hidden chronic problem, the lack of facilities and skills in rural communities. The R10 million skills development grant by the Department of Higher Education and Training in memory of Anene Booysen is such an initiative. This has skilled 700 learners in the rural town of Bredasdorp in various fields, making our youth more employable.
Hon Van Damme is a Johnny-comes-lately in the world of activism and politics in general, so she would have missed this. [Interjections.] More importantly, this blatant lack of intimate knowledge shows that only revolutionaries really equip themselves with facts and undertake proper analysis. Those are only found in the ANC. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon members, the next speaker is the hon Plouamma. He is also delivering his maiden speech. [Applause.
Mr M A PLOUAMMA
Ms T MAHAMBEHLALA
Mr M A PLOUAMMA: Chairperson, thobela. The revolution of 1976 is a revolution betrayed. The blood of Solomon Mahlangu is no longer nourishing freedom, it is nourishing corruption. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members!
Mr M A PLOUAMMA: You only howl if you don't want to hear the truth. [Interjections.] I am not here to make friends, I am here to serve my people. [Interjections.][Applause.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members!
Mr M A PLOUAMMA: If we want to help the young people of this country, the ruling party must take a stand and say that no one on their side with the taint of corruption will be allowed in this Parliament. As long as we still allow corruption into our public space, all of the wishes we are talking about will only be good English.
We need a new revolution. That revolution must start with taking the ANC out if we want to help our people. [Applause.] Can I tell you one thing? [Interjections.]
Nkosi Z M D MANDELA: Chair! [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members! Hon member at the podium, will you just sit down, please. Hon member, what is your point of order?
Nkosi Z M D MANDELA: Hon Chair, is the hon member willing to take a question?
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon member, are you prepared to take a question?
Mr M A PLOUAMMA: No. The only thing we need to emphasise is that if we want to help our young people, we need to start with taking the ANC out. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members!
Mr M A PLOUAMMA: You see, the only thing they have managed to do is ... it is the survival of the fittest in this country. Whether you get an education and want to succeed, you need to know somebody and he must be your friend or your family. It doesn't matter whether you have a PHD or a diploma of any sort or whether you are talented or gifted, the ANC has created an environment of corruption and connection. We will tell you this so that your conscience will talk to you even when you are asleep. [Interjections.] You have failed our young people and I .... [Time expired.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon member, I have not called you yet. Could you wait, please. Hon members, while interjections are allowed, let's not drown out the speakers at the podium and let us give the speakers an opportunity to put their views across.
The next speaker is the hon Mbhele, who is delivering his maiden speech. [Applause.]
Mr Z N MBHELE
Mr M A PLOUAMMA
Mr Z N MBHELE: Chairperson, real and meaningful youth development and empowerment come down to three things: quality education, employment opportunities and entrepreneurial developments. These three pillars are where our focus should be when we speak about youth development and empowerment.
Quite predictably, in this debate, only the DA has spoken clearly and compellingly to these crucial issues, backed by research and workable policies. [Applause.] My colleague the hon Cassim was quite right to say that the surest way to empower our youth is through quality, accessible education, because only a quality education equips young people with the knowledge and skills to meet the demands of the economy.
My colleague the hon Steenkamp was also very correct to repeat the call by the DA and the DA youth for the scrapping of the National Youth Development Agency, NYDA. With an annual budget of almost R400 million, we have seen minimal value add by this institution. In fact, given that the NYDA is better known for hosting international youth conferences that feature kissing contests and, given that millions have been spent on parties and travel, perhaps it should be renamed from National Youth Development Agency to the "National Yolo and Debauchery Agency". [Applause.]
Finally, my colleague the hon Gana highlighted very rightly that this country has many bright young people who are coming up with many innovations. In addition, the aspect of entrepreneurial development is especially key, because the entrepreneurs who see a gap in the markets and take a risk to offer new goods or services are the catalysts for innovation and growth. They produce true value and new wealth.
In reference to President Zuma, in his reply to the debate on the state of the nation address, he called for ideas to enrich debate. In this debate, from the ANC's side ...
IsiZulu:
...angitholanga lutho okunjalo. Ayikho imicabango ekhona ngalapho ...
English:
... apart maybe from some waffly compound sentences and history lessons. Let me say, while we honour our past, the main priority for our young people is to own our future. [Applause.] We need to head in that direction.
Hon Tobias spoke about how the ANC government invests money in education. It is quite right to point that out, but it is not enough to throw money at the problem. You have to get the management of the education system right and you start by addressing the stranglehold that the South African Democratic Teachers Union, Sadtu, has on the public education system, especially in townships where that improvement is much needed.
