Hansard: JS: Unrevised hansard
House: Joint (NA + NCOP)
Date of Meeting: 13 Feb 2020
Summary
No summary available.
Minutes
UNREVISED HANSARD
JOINT SITTING
THURSDAY, 13 FEBRUARY 2020
Watch Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBKoQlVzM2k
TAKE 1
STARTS AT 19:06
THURSDAY, 13 FEBRUARY 2020
PROCEEDINGS AT JOINT SITTING
___________
Members of the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces assembled in the Chamber of the National Assembly at 19:00.
The Speaker of the National Assembly and the Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces took the Chair.
The Speaker of the National Assembly requested members to observe a moment of silence for prayers or meditation.
The SPEAKER
START OF DAY
CALLING OF JOINT SITTING
The SPEAKER: Hon members, the President has called this Joint Sitting ... [Interjections.]
Mr J S MALEMA: On a point of order, Speaker!
The SPEAKER: Hon Malema, what is your point of order?
Mr J S MALEMA: Hon Speaker, we have a murderer in the House. We have a man in this House who has the blood of innocent people on his hands. In the House that is supposed to represent the will of our people. [Interjections.] It is therefore incorrect for you to have extended an invitation to De Klerk because he is a murderer and has blood on his hands. The people of Boipatong are turning in their graves.
He said apartheid was not crime against humanity. He is an unrepentant apologist of apartheid who is not willing to accept that apartheid was a crime against humanity.
It is therefore an insult to those who were tortured and died at Vlakplaas under the instructions of De Klerk to have him sitting in a democratic Parliament. [Interjections.] I therefore suggest that we please request De Klerk to leave this House ... [Applause.] ... because he doesn’t belong here. [Applause.]
The SPEAKER: Hon Malema, have you finished?
Mr J S MALEMA: Speaker, I submit that, for us to have peaceful proceedings, we should ask the commander of Vlakplaas, the apartheid apologist and a man with blood on his hands to leave this Parliament because he doesn’t belong here. [Applause.]
The SPEAKER: Thank you, sir. Order members! Hon Malema, I wish to rule on the submission you have made. This sitting has been called for one item and one item only – to give the President the space to address the nation. It is convention that all the
former Presidents who are still alive be invited to the sitting.
Former President De Klerk has been invited because of that. I therefore cannot sustain the submission you have made and I therefore rule it out of order. [Applause.]
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: The meeting is called for a special purpose...
The SPEAKER: Hon Floyd Shivambu, I have not recognised you.
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: May you please recognise me?
The SPEAKER: On which Rule are you rising?
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: On a point of order. Rule 14(f) of the Joint Rules.
The SPEAKER: What is your point of order?
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: The point of order is that the Rules of the Joint Sitting apply even when it is the state of the nation address, that’s number one. You can’t recognise De Klerk as a President. Whose President? [Interjections.] Who voted for him? Are you saying this Parliament – a democratically elected Parliament – must recognise a whites-only President who was elected by the criminal system of apartheid? [Interjections.] No, we must acknowledge him as such ... [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: Hon Shivambu. Hon Shivambu!
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: It cannot be correct.
The SPEAKER: Yes, you are right. The Joint Rules ... [Interjections.] ... apply to this sitting. [Interjections.] Order! Order! The Rules apply and those Rules have never been questioned. The history of this country is there for all to see. We recognised that there was an apartheid system and also recognised that it was a system that brought us all into this House.
Therefore, that point of order is not sustained. [Applause.]
Mr M M DLAMINI: Speaker!
The SPEAKER: On which Rule are you standing?
Mr M M DLAMINI: On a point of order, Speaker.
The SPEAKER: What is your point of order?
Mr M M DLAMINI: Just accept that, as presiding officers, you made a mistake by inviting De Klerk. So, De Klerk must go ... like you have been making mistakes ... [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: Please take your seat; we have not made any ... please take your seat.
Mr M M DLAMINI: Can you ask that murderer to go?
The SPEAKER: Please take your seat, hon member. We have not made any mistake.
Mr J S MALEMA: Hon Speaker, you are talking about history. What I am telling you is not history.
The SPEAKER: Hon Malema, I did not recognise you; please take your seat?
Mr J S MALEMA: De Klerk had an interview, last week ... [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: Hon Malema, I did not recognise you; please take your seat?
Mr J S MALEMA: ... and said apartheid was not wrong ...
The SPEAKER: Hon Malema, I did not recognise you; please take your seat?
Ms N V MENTE: On a point of order, Speaker!
The SPEAKER: What is your point of order?
Ms N V MENTE: Speaker, you just said itself yourself that it was apartheid. Who presided over apartheid? De Klerk. And just last week, he said that apartheid was not a crime against humanity. So, we were human enough to be killed by the apartheid system and the person that presided over that system must come and be seated here with us, after killing our forefathers, brothers, mothers and sisters?
The SPEAKER: Hon Mente, please take your seat?
Ms N V MENTE: No.
The SPEAKER: You are taking your seat! [Laughter.]
Dr M Q NDLOZI: On a point of order, Speaker!
The SPEAKER: Hon members, are we going to go on like this on the matter of the presence ... [Interjections.] ... of former President De Klerk? [Interjections.]
Dr M Q NDLOZI: Speaker!
The SPEAKER: May I then tell this House ...
Dr M Q NDLOZI: Speaker!
The SPEAKER: ... that the presence of former President De Klerk in this House is proper because we have done it in terms of the Rules. We have always been open about former Presidents and former leaders of this House ... [Interjections.] ... and therefore, delaying the business of this House tonight on the matter of former President De Klerk is not going to help us. So, may I suggest that I will not take any further points of order on this matter? [Applause.]
Dr M Q NDLOZI: Speaker!
The SPEAKER: Hon Ndlozi, if you are to address me, address me on a different point, not on the matter of former President De Klerk.
Dr M Q NDLOZI: I am afraid, Speaker, that you have a constitutional obligation to respect the Rules. You do not make them up as you go. There is no such a Rule on anticipating what I am rising on and rule on it in anticipation, that’s number one.
You are a commander of uMkhonto weSizwe. [Interjections.] You, ANC members sitting here, taught us that we must reconcile with this people because they accepted the mistakes they made; that is history, that is okay. We are not talking about history; we are talking about last week. De Klerk takes a platform in front of the whole World and says apartheid was not a crime against humanity. You must be ashamed you are sitting here, Clapping hands! [Interjections.] As ANC people, you must be ashamed. No one is even raising ...
The SPEAKER: Hon Ndlozi, you are addressing us ...
Dr M Q NDLOZI: Speaker, no one is even raising a substantial argument in relation to what we are raising; you are busy clapping hands.
The SPEAKER: Hon Ndlozi! Hon Ndlozi!
Dr M Q NDLOZI: De Klerk is an apartheid apologist, not in 1990, 1994, but yesterday.
The SPEAKER: Hon Ndlozi! My ruling stands, take your seat. I am very clear and simple. If you are standing up on a point of order, it is not about the former President of the country. I am not going to go on like this on the matter of former President De Klerk.
Mr J S MALEMA: Speaker, I am willing to accept ...
C/W I AM WILLING TO ACCEPT ... [Mr J S MALEMA] /AR [13-02-20] / TAKE ENDS AT 19:08
TAKE 2 STARTS AT 19:16
Mr J S MALEMA
Mr J S MALEMA: I am willing to accept ...
The SPEAKER: Hon Malema! Hon Malema, take your seat. Hon members please do not stand up before you are recognised. Hon Mulder, you are recognised.
Dr C P MULDER: Hon Speaker, we are not going to hold a debate on the past tonight. [Interjections.] But ... but ... but ... [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: Order! [Interjections.] Order! [Interjections.] Order! [Interjections.] Order! [Interjections.] Order! [Interjections.]. Hon members of the EFF, you will have to respect anybody who is on the floor of this House.
Dr C P MULDER: Hon Speaker, I know that ...
The SPEAKER: You will have to respect any speaker who is on the floor of this House, because when you stood up, people allowed you to say your piece. Hon Mulder, please continue.
Dr C P MULDER: Yes, thank you, Ma’am. Hon Speaker, we should just be technically, legally and constitutionally correct, and we should deal with the real facts. What the hon members of the EFF don’t know it seems is that in 1994 there was an election where all South Africans participated ... [Interjections.] ... all South Africans, and in those elections, Mr De Klerk was elected as one of the Deputy Presidents of South Africa. [Interjections.]. And he served ... [Interjections.] ... he served ... [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: You are protected, hon Mulder.
Dr C P MULDER: He served as a Member of Parliament after 1994 and as the Deputy President of South Africa. So, the precedent that you have set is the correct one and I suggest that we proceed with the business of the House.
Prince M G BUTHELEZI: Hon Speaker, hon Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces, Your Excellency, our President, hon members, I was wondering whether we can have our say. And the only way we can have our say is to put the matter to the vote so that all of us can have a say on the matter.
HON MEMBERS: Yes, let’s go!
Prince M G BUTHELEZI: Then we can all have a say on the matter because we would all like to have a say on the matter. [Interjections.].
Mr J S MALEMA: Speaker, I would like to second the motion that we vote on De Klerk. [Interjections.]. Let’s vote and see who is going to vote for De Klerk to sit in this House. [Interjections.]. Today we will know who was a spy; the spies are going to be exposed. [Interjections.]. Let’s vote. [Interjections.].
The SPEAKER: Hon members, I have not yet responded to the hon Buthelezi. [Interjections.]. Order! Order! Hon members, order. Hon members, I have made a ruling on the matter. [Interjections.]. I made a ruling on the matter. I said that any hand that will be raised, that person is not going to be speaking again about the hon De Klerk. So, I do not know what we will be voting about. I made a ruling on this matter ...
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: Hon Speaker, I am standing in terms of the Joint Rules of both the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces. There is a new proposal on the floor that says, let us vote on whether De Klerk the murderer must be here or not. So, we are seconding that motion and no one has opposed it. And motions can be raised in a Joint Sitting. Let us vote on whether De Klerk stays here or not; it’s as simple as that.
The SPEAKER: Thank you. Can I take you back to the Rules – the Joint Rules? Rule 13(2) says, “No vote or decision may be taken by or in a Joint Sitting” [Interjections.]. I made a ruling on that matter. That matter is closed. [Applause.]
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION: Hon Speaker, hon Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces, I would like to rise on point 14(S) of the Joint Rules, in terms of our constitutional right, everyone in this House has the right to hear the President deliver the state of the nation address, and as such I would like the DA’s constitutional right to be upheld, and we would like to proceed with the matter of hearing the state of the nation address from the President. [Applause.]
The SPEAKER: I agree with the hon member. There is one item on the Order Paper, and it is that the President addresses the House and the nation. Can we proceed with the business of this House? [Applause.] Hon member, do you still want to ... Okay, you are fine. Can we proceed with the business of this House? Thank you very much. [Interjections.]
Hon members, we have been called into this Joint Sitting of the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces in terms of section 84(2)(d) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, read with Joint Rule 7(1)(a) in order to let the President deliver his state of the nation address to Parliament. I shall now call the President to address the nation. [Interjections.] [Applause.]
The PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA / kn (13/02/2020 @21:40) / TAKE ENDS AT 19:22
TAKE 3 STARTS AT 19:15
The SPEAKER
The PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA: Speaker of the National Assembly, Ms Thandi Modise, Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces ... [Interjections.]
Mr V PAMBO: On a point of order, Speaker.
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: What’s the point of order?
Mr V PAMBO: Can the President please sit down. [Interjections.] I’m following the rules, Speaker.
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: What’s the point of order?
Mr V PAMBO: Can we follow the rules? You ...
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: What’s the point of order?
Mr V PAMBO: Can we follow the rules? According to Rule 14(c), read alongside 14(s); if you read them now, you will realise that the President must sit down before I raise the point of order. Please sit down, President. [Interjections.] We are going to help you run this Parliament. Sit down, President. Follow the Rules. We are going to help you. If you want to follow the Rules, then follow the Rules and sit down. [Applause.]
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Can we find out what the point of order is?
Mr V PAMBO: Well, the point of order, Speaker, is that we cannot sit here in this Parliament with millions of South Africans watching us when they know that they are in darkness because of one man who has made sure that our state-owned entities are in a state of collapse. Today, Eskom cannot keep the lights on in our houses. Today, we cannot fly to Durban because there is a Minister who is making sure that SA Airways, SAA, is dysfunctional. Today, we sit here with a Minister who is working for white monopoly capital, making sure that the state-owned entities go to his friends. We call for the adjournment so that the President can go outside and make sure that he makes an announcement to the nation ... [Inaudible.] ... that Pravin Gordhan is no longer a Minister of this country. We don’t ... [Inaudible.] ... we won’t sit with Pravin Gordhan, not here. Pravin Gordhan must go. Pravin Gordhan must go, please.
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: That’s not a point of order. We’ll move on. We’ll move on! Hon Mazzone!
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION: On a point of order. Chairperson of the NCOP and Speaker, I rise in terms of 14(n), in terms of time exceeded in the House and I submit that the previous member exceeded his allotted time for making a point of order.
I also rise in terms of Rule 14(n). I have a constitutional right – as does every member of the DA – to sit in this House and hear the state of the nation address of the President of the Republic and I would hereby request that my party and I are allowed to hear the President deliver his state of the nation address. [Interjections.]
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Hon members, can I plead with all of you, can I make a plea, and ask all of you to co-operate and proceed with business of the day?
I will, therefore, without any waste of time request the President to proceed.
Ms D B NGWENYA: Point of order, Madam Speaker. I’m rising on a point of order.
The SPEAKER: What’s your point of order, Mme [Ms] Ngwenya?
Ms D B NGWENYA: Madam Speaker, the Speaker, Deputy Speaker here ... we have read the Rules and we are waiting for him to rule. He cannot go on when we have asked him to rule on Rule 14(c) and 14(s). Let him rule so that we know that he has allowed Pravin Gordhan – who has caused the economy of this country to plunge into darkness – to be in this House with us. The Minister is trying to take away the economy of the people of South Africa and make them poorer, and he and his cronies are continuing to get richer and richer. He must go out of this [Inaudible.]
The SPEAKER: Hon Ngwenya, can I address you? Hon members, a point of order is only allowed if it calls to the attention to a transgression, which all of you have not proven, of a joint rule or an accepted parliamentary practice or privilege. The transgression, if there is one committed tonight here, is the one which the hon Mazzone is referring to: interfering with the right and the privilege of all the other members of this House and South Africa to get on with the business of today.
I plead that we allow the business of the day to continue.
Dr M Q NDLOZI: With the greatest of respect, Madam Speaker. The Constitution is also on our side because we are members sworn to the Constitution; we also have a right to partake in this proceeding.
I just want to really bring to your attention ...
The SPEAKER: Can I respond on that point of the Constitution?
Dr M Q NDLOZI: I will be done in a moment, Speaker. I’ll be done.
We can’t gather like things are normal here when things are abnormal. Pravin Gordhan, Mr Cyril Ramaphosa, misled you. He misled you together with another man and you fire the other man and not fire Pravin Gordhan. Please fire Pravin Gordhan now so that we go.
The SPEAKER: Hon Ndlozi, take your seat. No, hon members. You address us on the point of the Constitution. The Constitution gives this House, gives every member of this House the right to listen, to debate, to put questions. You want to raise the issue of a Minister during the state of the nation, this is not the platform. You want to raise a question to the President, the President will give both Houses the dates for you to address that question; not a Joint Sitting. This House does not ... hon [Interjections.]
Ms H O MKALIPHI: Speaker!
The SPEAKER: Hon member, take your seat. I did not ... I have not finished my ruling; take your seat.
Ms H O MKALIPHI: Please recognise me.
The SPEAKER: Please take your seat.
The Joint Sitting is not the platform to address how the President appoints or dismisses members of Cabinet. [Interjections.]
HON MEMBERS: Why?
The SPEAKER: Because you do not have the powers to do so. [Interjections.] You have the right to ask questions during questions times and at any other time. The NCOP has the right to do the same in the other House. So, can we please proceed with the business of the day?
No, hon members. I do not think we want to take any other further point of order because you really are eating in into the time of us to continue with the business of today.
Mr N S MATIASE: Speaker! Madam Speaker!
The SPEAKER: If you address me you’re addressing me on a different point order not this one?
Mr N S MATIASE: I rise on a point of order. You say there is no transgression committed here. Here sits a man who has misled the President and the entire nation. And if the president cannot rain over him to leave [Inaudible.]
The SPEAKER: Hon member, take your seat. That’s not a point of order. That matter, we have dealt with. We have directed you how you will deal with that point of order, unless you were not listening to us when we were speaking to you.
Ms H O MKALIPHI: Speaker, you promised to recognise me and I respected you and I sat down.
The SPEAKER: Hon Hlophe, I had actually not but I will give you the floor now.
Ms H O MKALIPHI: Speaker, we are proposing that please adjourn the House in order for the President to fire Pravin [Interjections.] you will have a peaceful, peaceful, peaceful state of the nation address. Please adjourn the House in order for President Ramaphosa to fire Jamnandas.
The SPEAKER: Hon member, please take your seat. Please take your seat.
Hon members don’t do this.
Mr J B MAMABOLO: Hon Speaker!
The SPEAKER: What’s your point of order?
Mr J B MAMABOLO: No, no, it’s not a point of order, hon Speaker. I just want to address you for a minute. Hon Speaker, we have the rules of the House here [Interjections.]
Dr M Q NDLOZI: Hon member, this is not a perfect wedding. On what rule are you rising? On what rule? [Laughter.]
The SPEAKER: Hon Ndlozi, take your seat. Hon members of the EFF ... hon member, take your seat.
Please proceed.
Mr J B MAMABOLO: Hon Speaker, we have rules of the House here. We are not at Juju Valley or negate lodge. Now, Speaker, look [Interjections.] Hon Speaker, we have been abused for too long now. We cannot be abused like the manner in which Mantwa is being abused at home by hon Malema. [Interjections.] This is totally out of order, hon Speaker. Let us apply rules of the House. EFF, if they want to engage you, let’s go outside and engage outside ...
Sepedi:
Rena ke rena dithaka.
English:
Leave these elderly people; let’s go and engage outside. [Interjections.]
AN HON MEMBER: Let’s go baba [sir], let’s go, let’s go.
The SPEAKER: Order. Hon members, take your seats. [Interjections.] Hon members, take your seats. [Interjections.] No. Hon members, take your seats. Hon members, take your seats. You all have a minute to take your seats or march out. Take your seats.
You’re on the floor, sir!
Mr B A RADEBE /KG\ Kn (Sep) / TAKE ENDS AT 19:26:23
TAKE 4 STARTS AT 19:33
The SPEAKER
Mr B A RADEBE: Hon Speaker, I am rising on three points of order.