I heard hon Dirks mentioning the Freedom Charter. I would like to remind the hon Dirks that in the Freedom Charter it says that there will be work. It says that everyone will have the right and duty to work. So, if you want to reference the Freedom Charter, better make sure that you are actually putting it into action.
He also spoke about the fact that the ANC government is delivering quality education.
IsiZulu:
Umbuzo wami uthi: Kuphi?
English:
Where is this quality education? He spoke about how the ANC government has a plan. [Interjections.] Quite frankly, that is all the ANC seems to have - plans and intentions. The youth needs action and results. I will give you an example. Since 2010, the Ministerial ...
Mrs T V TOBIAS: I just want to find out whether hon Mbhele is prepared to take a simple question.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon Mbhele, are you prepared to take a question?
Mr Z N MBHELE: No, thank you, Chairperson. For example, since 2010, the Ministerial Committee on the Review of the National Student Financial Aid Scheme, NSFAS, recommended the implementation of a legislative framework to give effect to the constitutional imperative of a free higher education. Four years later, we have nothing of the sort. We just have more policies, more layers of structures and subcommittees, as hon Cassim said. We have had enough of talk, plans and intentions. We need action.
In closing, I must say, as many members have said previously, the struggle of the youth of 1976 was for political freedom. Our generation's struggle is for economic freedom, real economic freedom and freedom that we can use. [Apoplause.] The first step to unlocking that freedom is opportunities that get a young person's feet on the economic ladder and opens the door to a sustained career path. We cannot afford any more delays or dithering in creating these opportunities on a large scale. It must happen now. [Applause.]
The DEPUTY MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY
Mr Z N MBHELE
The DEPUTY MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: Hon Chairperson, it is difficult to debate with people who are here by accident, like the hon Plouamma of Agang SA, who came here just because Dr Mamphela Ramphele was just too tired to Parliament. [Laughter.] I think you can hear from the quality of the contribution to this debate that it was just by chance and mistake that the hon Plouamma found himself at this podium.
The hon Hlengwa says that the ANC has no good story to tell. We have a bulging young, black middle class; R3 billion have been invested in the National Student Financial Aid Scheme, NSFAS ... [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members!
The DEPUTY MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY:... 700 000 further education and training, FET, enrolments; 12 000 artisans, with a target of 30 000 a year by 2030; 90% of enrolment in basic education; two new universities – and if you don't know how a university operates, you will think it's a glorified high school. If this is not a good story to tell, then we must invest in buying you a comic book, because that is where good stories are for you. [Laughter.] [Interjections.] [Applause.]
The National Youth Development Agency, NYDA, has turned the corner. It has invested in a young person called Bohlakoana Moleko, who runs Yea Media Farmer Fresh Pty (Ltd) and grows spinach and Chinese vegetables, which he supplies to the Chinese markets and restaurants. He received support from the NYDA. This is one of the many stories in which the NYDA has invested and that resulted in small, medium and micro enterprise, SMME, support, as well as co-operative support. It has also resulted in young people not being seekers of jobs, but creators of jobs. [Applause.] [Interjections.] So, the next time we open our mouths about what the NYDA used to be, we should remember that a corner has been turned and we should applaud the current leadership of the National Youth Development Agency. [Applause.]
Twenty years ago, Nelson Mandela and millions of South Africans cast their votes for the first time, breaking South Africa from various epochs of land dispossession and loss of humanity and identity of black people in general and Africans in particular. As April 27 dawned and news of less political violence and general ululation was beamed on national television and printed in the mainstream media, a collective sigh of relief was heard the world over as we took the first giant step towards reconciliation, nation-building and economic development.
That day was not handed over to the struggling and toiling masses by De Klerk, but was the result of thousands of cadres having died in prison, exile and townships. De Klerk could not keep his behind on a hot, boiling pot for as long as the country was declared ungovernable and the ANC was preparing itself to govern. [Applause.] Unlike many things, freedom has a price and our youth have, over the years, paid that price.
This year, as we celebrate the 20th anniversary of freedom and the 38th anniversary of June 16, a narrative is emerging that those who were born in 1994 should be referred to as the "born frees". Dominant intellectuals insist that "born frees" are regarded as those who were born on or after 27 April and therefore are free South Africans, without the birthmark of influx control, apartheid brutality, land dispossession, economic exploitation, academic exclusion, racialised poverty, loud sirens of Hippos and "mellow yellows", silent nights of petrol bombs and struggle songs. Because others voted, they were therefore without sin, cordoned into an ideal world that knows no poverty, unemployment or inequality. Those unlucky ones amongst them who are still trapped in the cycle of poverty and want, just as their parents were, are told by the DA that they should blame the ANC - it has not delivered for the last 20 years...