The SPEAKER: Give us a point of order, sir, and not three points of order.
Mr B A RADEBE: I am rising on Rule 4,3. Since the beginning of this sitting members of the House were being referred by their first names and it is not in order. I think that one must be snipped from the party. Secondly, it is an issue of a point of order. When a presiding officer has made a ruling, that ruling is final, and if any member has an issue around that they know the processes that they must follow in order to challenge the ruling of the presiding officer. It cannot be done in this House. Thank you.
Mr N SIGNH: Hon Speaker, I do respect the Rules of this House very much, and that is why I kept on lifting my hand to be recognised, but it seems I had to stand. Hon Speaker, you asked what a transgression is. Transgression is that the hon member of the EFF who started with this point of order said that we will not sit in this House and there are millions who will not want to listen to what the President says. That royal we must not be used here. The we refers to them and the members of his party and it doesn’t include us. [Applause.] Hon Speaker, you should rule that we continue with the sitting of the House and those who do not want to be here should leave the House. Thank you.
Mr A M SHAIK-EMAM: On a point of order, hon Speaker.
The SPEAKER: Order member! Order!
Mr G A GARDEE: Did you recognise me, Madam Speaker?
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: No!
The SPEAKER: Hon Godrich, please, take your seat.
Mr G A GARDEE: Okay!
Mr A M SHAIK-EMAM: Hon Speaker, there are millions of people in South Africa and millions more internationally that want to hear what the President want to say. [Interjections.]
An hon member: Where are you? We cannot see you.
Mr A M SHAIK-EMAM: Hon Speaker, Minister Gordhan is a member of this House and he has the right to remain in this House. I call on you, hon Speaker, to exercise your right to protect the dignity and the decorum of the House and do what is correct.
The SPEAKER: That order is sustained.
The DEPUTY CHIE WHIP OF THE MAJORITY: Hon Speaker, I think this night we have all the arms of state in one room, which is Chamber. I really feel embarrassed to call myself a Member of Parliament if we behave the way we are behaving. [Interjections.] Therefore, the proposal that we want to make is that those who are not willing to listen to the state of the nation address should not trample on our rights and the rights of the citizens of the country. We want to listen to what the President want to say to them. Hon Speaker, please protect the rights of all of us.
The SPEAKER: Hon members, I am not taking any more points of order.
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: Speaker!
The SPEAKER: Hon members, I am not taking any points of order. Hon Shivambu take your seat.
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: I want to call order.
The SPEAKER: Hon Shivambu, take your seat. Hon members, you clearly do not have any interest in the business of this House today. You are delaying us, and you are refusing us to start with the business of the day. Hon members, there is an input on the floor. Any member who feel that they do not want to participate in the proceedings of this Joint Sitting today, you are free to walk out and allow us and the rest of the country to enjoy the state of the nation address. [Applause.]
If you choose to sit and do not leave, you will sit and allow us to continue with the decorum of this House so that we can get on with the business of the day. Any other member who will stand up and disrupt this House, please leave in peace. Any member! [Interjections.] You are disrupting. No, hon Shivambu, what do you understand to be a disruption?
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: A disruption is when you do not use the Rules to make interruptions. An interruption is allowed in terms of the Rules that are contained in this book which guide all of us here now. There are two issues which you cannot overlook, Speaker. One, we have a semiliterate person who cannot think and says we must go and fight outside. You can call that person to order. That is the first one.
The SPEAKER: No, I am not entertaining that.
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: Secondly, if we cannot find each other here as we did not have a Chief Whips’ Forum yesterday, I propose that the Whips must go outside and come with the solution so that as Whips we can guide on what must happen. The Whips must come out so that we can guide this House on what should happen. That is the concrete proposal.
The SPEAKER: Hon Shivambu, I want to let you know that the two of us presiding here are responsible for the running of this Joint Sitting. We can confer, but I can tell you that we do not think it is necessary for us to further disrupt the business of this sitting. When you sit and you let us proceed with the business of today.
Mr J S MALEMA: On a point of order!
The SPEAKER: No, hon Malema.
Mr J S MALEMA: On a point of order!
The SPEAKER: We have heard enough.
Mr J S MALEMA: No, no, on a point of order, Speaker. You keep on saying that Members of Parliament are disrupting Parliament while we stand up and speak through you. You cannot call that a disruption. You cannot call our inputs a disruption. We have the right to be here. We have the right to speak, and that’s what we are getting paid for. You can’t, when we execute our responsibility, say, no, we don’t have time. We have all the time. We are getting paid to be here. We have all the time. The Chief Whip has made a progressive proposal that let us adjourn for five minutes...
The SPEAKER: We are not adjourning.
Mr J S MALEMA: ...so that the Chief Whips can talk outside since there was no Chief Whips’ Forum.
The SPEAKER: Hon Malema, please, take your seat. No!
Mr J S MALEMA: We were going to make this input yesterday at the Chief Whips’ Forum, but there was no Chief Whips’ Forum. In the absence of the Chief Whips’ Forum there is nothing we can do.
The SPEAKER: Hon Malema, take your seat. Hon members, what you are doing is a disruption. [Interjections.] What you are doing right now, when you disrespect what we are saying from the Chair when you think that you have an unlimited freedom of speech to take away the rights of other members that constitutes a disruption of the business of today. Therefore, we cannot allow this to go any further. [Interjections.] No, we are not taking any further points of order - we are not. We are not taking any points of order. We are not taking any points of order.
Mr M M DLAMINI: Speaker, no, but you must guide us through the Rules.
The SPEAKER: Please, take your seat!
Mr M M DLAMINI: Which Rules are you quoting?
The SPEAKER: I am saying, please take your seat.
Mr M M DLAMINI: But guide us through the Rules we are not your kids
The SPEAKER: If you do not wish to take your seat, sir, please, leave this House. Hon Mkhaliphi, I am not taking any further points of order. You are simply retarding the progress of this House tonight. Hon Godrich, I am not taking your point of order. You are simply retarding our progress. Take your seat.
Mr G A GARDEE: Madam Speaker, I have been so well behaving to you since we started because I recognise you so well.
The SPEAKER: Take you seat! Take you seat! If you don not wish to take your seat, I am going to ask that you be helped out of the House.
Mr G A GARDEE: No, please, before that don’t be like Mama Mbete.
The SPEAKER: No, take your seat. No, hon members, you cannot come here and take away the rights of the rest of this House because you think it is your rights.
Mr G A GARDEE: This one has taken the rights of our people to have lives and to fly to Durban. This one!
The SPEAKER: Hon Gardee, I will not have dialogue with you take your seat. Take your seat!
Mr G A GARDEE: This one! But Madam Speaker
The SPEAKER: Take your seat!
Mr G A GARDEE: There is transgression
The SPEAKER: Take your seat. No, hon members, I am not taking any furthers points of order. Allow us to proceed with the business of the House.
Mr L G MOKOENA: Madam Speaker, what about the rights of the members of this House? Do they not have the rights to raise points of order and to speak freely in this House? What about the rights of the people of South Africa who are now sitting in darkness?
The SPEAKER: You are actually infringing all the rights of other members of this House as you do this. You have time and time again...
Mr L G MOKOENA: What about people who cannot travel to Durban?
The SPEAKER: No, hon member, take your seat.
Mr L G MOKOENA: They had to cancel their...what about those people?
The SPEAKER: No, take your seat. Hon member, take your seat. You are infringing on the rights of all the other members of this House. Your rights do not supersede the rights of all the other members of all these parties.
Ms H O MKHALIPHI: Speaker!
The SPEAKER: You are not recognised, please take your seat.
Ms E N NTLANGWINI: Hon Speaker, my hand has been up for a very long time and you are refusing to recognise me.
The SPEAKER: If you are coming back on the other points of order that have been raised in this House I...
Ms E N NTLANGWINI: It’s a new one, Speaker.
The SPEAKER: The new one that is going to...
Ms E N NTLANGWINI: It is a new one and will guide the House, Speaker. The Chief Whip of the EFF has made a proposal that the Chief Whips must go out. [Interjections.] No, we are members of this House and you can howl as much as you want because you want to protect Pravin. You are protecting your member. We are members of this House.
The SPEAKER: Hon member, can I address you. I don’t think you heard me. When that proposal was made I said we are not suspending this House for the Chief Whips to go. [Interjections.] We are not! [Interjections.] Hon members, we do not have a crisis, but you have a crisis.
An hon member: On which Rule!
The SPEAKER: You are causing this House not to proceed. Please, take your seats. Hon Ntlangwini!
Ms E N NTLANGWINI: Hon Speaker, have you recognised me? I am hon Ntlangwini.
The SPEAKER: Yes, please, proceed.
Mrs E N NTLANGWINI: Speaker, the hon Chief Whip of the EFF has made a concrete proposal. We have a crisis, Speaker.
The SPEAKER: And I have responded to the proposal of the Chief Whip.
Mrs E N NTLANGWINI: Could the Chief Whips please go out and discuss this matter further. We want to know on which Rule you have ruled that the Chief Whips cannot go outside and address the matter of hon Pravin.
The SPEAKER: Hon Ntlangwini, take your seat.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: With the greatest apology to both of you, Madam Speaker and Chairperson, I think Rule 14(g) explicitly says that if the presiding officer is of the opinion that a member is deliberately contravening a provision of these Rules, or that a member is in contempt of or is disregarding the authority of the Chair, or that a member’s conduct is grossly disorderly, he or she may order the member to withdraw immediately from the Chamber for the remainder of the sitting.
Can I make the second point, Madam Speaker and Chairperson? The presiding officer, after having called attention to the conduct of a member who persists in irrelevance or repetition of arguments, may direct the member to discontinue his or her speech. I want to maintain that this is grossly disorderly and repeatedly raising arguments that we should request the members to stop or make a ruling, Madam Speaker. [Applause.]
Mr J S MALEMA / GC 13/02/2020 / TAKE ENDS AT 19:46
TAKE 5 - STARTS AT 19:39
The DEPUTY SPEAKER
Mr J S MALEMA: Hon Speaker, it does not say “members”, it says “member”. There has to be a specific person. There is no generalisation here!
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION: On a point of order.
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Hon member, please sit down. We will now proceed and have the President addressing this House. Hon President. [Applause.]
The PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC: Speaker of the National Assembly ...
Ms N V MENTE: Mama Thandi, you did not rule when we were threatened from over there that we must go out. They want to beat us. You did not rule them out. We cannot be members of this House and then the members of the ANC come and threaten other members of this House, as if we are here as a favour! We are also elected! You did not reprimand them!
The SPEAKER: Hon members, order. Hon members, I am sure South Africa is not very proud of us tonight.
Dr M Q NDLOZI: They stole electricity and they are in the dark!
The SPEAKER: I am sure none of you are proud of what you are doing today. So, can we agree that we are going to allow this House to proceed with its business and that any spurious point of order will see a member walking out of that door? Can we agree on that? [Applause.]
Can we agree that we will not have any hand and any spurious point of order? We are proceeding with the business of this House.
Dr M Q NDLOZI: Speaker ... I am sure, Madam Speaker, with the greatest respect, you will agree. It is not spurious.
An HON FEMALE MEMBER: Ice boy, can you please sit down! Ice boy! Ice boy!
The SPEAKER: No, take your seat, hon Ndlozi.
Dr M Q NDLOZI: It is not spurious; they threatened us with violence! You owe us protection. It is not spurious!
The SPEAKER: Take your seat. Hon members, no member has any right to threaten any member. Neither does any member ...
An HON FEMALE MEMBER: Ice boy, can you please sit down!
The SPEAKER: Neither does any member have the right to take away and disadvantage any other member in any other fashion. So, you are not angels because you infringe on the rights of all the other members in this House to proceed! And that is why I am saying, I am not taking any point of order, except yours, hon Pandor. What is your point of order?
The MINISTER OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND CO-OPERATION: Hon Speaker, I think you have ruled correctly, because there is indeed spurious use of the Rules and very serious infringement of the Rules. I think, Speaker, you should act as you have indicated. Should there be any further interruptions, members must be asked to leave the House. Thank you. [Applause.]
The SPEAKER: Hon Mkhaliphi, I am not taking any further points of order. The only point of order I will take is when you continue to interrupt the business of the day.
Mr J S MALEMA: Speaker.
The SPEAKER: Hon Malema, do you intend to stop us from proceeding with the business of the day?
Mr J S MALEMA: No, not at all.
The SPEAKER: So why are you rising?
Mr J S MALEMA: No. Violence was threatened. It was brought to your attention.
The SPEAKER: I had just called this whole House to order.
Mr J S MALEMA: No, not the whole House.
The SPEAKER: I did.
Mr J S MALEMA: It was by a specific individual. By the Rules of this House, you ought to call the individual concerned, and ask that person to withdraw, so that we can have peace in this House, because we should not threaten violence. No one has a monopoly on violence.
The SPEAKER: Hon Malema. Hon Malema, take your seat. Hon members, I did not see the member who threatened. I heard ...
Dr M Q NDLOZI: Our perfect wedding! Our perfect wedding!
The SPEAKER: No, do not behave like that. No, I heard a member saying members should go out. I did not see and I am not calling any member by name. I have made a ruling in this House.
Mr G A GARDEE: Just ask him if he did actually threaten us.
The SPEAKER: Hon Gardee, take your seat or leave this House!
Mr L G MOKOENA, Hon Speaker, we can help you with the person.
The SPEAKER: Hon member, please take your seat or please go out.
Mr L G MOKOENA: Hon Speaker, we can help you show you who threatened violence.
The SPEAKER: No, I do not want your help. You take your seat now or leave in peace.
Mr L G MOKOENA: No, I am saying because you say you did not see them.
The SPEAKER: You take your seat now or leave!
Mr L G MOKOENA: I am helping!
The SPEAKER: You take that seat, hon Mokoena, or leave. Hon Mkhaliphi, if you stand, you are prepared to walk out.
Yes! Yes! If you stand and continue with your spurious points of order and eat away at the country’s time to listen to the state of the nation address, please walk out or we shall assist you.
You are volunteering to go. Hon the President, please proceed.
Mr M HLENGWA: Madam Speaker, with all due respect. Prince Buthelezi has had his hand up respecting this House and people are jumping ... He has had his hand up, but you have people jumping up like popcorn and are being recognised.
The SPEAKER: The hon Buthelezi?
Prince M G BUTHELEZI: Hon Speaker, I think I have a right to ask a question to you as the presiding officer. I would like to know ... and our judiciary is here ... Unfortunately we cannot consult them. [Laughter.]
Purely on common sense: Is it right that a minority can impose their will on the majority? Quite clearly ... [Interjections.]
We did not shout at you when you were speaking. [Applause.]
The SPEAKER: You are protected, hon Buthelezi.
Prince M G BUTHELEZI: Quite clearly and on sheer common sense, the people who have raised the matters and delayed us are a minority. The majority of us want to listen to the President. I have been raising my hand and people just jump and speak, but because I respect you and will not break the Rules and do as they do, you do not give me a chance. Just do a simple thing. I want enlightenment from you as the presiding officer. Is it right that the minority should impose their will on the majority of us? [Applause.]
The SPEAKER: Thank you, Sir. Hon Buthelezi, members of this House have the right to freedom of speech, but that freedom is not unlimited. It is subject to the rules of this House and it is subject to the provisions of the powers and privileges. So, no member can impose their will on the rest of the members.
Ms N P SONTI: Speaker. Speaker.
The SPEAKER: Hon member, I did not recognise you please take your seat.
IsiXhosa:
Ms N P SONTI: Ndiyakucela Somlomo ndihoye.
The SPEAKER: Hon members, I am not going to recognise any hand. And any hand that ...
Ms N P SONTI: Sorry, Speaker.
The SPEAKER: I will not recognise any hand.
IsiXhosa:
Nks N P SONTI: Kancinci nje Somlomo wam.
English:
The SPEAKER: I will not recognise that hand!
Ms N P SONTI: Speaker! Speaker! Speaker!
The SPEAKER: No, members, no!
IsiXhosa:
Nks N P SONTI: Siyafuna ukummamela uMongameli kodwa ngokuzithoba okukhulu, asikwazi usabeke utata uJamnandas apha. Isizwe sonke soMzantsi Afrika siyakhala ngenxa yakhe. Siyafuna ukummamela, siyafuna.
English:
The SPEAKER: Hon Sonti, hon Sonti, please leave the House. [Applause.]
Please leave the House. Because you are deliberately making sure that this House cannot continue with its business. No!
THE SPEAKER / AZM MNGUNI (Eng)/ ND (Xho) TAKE ENDS AT 19:56
TAKE 6 STARTS AT 19:56
THE SPEAKER
The SPEAKER: Hon Malema, take your seat! No, hon members, you are not going to hold us to ransom!
Mr M M DLAMINI: Speaker, can I get clarity so that there is ... [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: Take your seat!
Mr M M DLAMINI: Are you suspending the Rules tonight?
The SPEAKER: Take your seat!
Mr M M DLAMINI: Are you suspending the Rules tonight?
The SPEAKER: Hon member, take your seat!
Mr J S MALEMA: Which Rules are you using which says you can no longer recognise hands? Which Rule? Point us to the Rule. It doesn’t matter how irritating we are in this House, you ought to point a Rule and say: According to this Rule, I will no longer recognise hands. There is no such a Rule and we are not going to be treated as a group here ... [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: It does not matter how much you are irritated. You are right: It does not matter how much the two of us are irritated, that still does not give a minority or an individual member of this House more rights that the other members.
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION: Point of order! Point of order!
The SPEAKER: No members, you are not going to continue to do this!
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION: Point of order!
Mr L G MOKOENA: A minority is judged by a vote. So, let’s vote so that we are sure that it is a minority. [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: Hon Mokoena, please take your seat!
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION: Point of order! Point of order, Madam Speaker.
The SPEAKER: Hon Mazzone!
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE OPPOSITION: Speaker, I rise on Rule 14(f) of the Joint Rules, as well as Rule 14(k). Rule 14(f) deals with the irrelevance and repetition. We have now had the same point of order called over four times. Chair, we also have been dealing with these points of orders that have been repeated for exactly 50 minutes. In terms of Rule 14(k), it describes exactly what grave disorder is. Given the fact that the party calling points of order and disrupting the House at present made it very clear that they had every intention of disrupting the proceedings for tonight, Rule 14(k) comes into play because it now refers to grave disorder in the House. Chair, I would ask you to once again protect the rights of the majority of the members in this House and let us have our constitutional right to hear the state of the nation address by the President. [Applause.]
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: On a point of order! On a point of order, Chairperson of the NCOP!
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Hon members, ... Hon members, ... [Interjections.]
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: Just on a point of order! I am rising in terms of Rule 14(f), please! [Interjections.]
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Please sit down! Please sit down! Please sit down!
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: But why do you call that ... [Interjections.]