Mr I M OLLIS: Chairperson ...
The DEPUTY MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY (Mr K B Manamela): ... or are told by my former comrades in the EFF that the ANC of Nelson Mandela has sold out.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon Deputy Minister, will you just take your seat, please? Yes, hon member.
Mr I M OLLIS: Hon Chairperson, will the hon Deputy Minister take a question about how he sat and voted for his wife? [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon member, hon Deputy Minister, will you take your seat, please. Take your seat, please. Hon member!
Mr I M OLLIS: Yes, Chairperson.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): You have asked if the hon Deputy Minister would take a question. He had not even considered it yet and you went ahead to ask the question. Will you please respect the Chair. Take your seat, please?
Mr I M OLLIS: Sure. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Continue, hon member.
The DEPUTY MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: Thank you, hon Chairperson. Yes, there are young people who were plucked out of the doomed future that apartheid had set for them even before they were born. There are young people who today study in mixed-race, public and private schools. Some of them are products of these schools and come here and speak very intellectually and say that this government has failed. [Interjections.] [Applause.] Yes, there are young people who today have better health care, education, housing, security, jobs and a better life than their parents could have ever imagined.
We must contest this narrative of the dominant intellectuals. We are a product of history as much as we are a product of the present. We bear the scars that were inflicted on our parents since our continent was discovered by Jan van Riebeeck.
Mr R P RAMAKATSA: Hon Chairperson, may I pose a question to the hon Deputy Minister? [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon member ...
Mr R P RAMAKATSA: We just want to know ...
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon member ...
Mr R P RAMAKATSA: ... where his wife is employed. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon member, it seems to me you have not listened to my previous ruling. I said you get up and you say that you want to pose a question. Even before I recognised you, you went ahead and asked the question!
Mr R P RAMAKATSA: I am sorry.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon member, I am addressing you! Will you take your seat, please? Continue, hon Deputy Minister. [Interjections.]
The DEPUTY MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: Thank you very much. The radical changes that we see - albeit not enough - are because of the efforts of the ANC-led government and its majority in this Parliament.
The youth of our country, in general, are not, and should never be, regarded as "born free". The concept of being born free in our context is ideologically fraudulent and is littered with inconsistencies. It essentially suggests that the struggle ended in 1994 and, for us, it is aluta continua! [the struggle continues!] [Applause.]
We will only be born free if the hospitals we are born in have facilities of the same, or better quality; if the crèches we go to have the same or better quality; if our schools have libraries, computer laboratories and science laboratories; if we all have equal chances of graduating from Grade 12 with skills and equal access to further and higher education and training; and if we live in an equal society and have fully achieved the transition to a democratic dispensation, then we will be free in the true sense of what Hector Pieterson, Tsietsi Mashinini and others went into the streets for.
There are no born frees. There are only the children of Mandela, who are committed and prepared to take forward the struggle initiated by Langalibalele Dube, Bitini, Walter Sisulu, Chris Hani, Oliver Tambo, and many others. [Applause.]
This administration has committed itself, as part of a radical economic transformation, to use its access to and leverage of state power, authority and resources to change the lives of millions of our people so they may free themselves. The lives of young people, such as Hector Pieterson, Tsietsi Mashinini, Hastings Ndlovu, were amongst the many that paid dearly for 1994 to happen. Therefore, we must never be patronised by the thinking that there will be a Messiah born, in whatever uniform, to come and liberate young people, because the youth of this country are their own liberators. [Applause.]
What happened in Marikana on that fateful day of 16 August 2012 remains inexcusable and has forced the Police Service to ensure that it equips itself with tactical training to diffuse such situations. We can never, ever compare Soweto 1976 or the Sharpeville murder of our people with what happened in Marikana. [Interjections.] This government is taking action to ensure that those who were responsible for that tragedy are held liable for their actions. The Farlam Commission has been set up to investigate the circumstances of August 16 and give answers to the families of those who lost their lives before, during, and after that tragic afternoon.