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Because I did not recognise you. Please sit down! Sit down! [Interjections.]
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: And please, recognise me after that. Please! [Interjections.]
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Sit! Sit, sit, sit down! Sit down! Thank you very much. Hon members, it is very clear that continuously taking points of orders is not getting this House anywhere. Clearly, the freedom of speech of members is being abused and we would really like to make a plea one more time: That we should allow the President to proceed with his state of the nation address. Hon President, please proceed. [Applause.]
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: Chairperson of the NCOP, on a point of order! There is ... [Interjections.]
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: I have not recognised you!
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: There is no Rule here to chase a party out of the House. [Interjections.] We are treated as members, one by one, here!
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Hon member, I have not recognised you, so please sit down. Please proceed, hon President.
Mr J S MALEMA: Speaker! Speaker! [Interjections.]
The PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC: I have already said ... [Interjections.]
Mr J S MALEMA: Can you please recognise us! I want us to work according to Rules here. We are in Parliament here - ... [Interjections.] ... an activist Parliament!
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Hon Malema, you have not been recognised. Please sit down!
Mr J S MALEMA: Can you recognise me?
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Please sit down! Please sit!
Mr J S MALEMA: Recognition?
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Please sit! Hon President!
Ms H O MKHALIPHI: Bro Ampi!
Mr J S MALEMA: No, Bro Ampi, you are making a mistake! [Laughter.] You are making a mistake! Recognise me, I want to speak according to the Rules. Hon Speaker, you ought to say to us according to which Rule are you no longer going to take hands on points of order. That is number one. Number two: There is no one who is going to be treated as a party here. There is no party here; there are Members of Parliament who shall be recognised as individual Members of Parliament. So, there is no party. So, please ... [Interjections.] There is no majority and there is no minority. [Interjections.]
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Hon Malema!
Mr J S MALEMA: And, if you are going to go with that narrative of minority, minority will know us here!
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Hon Malema ... [Interjections.]
AN HON MEMBER: Slender, can you please sit down. Slender!
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Please sit down! Hon President, hon members, we are now proceeding with the state of the nation address.
Ms H O MKHALIPHI: Bro Ampi! Bro Ampi! Chairperson of the NCOP, this thing is not working!
The PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC: Speaker of the National Assembly, Ms Thandi Modise, the Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces, Mr Amos Masondo, ... [Interjections.]
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: Speaker, our microphones are off; we want to speak here as well.
Mr M M DLAMINI: Microphone!
Dr M Q NDLOZI: Microphone!
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: The microphone is off. The Rule says you must give a warning before you switch off the microphones.
Dr M Q NDLOZI: Why do you switch off microphones ... [Interjections.]
HON MEMBERS: Why do you switch off the microphones?
Mr N F SHIVAMBU: We want the microphones to be on! [Interjections.]
AN HON MEMBER: Why do you switch off the microphone? Why? [Interjections.] This one is working! [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: Hon members, we are going to suspend the proceedings of this House. [Interjections.] The bells will be rung for you to return here. [Interjections.] [Applause.]
AN HON MEMBER: You should have done it long ago.
Business suspended at 20:03.
Mosa 13.02.2020 @22:25 TAKE ENDS AT 20:03
TAKE 7 STARTS AT 20:11:06
BUSINESS RESUMED AT 20:11:06
The SPEAKER: This House is back in order.
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Thank you very much, hon members, we will now go on with our proceedings. We are going to do two things. We will ask a member from each of the political parties to make a very brief comment. [Interjections.] We will then, secondly, read to you Rule 14(G) with regard to members being ordered to withdraw. And then finally, as a third step, we will request the President to deliver his state of the nation address. So, without any waste of time ... [Interjections.]
Mr J S MALEMA: I’m here!
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: ... we will start with the first person.
Mr J S MALEMA: Yes! Chairperson of the NCOP, the Speaker of our Parliament, Mr President, and our problem is that there is Jamnandas in this House who has caused a huge problem ... [Interjections.]
The MINISTER OF TOURISM: Point of order, Speaker!
Mr J S MALEMA: ... in this country ... [Interjections.]
The MINISTER OF TOURISM: Speaker, point of order!
Mr J S MALEMA: ... and you comrades want us to proceed as if things are normal.
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Yes! Point of order! Just briefly ... point of order hon member.
The MINISTER OF TOURISM: Chairperson, on a point of order: The rules determine the agenda of the House. We have the order of proceedings that was published to say that we are going to listen to the President and there is no other item on the agenda. [Interjections.] Please allow the President to address the nation.
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Please proceed!
Mr J S MALEMA: Now, our biggest problem ... [Interjections.] you can go out, our biggest problem here Mr President ... [Interjections.]
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: And please be brief!
Mr J S MALEMA: Very brief! Very brief! Our biggest problem here is that the President is not listening to the call ... [Interjections.]
An HON MEMBER: On a point of order! On a point of order, Speaker!
Mr J S MALEMA: ... of South Africans to fire Pravin who has caused us load shedding ... who has fired honourable executive, who is collapsing state-owned companies, who wants to sell our companies to white monopoly capital. But equally, you have also invited De Klerk who has got blood on his hands. For those reasons, Mr President, we will not be sitting in this House and the President is not going to fire Pravin, this is going to be our relationship with the President when he appears in this Parliament for the next five years.
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Thank you very much.
Mr J S MALEMA: You can remain with your De Klerk and your Pravin; we can not sit with these sell-outs. Remain with them, Pravin and the murderer; we are leaving. [Interjections.]
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Thank you very much.
Mr J S MALEMA: We are not going to be addressed by ... [Inaudible.] [Interjections.]
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Thank you very much.
EFF MEMBERS CHANTING: Pravin must go! Pravin must go! Pravin must go! Jamnandas must go! [Interjections.]
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Please leave! Please leave! Order! Order! Thank you very much. Please proceed.
AN HON MEMBER: Don’t worry, we are going!
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Chairperson, on a point order: We have been abused for a long time. [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: Order!
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Can the Presiding Officers assist us to remove those people. [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: Order! Hon members, please leave the House
IsiXhosa:
UMBHEXESHI OYINTLOKO WEQELA ELILAWULAYO: Mabaphume ngoku apha eNdlini, kudala sibanyamezele. Mabaphume ngoku.
The SPEAKER: Please leave the House!
AN HON MEMBER: And don’t come back! Leave and don’t come back. [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: Please leave the House! [Interjections.]
An HON MEMBER: We are leaving you with your De Klerk and Pravin. [Interjections.]
An HON MEMBER: You don’t have to tell us to leave the House; we are already leaving on our own.
The SPEAKER: Hon members, leave the House.
An HON MEMBER: We are leaving on our own. We are leaving on our own not with your permission. There is load shedding. Our people are not going to watch. [Interjections.]
The SPEAKER: Order members! Order! Serjeant-at-arms, help those two members out. Hon members, please close the door. [Applause.] Hon members, we do know that sometimes you get impatient with us. [Interjections.] No! We will not replace disorderly behaviour with another. We have had several rulings since 2014 in this House. The courts because of this hon members sitting here ruled in certain ways which forced us to practice patience. [Interjections.] No! No! No! Members, no! No! The hon Steenhuisen?
The LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION: Madam Speaker, I would like to address you on a point of privilege if I may.
The SPEAKER: Yes sir.
The LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION: Madam Speaker, the Powers, Privileges and Immunities of Parliament and Provincial Legislatures Act is very clear at 7 that it is an act of contempt for any member of this House that improperly interferes with or impedes the exercise or performance by Parliament or a House or a committee of its authority and function. I would submit to you, Madam Speaker that this House has been from performing its function for the last hour and a half. This is not acceptable. It is not acceptable
And therefore, in terms of section 13 of the same, a member is guilty of contempt if the member contravenes section 7 of that Act. I would submit that the behaviour that we witnessed including the hurling of water bottles at female members at the back of the House is conduct constituting contempt and that the members involved must be referred to the Powers, Privileges and Immunities of Parliament and Provincial Legislatures Act of this House for proper recourse to be taken to them. We can not have the people’s business disrupted in the manner it’s been disrupted today and I would ask you as the Presiding Officers to make such a referral. [Applause.]
The CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY: Hon Speaker, we have been abused for more than an hour and it is only fair that this matter be referred to Powers and Privileges. We cannot also amend this Rules further because if we will allow people to cause disorder for an hour and we became more patient, we have tried but now this is rather too much. Therefore, these members are supposed to be summoned to the Powers and Privileges and account for what they have done. Thank you. [Applause.]
Mr S N SWART: Speaker, may I first raise the issue that we have had our hands up, my leader, Reverend Meshoe, has had his hands up continually. I, as the Whip, had my hand up continually and the EFF got support and were allowed to speak continually and I want to voice my objection to that because a number of us across political parties wanted to support your rulings, wanted you to bring order to the House and you said millions of South Africans want to watch this House and wanted to watch the President and the state of the nation. And this conduct is deplorable and disgusting and I fully support the Chief Whip of the ANC that disciplinary action must be taken and we need to apologise to the nation for the conduct. And yes, we did whatever we could to resist these attempts and you said that it is disruption but let us take action in future, Speaker. Let us take firm action and not allow this to continue. And so the believers in this House also need to stand up. Stand up for what is good and just and righteous in this nation at this time. So, thank you, Speaker. Let us have order in this House and let us listen to the President of this nation, the commander in chief of this nation. Thank you. [Applause.]
The SPEAKER: Is there any other party that wishes to ... hon member there at the corner.
Mr A M SHAIK-EMAM: Hon Speaker, in terms of Rule 14(g) it is clear that they have disregarded the authority of the Speaker of this joint sitting. Now, you repeatedly asked them and ruled on both these matters. Despite that, they continued. Now, I know you have said that there is a problem in terms of judgement. Don’t you think then it is time that we relook at the Rules and tighten those Rules taking into consideration that this is a deliberate act of criminality because they pronounced through the media that they are going to come here and they are going to disrupt this sitting. So, I want to urge hon Speaker and I agree with my colleagues that have just spoken that there needs to be consequences for this action and what has happened here today. Thank you.
Mr N L S KWANKWA: Hon Speaker, thank you very much for this opportunity, I am trying to find very polite words to express how we feel as the UDM at this point in time. Actually a better expression is found in Afrikaans, the word is we are gatvol [sick and tired]. We are gatvol of this! Why? Simply because Parliament consistently and on a continuous basis fails to enforce its own Rules. In the last term, Speaker, we used to stand here in front of this House and make decisive interventions in moments like these ones and matters were referred to some or other committee and nothing happened after that.
When we allow these things to happen it means we are firmly entrenching and reinforcing this conduct. It means we are going to have to put up with this nonsense for the next five years where for an hour we must sit here as if we have nothing better to do and listen to this squabble between you. We need to provide better leadership. People are not going to take us seriously as leaders firstly and as Members of Parliament. That is why people don’t take us seriously because we do not take ourselves seriously as leaders. Speaker, I appeal to you and your leadership to enforce the Rules of the House without fear or favour. We are here to do the job and the work of South Africans and we do not want to be impeded in us being able to do that job. I thank you so much.
Dr C P MULDER VW// (Eng) / ND (Xho) / TAKE ENDS AT 20:24:17
TAKE 8 STARTS AT 20:24
Mr N L S KWANKWA
Dr C P MULDER: Hon Speaker, you are correct, you have to be patient and we have to stick to the Rules of the House. However, all members in this Parliament as shortly as nine months ago swore and took an oath to uphold the Constitution and the law of the country, all of them, these members as well.
The problem is this, if members actually misuse the Rules of the House to make this place ungovernable as you have seen tonight, then we will have to take different measures. I think the time has come and I want to support the proposal by the Leader of the official Opposition that this be referred to powers and privileges. The time has come to touch the pockets of those who do not want to listen [Applause.]
If you start to subject and deduct the salaries of members who misbehave, maybe it will be something that will make them re-think their position. Lastly, I would like to propose a toast to the white shirts, they did not even have to appear and they disappeared [Laughter.]
Mr N SINGH: Hon Speaker, they say patience is virtue and you have shown your virtue aside today. I do not think that it is something that South Africans and we will tolerate. I think that in future we’ve got to be a little more difficult and firm on that kind of behaviour.
Hon Speaker, one thing that we have to do is look at these Joint Rules because the Rules of the National Assembly are much stricter and gives you more directives that you can apply in the House in the National Assembly. Here, it does not do that that quite clearly and I think this is one of the things that we’ve got to do. I support the idea that kind of ill-discipline that we have seen should be subjected to the Powers and Privileges Committee. I agree with hon Kwankwa, I cannot find another word in the language of my ancestors that says gatvol, but we are fed up with this kind of behaviour. Thank you [Laughter.]
The SPEAKER: Hon members, is there any other party that wishes to say anything? We are fine. Al Jamah-ah, COPE and GOOD.
Mr M G HENDRICKS: Hon Speaker, I just want to use this opportunity to apologise to our guests who came from all corners of South Africa, especially the elderly. Many of them were with me on the plane and came onto the plane with difficulty. I hope they accept our apology. Thank you.
Mr M G P LEKOTA: Madam Speaker, at the beginning I felt that perhaps we should have just gone on and finished the business and call a meeting with these youngsters being here. I’m sorry to call them that but with them here, because we need critical basic education about being Members of Parliament.
The first thing is that all of us take an oath to obey the Constitution and all other law and we must do that. We have allowed these youngsters. In our Constitution, the Constitution of the country is enshrined in there ... We allow them every time and again in front of the entire country, to sit down when the National Anthem is being sung even though they choose a potion of it. Why have we allowed this? Why have we allowed that?
There are a number of other things. Maybe the Judiciary must take all of us, the National Assembly, the National Council of Provinces, the provinces and so on, to tell and explain to us what the Constitution and the oath we take means. If we do not understand that, we make jokes about the Constitution, the anthem, about all these things and when these children take that to its logical conclusion disaster results. We must go on with the business of tonight. Please let us create a situation and opportunity where we can sit with all and our children in the schools and everywhere must be taught about the Constitution and the Anthem. We have ourselves.
The MINISTER OF PUBLIC WORKS: Madam Speaker, I am afraid to say that we are setting a very bad precedent tonight, by allowing people to ignore your rulings. We all know that the Rule of Parliament is that when the Speaker has made a ruling that is the end. You have made several rulings and allowed them to continue to undermine you and that is a very bad precedent. Can we please proceed with the business of the House? I thank you.
Mr M NYONTSO: Madam Speaker, you are so patient...
IsiXhosa:
... ngesiXhosa bathi uyibaxile [Kwahlekwa.]
English:
We cannot be held at ransom by one organisation. We are here and we are also voted to be here, we must be respected. I concur with my colleagues that something must be done and the business of the day must go on. Thank you.
Mr V ZUNGULA: Hon Speaker, I think the crisis should also be attributed to your office because as a leader of this House you are the one that is supposed to show leadership. Leadership is to try and understand and try to bring together the two different sides, whereby there is EFF as well as the other members of this honourable House.
What we are proposing as the ATM, because it is easy now for the other parties to speak because the members of the EFF are not here. What we are saying as the ATM is that from your side as the leader of the House, try and provide leadership by bringing together all of these parties so that there can be consensus. Thank you.
The SPEAKER: Thank you, hon members, order! Hon members, is there any other member? The hon Buthelezi?
Prince M G BUTHELEZI: Hon Speaker, hon members, hon Ministers, Deputy Ministers, their Excellences our former Presidents, members of the judiciary and people of South Africa, I feel that we should apologise on record to our colleague, the hon Gordhan, for the abuse he has suffered because everyone knows that, in every country, it is the prerogative of the head of government to appoint his Ministers. It is not for anyone else to dictate to any head of government whom to appoint.
On the other hand, I think that we should also ... Mr de Klerk, I would like you at least ... I hope I speak not only for myself, but I’m sure there are many people ... [Inaudible.] ... His Excellency, Mr de Klerk, to say that what you did in releasing Mr Mandela after our talk ... [Inaudible.] ... was a great thing and that therefore ...
The SPEAKER: Hon Buthelezi, address him through the Chair.
Prince M G BUTHELEZI: We don’t agree with this conduct of abusing Mr de Klerk after what he did.
The SPEAKER: Hon members, I think all the parties have had an opportunity to respond. We take the criticism on patience. However, when a member is given an order to sit, and sits down, on what basis do you then eject them? That was the technicality that we had to grapple with.
Hon members, we agree with the members and all the parties who are saying that matters are grave and that the conduct of all the members who have left this House must be referred to the Powers and Privileges of Parliament Committee [Applause.] We also agree with the recommendation that we have a re-look at the Joint Rules because they make it very difficult to summarily remove members from the House.
We also agree with the suggestion that both Houses look at touching the pockets of members. We will take the recommendations to the Rules but we will also take the grave issue, the disruption to the Powers and Privileges of Parliament Committee. If we agree hon members, can we continue and ask the President to please proceed. [Applause.]
The PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC / ND (Eng&Xho) / END OF TAKE
TAKE 9 STARTS AT 20:34
THE SPEAKER
STATE OF THE NATION ADDRESS
The PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA: Speaker of the National Assembly, Ms Thandi Modise, the Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces, Mr Amos Masondo, Deputy President David Mabuza, Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng and esteemed members of the judiciary, former President Thabo Mbeki and Sis Zanele Mbeki, former President Kgalema Motlanthe and Sis Gugu Motlanthe, former Deputy President FW de Klerk and Mrs De Klerk, former Speaker of the national Assembly, Ms Baleka Mbete and Mr Khomo, President of the Pan African Parliament, His Excellency Mr Roger Nkodo Dang, UN Women South African representative, Ms Anne Githuku-Shongwe, Isithwalandwe, uBaba Andrew Mlangeni ... [Applause.] ... Ministers and Deputy Ministers, Premiers and Speakers of provincial legislatures, President of Salga and executive mayors, Governor of the SA Reserve Bank, Mr Lesetja Kganyago, heads of Chapter 9 Institutions, leaders of faith-based
organisations, leaders of academic and research institutions, members of the Diplomatic Corps, invited guests, honourable members of the National Assembly, honourable members of the National Council of Provinces, and fellow South Africans ...
Tshivenda:
Ndi tama u lumelisa vhathu vhoṱhe vha re fhano na vha re hayani. (Translation of Tshivenḓa sentence follows.)
[I would like to greet all the people who are here and those at home.]
Isixhosa:
Ndibulisa bonke abantu abalapha nabasemakhaya. (Translation of Isixhosa sentence follows.)
[I greet everybody here and at home.]
Xitsonga:
Ndzi xeweta vanhu hinkwavo va Afrika-Dzonga lava nga ekaya na lava nga laha. (Translation of Xitsonga sentence follows.)
[I greet all the people of South Africa who are at home and those who are here.]