We will never, ever compete with our former comrades in the EFF in their endeavour to break every parliamentary law or Rule that has been set, or undermine judicial processes set up to bring closure for these families who lost their loved ones - because none of us will win against what, essentially, has become their profession. Never should we compete with them in kicking down doors - some of them even kicking open doors - as they have been doing since they arrived in Parliament with their red workers' uniforms.
Mr B M BHANGA: Chairperson! Chairperson! Chair!
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon Deputy Minister, would you take your seat, please. Yes, hon member.
Mr B M BHANGA: Hon Deputy Minister, may I ask you a question?
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon Deputy Minister, are you prepared to take a question?
The DEPUTY MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: No.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon members, may I also just indicate that we should not disrupt speakers by continuously asking for questions in the same speech, if it quite obviously ... [Interjections.] ... Order! Order! Hon members, I previously made a ruling against a member of the ANC, so the same applies to everyone. Continue, hon Deputy Minister.
The DEPUTY MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: Thank you, hon Chair. We should not compete with those who are prepared to even kick open doors, since their arrival in Parliament in their red workers' uniforms, behind which we believe are hiding Louis Vuitton shoes, very expensive, matching Gucci belts and Breitling watches! [Interjections.] We must never be fooled - just as the workers and the poor of this country were never fooled. That is why, even if this noise and sound appeals to the mainstream media, it will never appeal to the working class and the poor who came out in their numbers on 7 May to vote for the ANC – 62,3% of them. [Applause.]
Mr N S MATIASE: Mr Chairperson! [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon Deputy Minister. Yes, hon member.
Mr N S MATIASE: Can I ask a question to a supposed-to-be real communist?
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon member, you don't have permission to ask the question yet and thus I am not going to allow you to ask that question now, because you have ignored the previous rulings. Continue, hon Deputy Minister.
The DEPUTY MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: Thank you, Chair. Perhaps someone else can take a moment to ask a question, because I will need to drink water at some point.
This lot, the hon members, have perfected this caricature and this drama, some of which they started in their heyday in the Congress of South African Students, Cosas, in the ANC Youth League, and now in their own spaza shop called the EFF. [Interjections.] However, we must challenge the ...
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: Chairperson, I rise on a point of order ...
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Yes, hon member?
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: I think it is extremely out of order for Buti to say the EFF is a spaza shop. [Interjections.] It is a political party. I think he must withdraw what he said there, please. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members! Hon members, let us treat each other with the necessary respect and maintain the decorum of the House. Let us also refer to each other as "hon members". I will look at the Hansard and, if need be, I will come back to make a ruling in that regard. Will the hon Deputy Minister continue?
Mr B M BHANGA: Hon Chair ... [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members!
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: Hon Chair, what if he admits it and wants to withdraw? Can you give him a chance to withdraw? [Interjections.] [Laughter.]Please!
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members!
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: Please! [Laughter.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon Chief Whip of the EFF, take your seat, please. I have said that I will check the Hansard, and I will make a ruling in that regard. That is the prerogative – hon member, will you take your seat! I have not recognised you! – and that is the prerogative that I have, as the House Chairperson, to do so. I will report back at the appropriate time, if necessary!
Now, to the hon member behind the hon Shivambvu, what is your point of order now?
Mr M Q NDLOZI: Chair, on a point of order: I want to check with you if it is ... [Laughter.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order!
Mr M Q NDLOZI: ... parliamentary decorum to refer to people as a "lot". [Interjections.] It seems to me that there is a level of disrespect and commodification of people. Thank you.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Will you take your seat, hon member? Hon Deputy Minister, did you refer to anyone in the House as a "lot"?
The DEPUTY MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: No. No, hon Chair. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members! Order! [Interjections.] Order, hon members! Hon Deputy Minister ...
The DEPUTY MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: What I said was that "this lot, the hon members" – so, it is a lot of hon members. [Laughter.] [Applause.]
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: Order, order!
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon members, I want to get on with this debate and conclude it. You are now prolonging the sitting. [Interjections.]
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: Look! Look! [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members! [Laughter.] Order!
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: This comrade is lying. I mean, like ... he is lying. He knows what he is trying to do. [Interjections.] [Laughter.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): No, no, no, no, no! [Laughter.]
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: So, can he withdraw this thing here, because he must respect people here.
An HON MEMBER: Order, Chair!
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon Shivambu, hon Shivambu! Will you take your seat, please? [Interjections.] I will ...
An HON MEMBER: Order, Chair!
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon members, take your seats! I will check the Hansard to see exactly what was said during this input by the Deputy Minister, and, if need be, we will revert to the House to deal with the matter. Let us allow the Deputy Minister to conclude the debate.