Sesotho:
Ke dumedisa batho kaofela ba Afrika Borwa, ba leng hae, ha mmoho le ba leng teng mona.(Translation of Sesotho sentence follows.)
[I would like to greet all the people of South Africa, those at home as well as those who are here.]
English:
It is 30 years since Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela walked out of the gates of Victor Verster Prison - a moment in our history that signalled perhaps more vividly than any other that freedom was at hand.
As he stood on the balcony of Cape Town City Hall to address the masses that had come in their tens of thousands to welcome him, he said:
Our march to freedom is irreversible. We must not allow fear to stand in our way.
Now, 30 years later, as we continue our onward march to improve the lives of our people, as we confront great challenges, as we endure troubled times, we too cannot allow fear to stand in our way. We must forge ahead, permitting neither adversity nor doubt to divert us.
As we gather to reflect on the state of our nation, we are joined by the family of Basil February, a courageous young freedom fighter who lost his life in Zimbabwe in the Wankie campaign in 1967. For half a century his resting place, like those of several of his comrades, has, until now, remained unknown. His contribution, his sacrifice, has never been forgotten.
This evening, we gather here humbled by the memories of those men and women who gave their lives for our freedom, deeply aware of the great responsibility we carry to realise their dreams.
There are times when we have fallen short, there are times when we have made mistakes, but we remain unwavering in our determination to build a society that is free and equal, and at peace.
Our history tells us that when we are united in peace, and when we are united in prayer and in faith, we can conquer all obstacles and turn our country into a place in which all feel free, safe and comfortable. It is in that spirit that we now approach this present moment.
Our country is facing a stark reality. Our economy has not grown at any meaningful rate for over a decade. Even as jobs are created, the rate of unemployment continues to deepen.
The recovery of our economy has stalled as persistent energy shortages have disrupted businesses and people’s lives. Several state-owned enterprises are in distress, and our public finances are under severe pressure.
It is you, the people of South Africa, who carry this burden, confronted by rising living costs, unemployment, unable to escape poverty, hopelessness and unable to realise our potential as a people.
Yet, at the same time, there is another part to our own reality. It is the reality of a youthful population that has
more access to education than ever before and which is achieving steadily-improving outcomes.
It is the reality of 2,4 million children who are now in early childhood development and pre-school.
It is about the reality of 81% of learners who passed matric last year, with an increasing proportion coming from rural and township schools. And for this great achievement, we ought to applaud the Class of 2019. [Applause.]
Our reality is also that of the 720 000 students who received state funding for TVET colleges and universities last year. This funding has increased from R11,2 billion in 2016 to R35 billion in 2020. [Applause.]
It is about the 6,8 million South Africans who know their HIV status, about the 5 million people who have been initiated on antiretrovirals treatment and the 4,2 million people whose HIV viral load is, as a consequence, undetectable.
These are not just statistics. These are the lives of ordinary South Africans, which have been improved. And they are signs of progress.
Our reality is also about the unbounded potential that we have, of a soil that is rich in minerals and in a diversity of plant and animal life that has few equals in the world - of a deep capital base, extensive infrastructure, sound laws and robust institutions - of a rich, diverse, young and talented people.
Tonight, we are joined by Zozibini Tunzi, whose ascendance to the Miss Universe title is a reminder of our potential ... [Applause.] ... and there she is ... [Applause.] There is Zozibini ... [Applause.] ... a young woman from the deep rural areas of our country, who has risen to achieve greatness against all odds.
We also welcome Springbok captain Siya Kolisi ... [Applause.] ... who led a group of determined and united South Africans to become the 2019 World Rugby Champions. [Applause.] And this, I saw for myself because I was there. [Laughter.]
We are joined this evening by another remarkable young person, Miss Sinoyolo Qumba, a Grade 11 learner from Lenasia South, who decided to write me a letter and say, President, I want to participate in the writing of your state of the nation address. [Applause.] There she is. [Applause.]
Sinoyolo spent much of yesterday helping me to write this state of the nation address. [Laughter.] So, if you like all the brilliant ideas, you can ascribe them to her tonight. [Laughter.] Her intellect, her social awareness, her passion and her diligence gave me great confidence in the future of this country. [Applause.]
In my first two addresses to the nation I spoke at length about the necessity of social compacting, and the great responsibility we shoulder as government to drive collaboration and consensus.
In 1994 we chose the path of negotiation, of compromise and peaceful settlement, instead of a path of hatred and revenge.
Our history and contemporary experience has taught us that if we are to achieve what we set out to do, we must focus on what unites instead of what divides us. [Applause.]
The greatest strength of our constitutional democracy, and the reason it has endured is because we have been able to forge broad-based coalitions and social compacts, be they with business, labour, special interest groups or even wider civil society.
Achieving consensus and building social compacts is a not demonstration of weakness. It is the very essence of who we are as South Africans. That is why over the past two years we have been hard at work seeking to forge and build consensus around our economic recovery.
In his inaugural address on 10 May 1994, President Nelson Mandela said:
Today we enter into a covenant that we shall build a society in which all South Africans, both black and white, will be able to walk tall, without fear in their hearts, assured of their inalienable right to human dignity.
This government remains irrevocably committed to upholding that covenant.
It is a covenant that is rooted in the strategic objective of our National Development Plan, which is aimed at eliminating poverty and reducing inequality by 2030.
Let us frankly admit that that the government cannot solve our economic challenges alone. Even if we were to marshal every single resource at our disposal and engage on a huge expenditure of public funds, we would not alone be able to guarantee employment to the millions of people who are today out of work. What we have achieved, we have achieved together.
Over the course of the last two years – since I first stood here to deliver a state of the nation address – we have worked to forge compacts among South Africans to answer the many challenges before us.
Through the Jobs Summit, we brought labour, business, government and communities together to find solutions to the
unemployment crisis, and we continue to meet at the beginning of every month. The Deputy President and I meet, together with our social partners at Nedlac, to find ways of removing blockages and drive interventions that will save jobs and create new jobs.
We have come together, as government and civil society, as communities and faith-based groupings, to confront another huge challenge that faces our country, which is the violence that is perpetrated by men against South African women.
We have brought business, labour and government together to craft master plans for those industries that have the greatest potential for growth.
We have come together as different spheres of government, as different state entities, as business associations and community groups under a new district development model that is fundamentally changing our approach to local development.
We have been building social compacts because it is through partnership and cooperation that we can have progress.
Together, over these last two years, we have worked to stabilise our economy and build a foundation for future growth.
We have been deliberate in rebuilding institutions and removing impediments to investment.
We have acted decisively against state capture and fought back against corruption.
We have steadily improved the reach of education, improved the quality of health care and tended the basic needs of the poor.
Yet, we have to say, that has not been enough. It has not been enough to free our economy from the grim inheritance of our past, nor from the mistakes that we ourselves have made.
It has not been enough to spare us from the debilitating effects of load-shedding, nor from an unstable and subdued global economy.
And so we find ourselves today at a decisive moment. We have a choice. We can succumb to the many and difficult and
protracted problems that confront us, or we can confront them, with resolve and determination, and with action.
Because we choose to confront our challenges, our immediate, vital and overarching task is to place our economy on a path of inclusive growth. Without growth there will be no jobs, and without jobs there will be no meaningful improvement in the lives of our people.
So, this state of the nation address is therefore about inclusive growth. It is about the critical actions that we need to take this year to build a capable state and place our economy on the path to recovery.
This year, we fix the fundamentals. We pursue critical areas of growth. And we ensure excellence in planning and execution in government.
For over a decade, South Africans have had to contend with the effects of a constrained energy supply. I have spoken extensively about the critical role that Eskom plays in our economy and our country, and in the livelihoods of every South African.
The load shedding of the last few months has had a debilitating effect on our country, on our economy, and on our people. It has severely set back our efforts to rebuild the economy and to create jobs. Every time it occurs, it disrupts people’s lives, causing frustration, inconvenience, and hardship.
At its core, load shedding is the inevitable consequence of Eskom’s inability over many years – due to debt, lack of capacity, mismanagement and state capture – to service its power stations.
The reality that we will need to accept is that, in order for Eskom to undertake the fundamental maintenance necessary to improve the reliability of supply, load shedding – unfortunately - will remain a possibility for the immediate future. Where load shedding is unavoidable, it must be undertaken in a manner that is predictable, and minimises disruption and the cost to firms and households.
Over the next few months, as Eskom works to restore its operational capabilities, we will be implementing measures that will fundamentally change the trajectory of energy generation in our country.
We are taking the following measures to rapidly and significantly increase generation capacity outside of Eskom:
A Section 34 Ministerial Determination will be issued by the Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy shortly to give effect to the Integrated Resource Plan of 2019, enabling the development of additional grid capacity from renewable energy, natural gas, hydropower, battery storage, as well as coal.
We will initiate the procurement of emergency power from projects that can deliver electricity into the grid within 3 to 12 months from approval.
The National Energy Regulator will continue to register small scale distributed generation for own use of under one megawatt, for which no licence is required.
The National Energy Regulator will ensure that all applications by commercial and industrial users to produce electricity for own use above one megawatt, are processed within the prescribed 120 days.
It should be noted that there is now no limit to install capacity above one megawatt.
We will open bid window 5 of the renewable energy IPP and work with producers to accelerate the completion of window 4 projects.
We will negotiate supplementary power purchase agreements to acquire additional capacity from existing wind and solar plants.
We will also put in place measures to enable municipalities in good standing to procure their own power from independent power producers. [Applause.]
In line with the Roadmap announced last year, Eskom has started with the process of divisionalising three operating activities – generation, transmission and distribution – each of which will have its own board and management structures.