The DEPUTY MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: Thank you very much, hon Chair. [Interjections.] We must challenge the selective solidarity ...
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): No, hon ... hon Deputy Minister. Hon member, what is your point of order now? [Interjections.]
Mr N S MATIASE: My point of order is directed at the hon Chairperson. [Interjections.] It seems I would want to put a question to the Chairperson. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): What do you want, hon member? [Interjections.]
Mr N S MATIASE: I want to put a question to the Chairperson. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): You want to put a question to me? [Laughter.] [Interjections.]
Mr N S MATIASE: Yes. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members! Order! [Interjections.] Order! Order, hon members! Perhaps it is a question of clarity that you seek. Let's give the hon member an opportunity.
Mr N S MATIASE: I want to know if the Chairperson has lost his right to make an instant ruling ... [Interjections.] ... as the right bestowed on you as a presiding ...
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon member, will you take your seat, please? That is the prerogative of the presiding officer. Take your seat! Continue, hon Deputy Minister. [Interjections.] Hon members on both sides of the House, can we allow the hon Deputy Minister to conclude, please?
The DEPUTY MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: Thank you, hon Chair. Unfortunately, this is not a rally. There are Rules, regulations, procedures ... [Interjections.]
However, we must challenge the selective solidarity and sympathy that is given the workers of Marikana by the EFF. Their choice of solidarity is determined by the membership of the workers whose lives were lost, and only the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union, AMCU, members' lives have been deserving of the solidarity and sympathy of the EFF. Just last week, former AMCU shop steward, Aaron Mavimbela, was sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment, guilty of killing a National Union of Mineworkers, NUM, Jacques Naudé, who left behind his wife, Elsa, and her two children, Rupert and Xanthe.
As we meet here today to debate the challenges facing the youth, there is a certain Mr X who is testifying at the Farlam Commission, where one of the fighters, Adv Dali Mpofu, is raking in millions as a representative of the families of the workers. Mr X has testified under oath that he participated in the torture and murder of two security guards, Hassan Fundi and Frans Mabelani, at the instruction of their sangoma, so that their body parts could be mixed with "intelezi" For the hon Maimane, that is black magic. [Laughter.]
Mr G A GARDEE: Chairperson, Chairperson.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Yes, hon member.
Mr G A GARDEE: May I raise a point of order?
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): What is your point of order, hon member?
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: The issue of the witness, Mr X, is sub judice ... [Interjections.] ... and the issue of "inyanga" cannot be referred to in the House. [Interjections.] Would you rule on that, Chairperson?
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members! Hon members, the matter of Marikana is, indeed, sub judice. However, the hearings that are taking place are taking place in public, and have been reported upon. If the matter is sub judice, it does not mean that any Member of Parliament who enjoys freedom of speech in this House is prevented from referring to the proceedings without prejudging the outcome of the commission of inquiry that is currently sitting.
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: But, Chair, order! [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members!
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: Chair, we ... the hon Malema here was evicted from this House because part of the ruling was that the issue is still under investigation and that we cannot say that the police killed the strikers. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members!
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: ... despite the fact that, in the evidence given there, the police admitted to having killed the people!
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members! Hon member, will you take your ...
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: Where is the consistency?
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon Shivambu!
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: Where is the consistency in terms of the rulings by the Chair?
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon Shivambu! Hon Shivambu! Hon Shivambu, will you take your seat, please. [Interjections.]
Ms M T KUBAYI: On a point of order, Chair.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon member, what is your point of order? [Laughter.]
Ms M T KUBAYI: House Chairperson, I request your indulgence on the matter. Firstly, I refer to the Rules of the House, in terms of Rule 67, where it explains precisely what a sub judice matter is.
Secondly, I want to appeal that, when members rise – because they have been disrupting the member on the platform – they also understand the Rules. Perhaps we must appeal for another Rules workshop to be run so that we can ...
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon member, will you take your seat, please. Hon members, I have given a ruling in this regard, and referred, in context, to what is currently taking place. May I request hon members to allow the speaker to continue now, so that we can complete the debate? Thank you very much to both sides of the House for interventions to try to assist me in chairing this session. [Laughter.] Your advances are noted. However, it will not be entertained any further. I am not going to entertain another point of order on this matter. Conclude, hon Deputy Minister.
The DEPUTY MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: Thank you very much, Chairperson. So, they had to then go and kill Hassan Fundi and Frans Mabelani at the instruction of their sangoma so that their body parts could be mixed with "intelezi", animal fat and blood to make them invisible and invincible when they confronted police ammunition.
Mr G A GARDEE: Chairperson ... [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon member, are you rising on a new point of order?
Mr G A GARDEE: Yes. It's a new point ...
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): What is the new point of order?
Mr G A GARDEE: There is no proof that has been validated by any court of law ... [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon member!
Mr G A GARDEE: There is no proof that has validated the allegations made in the Farlam Commission on the death ... [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members! [Interjections.]
Mr G A GARDEE: ... of the people that the hon member is mentioning. Thank you.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon member, I am following very closely what the Deputy Minister is saying. If there are any specific conclusions that he is trying to arrive at, then I will rule on the matter as it arises, if that is the case. Let's allow the Deputy Minister to continue.
The DEPUTY MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: Thank you. Hon members must listen carefully when I use the word "allegedly".
These security guards had wives and children, who are excluded from your rants and raves of sympathy, because they were not AMCU members, but were allegedly victims of its violence. No union should refer to itself as revolutionary if it instructs that workers' lives should be taken with ease. In addition, any political party that associates itself with such a union and financially supports it should hang its head in shame. [Applause.] Ten people died, including policemen, security guards and NUM members before August 16.
The Fourth Parliament observed a moment of silence and held a debate dedicated to that tragic Thursday afternoon of 16 August 2012. Today, I would like us to observe a moment of silence for the following workers, who were allegedly killed by other workers: Andile Menzi, a young person, a 24-year-old member of the NUM, who died in May 2013; Julius Langa, who died on 13 August 2013; and Sello Lepaaku, a member of the SA Police Service, who died on 13 August 2013.
These are not just names or numbers or statistics. These are human beings, part of the group of 28 workers who had died since the strike in Lonmin and Marikana began, and whose names are never mentioned, whose wives and children deserve, not your sympathy nor your solidarity just because they are not AMCU members, but they were allegedly massacred individually, as per the testimony, by other unions, by other union members.
May their souls rest in peace. More importantly, however, if August 16 was a massacre, this Parliament will make those who are responsible - whether they are the police or not - account, and we hope that no political party will jump to conclusions. Thank you. [Applause.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Thank you, Deputy Minister, you may leave the podium. Thank you. [Interjections.] Order, hon members! Hon members, order!
Hon members, during the course of the debate ...
Mr J S MALEMA: Can I ask a question, Chair? [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon member ...
Mr J S MALEMA: Just on clarity, Chair.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): To whom?
Mr J S MALEMA: With due respect, to you.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Yes?
Mr J S MALEMA: Is the Deputy Minister done? [Laughter.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon member, will you take your seat, please?
Mr J S MALEMA: Okay! [Laughter.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): I think it is quite obvious that he has completed his speech! [Laughter.]
Hon members, order! [Laughter.] Order! There is an important matter that has been brought to my attention.
During the course of the debate, reference was made to a certain person having passed away. In terms of the Rules, I have considered the request from the hon Tobias, who briefly wants to correct the input made in this debate.
PASSING ON OF COMRADE THABO MATLALA AND NOT KGAOGELO LEKGORO
(Personal Explanation)
Ms T V TOBIAS: Thank you very much, hon Chairperson. During my speech earlier today, I made mention of the fact that a former member, the hon Kgaogelo Lekgoro, had passed on. Actually, it was Comrade Thabo Matlala, who worked for the hon Kgaogelo Lekgoro. Therefore, I apologise for the confusion that it might have caused. [Interjections.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order! [Interjections.] Order, hon members! You may conclude, hon member.
Mrs T V TOBIAS: Comrade Lekgoro is still alive. [Interjections.] I was supposed to mention Comrade Thabo Matlala. So, I really apologise for any inconvenience it might have caused. [Interjections.] Thank you very much.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Order, hon members! Order! Thank you for the correction, hon member.
Debate concluded.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick):
Mrs T V TOBIAS/HOUSE CHAIRPERSON
CHAIRPERSON OF THE MULTIPARTY WOMEN'S CAUCUS ALSO EX-OFFICIO MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT'S DELEGATION TO SADC PARLIAMENTARY FORUM
(Announcement)
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Mr C T Frolick): Hon members, though it was not specifically mentioned when we dealt with the item on the Order Paper, I want to remind you that the Chairperson of the Multiparty Women's Caucus will also be an ex-officio member of the South African Parliament's delegation to the SADC Parliamentary Forum once she has been elected.
The House adjourned at 17:49.
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