The social partners organised under Nedlac have been meeting, deliberating and discussing a number of proposals over the last two weeks, to find agreement on the principles of what they call a social compact on electricity. This is a historic and unprecedented development in our country, since it demonstrates the commitment of all social partners to take the necessary actions and make the necessary sacrifices to secure our energy needs.
Through this compact, the social partners seek an efficient, productive and fit-for-purpose Eskom that generates electricity at affordable prices for communities and industries. This requires both a drastic reduction in costs – including a review of irregular contracts – and measures to mobilise resources that will reduce Eskom’s debt and inject fresh capital where needed.
The social partners - who are trade unions, business, community and government – are committed to mobilising funding to address Eskom’s financial crisis in a financially-sustainable manner.
They would like to do this in a manner that does not - in any way, form or shape - put workers’ pensions at risk and that does not compromise the integrity of the financial system. [Applause.] While they work to finalise this agreement, the reality is that our energy system will remain constrained until new energy generation comes on stream.
Through these immediate measures and the work underway – which is being led by the Deputy President - to fundamentally restructure our electricity industry, we will achieve a secure supply of reliable, affordable and, ultimately, sustainable energy.
We undertake this decisive shift in our energy trajectory at a time when humankind faces its greatest existential threat in the form of climate change.
Yesterday I met a young lady called Ayakha Melithafa, a young climate activist from Eerste Rivier, who attended the World Economic Forum in Davos this year to call on world leaders to stand firmly for climate justice. Ayakha asked me to make sure that no African child is left behind in the transition to a low-carbon, climate-resilient and sustainable society; and it is a promise I intend to keep because I made that promise to her.
The Presidential Commission on Climate Change will ensure that, as we move towards a low carbon growth trajectory, that we leave no one behind.
We will finalise the Climate Change Bill, which provides for a regulatory framework for the effective management of the inevitable climate change impacts by enhancing adaptive capacity, strengthening resilience and reducing vulnerability to climate change, as well as identifying new industrial opportunities in the green economy.
We need to fix our public finances. Low levels of growth mean that we are not generating enough revenue to meet our expenses. Our debt is heading towards unsustainable levels, and spending is misdirected towards consumption and debt-servicing rather than infrastructure and productive activity. We cannot continue along this path. Nor can we afford to stand still.
When he delivers his Budget Speech two weeks from now, the Minister of Finance will outline a series of measures to reduce spending and improve its composition.
We are engaged with labour and other stakeholders on measures to contain the public wage bill and reduce wastage.
Efforts to reduce government spending, prioritise resources more effectively, and improve the efficiency of our tax system are important, but they are insufficient contributions towards stabilising our public finances.
Achieving sustainability will ultimately require us to address structural challenges in the economy, which raise the cost of living and doing business.
By working with the Auditor-General to reduce irregular expenditure, and by shifting government spending from consumption expenditure to investment in infrastructure, we aim to improve the state of public finances.
National Treasury and the SA Reserve Bank are working together to ease pressure on business and consumers.
We have decided to establish a sovereign wealth fund as a means to preserve and grow the national endowment of our nation, giving practical meaning to the injunction that the people shall share in the country’s wealth. [Applause.]
We are also proceeding with the establishment of a state bank as part of our effort to extend access to financial services to all South Africans. The Minister of Finance will provide details on this in his Budget. [Applause.]
We will be undertaking far-reaching economic reform measures that we will include those contained in the paper produced by National Treasury, entitled Economic Transformation, Inclusive Growth and Competitiveness.
This year, we are moving from the stabilisation of state-owned enterprises, SOEs to repurposing those strategic companies to support growth and development. After years of state capture, corruption and mismanagement, we are working to ensure that all SOEs are able to fulfil their developmental mandate, and that they should be financially sustainable.
In consultation with the Presidential SOE Council, we will undertake a process of rationalisation of our state-owned enterprises and ensure that they serve strategic economic or developmental purposes.
The extent of state capture, corruption and mismanagement in SOEs is possibly best demonstrated at South Africans Airways, which was placed in business rescue late last year. The business rescue practitioners are expected to unveil their plans for restructuring the airline in the next few weeks.
In the interests of South Africa’s aviation industry and our economy, it is essential that a future restructured airline is commercially and operationally sustainable and is not dependent on further government funding.
A key priority this year is also to fix commuter rail, which is vital to the economy and to the quality of the life of our people. Our rail network daily transports hundreds of thousands of commuters to and from work.
We are modernising Prasa’s rail network. The Central Line in the Western Cape and the Mabopane Line in Pretoria have been closed for essential refurbishment and upgrades. We are investing R1,4 billion in each of these lines to provide, a safe, reliable and affordable service.
Work is underway on other lines which includes station upgrades, parkway replacements, new signalling systems and overhead electrical traction upgrades.
As we work to fix the capabilities of the state, we know that growth and job creation will in large measure be driven by the private sector. We are therefore building an operating environment that is favourable to doing business.
Working together with social partners, we have continued to address several issues that have been barriers to job creation. Some of those issues are issues such as water use licences which are so essential to operations on farms, factories and mines, and these have previously taken an inordinately-long time to process.
Sometimes some corporations waited up to five years just to get water use licenses. We are now able to announce that water use licences will now be issued within 90 days instead of three years. [Applause.]
It also used to take months to have a company registered. Through the BizPortal platform one can now register a company in one day, register for UIF and Sars and even open a bank account. [Applause.]
One of the challenges we have been facing is the congestion and the inefficiency of our ports. This has been raised over and over again by business, who need to import and export goods. During the course of this year, we will undertake a fundamental overhaul of the Durban port – the third largest container terminal in the Southern Hemisphere – to reduce delays as well as costs.
The most significant contribution we can make to inclusive growth is in the development of appropriate skills and capabilities.
The investments we make now in early childhood development and early school learning will yield great economic benefits in the next two decades and beyond. But there are immediate interventions that we are making to improve the quality and the relevance of our educational outcomes.
We are making progress with the introduction of the three-stream curriculum model, heralding a fundamental shift in focus towards more vocational and technical education. Various technical vocational specialisations have already been introduced in 550 schools and 67 schools are now piloting the occupational stream.
We are building nine new TVET colleges this year, in Sterkspruit, Aliwal North, Graaff Reinet and Ngungqushe in the Eastern Cape, and in Umzimkhulu, Greytown, Msinga, Nongoma in KwaZulu-Natal.
Through bilateral student scholarship agreements we have signed with other countries, we are steadily building a substantial cohort of young people who go overseas each year for training in critical skills.
We have seen the impact this can have when we just look at one aspect of training that we have been offering to the young people of our country. The Nelson Mandela Fidel Castro Medical Training Programme in Cuba has produced over 1 200 medical doctors ... [Applause.] ... and these are young people who come from poor families, the townships and rural areas, who would ordinarily never have had an opportunity to go to Wits, Cape Town, Pretoria and all that. They are now being trained and coming back as doctors.
A further 640 students are expected to graduate in December this year. [Applause.] This programme alone is a living monument to these two great revolutionaries, Fidel Castro and Nelson Mandela, and we thank them. [Applause.]
Last year I spoke about our plan to issue tablet computers to school students. The process of distributing these tablets is underway.
We said that every 10-year-old needs to be able to read for meaning. Our early reading programmes are gathering momentum.
This year, we will be introducing coding and robotics in grades R to 3 in 200 schools ... [Applause.] ... with a plan to introduce this on a more universal basis in 2022.
We have decided to establish a new University of Science and Innovation in Ekurhuleni. [Applause.] Ekurhuleni is the only metro in our country that does not have a university. They will have their own university now. [Applause.] This will enable young people in Ekurhuleni to be trained in high-impact and cutting-edge technological innovation for current and future industries.
Investment and growth require a safe, stable, and crime-free environment. More importantly, it is fundamental to the aspirations of all our people to live in security, in peace and in comfort.
Police visibility, effective training and better resourcing of police stations are our priorities.
I have prioritised our response to the growing problem of criminal groups that extort money from construction and other businesses. [Applause.] Specialised units – bringing together the SA Police Service and the National Prosecuting Authority – are mandated to combat these crimes of economic disruptions.
To support the growth of the tourism industry, the SA Police Service will increase visibility at identified tourist attraction sites. It is training Tourism Safety Monitors and will establish a reserve police capacity to focus on the policing of tourist-attraction areas. As you have heard, we have experienced huge problems around those sites.
Anti-Gang Units will be further strengthened, with priority given to the Western Cape, Eastern Cape, Gauteng and the Free State.
Following the graduation of 5 000 police trainees last year, 7 000 new police trainees have been enlisted this year to strengthen local policing.
To improve the quality of general and specialised SA Police Service investigations, we are establishing a Crime Detection University in Hammanskraal. [Applause.]
Over the last six months, the nation has been galvanised – across communities, government, civil society, religious groupings, the judiciary and Parliament – to end the crisis of violence perpetrated by men against the women of our country. It has been a truly united and determined response from all South Africans.
Through building social compacts across society to fight this scourge we will be able to achieve much more. But it is only the beginning of the struggle.
We implemented an emergency action plan and reprioritised R1,6 billion to support this plan until the end of the current financial year.
There has been progress in several areas.
We will amend the Domestic Violence Act to better protect victims in violent domestic relationships and the Sexual Offences Act ... [Applause.] ... to broaden the categories of sex offenders whose names must be included in the National Register for Sex Offenders ... [Applause.]... and we will pass a law to tighten bail and sentencing condition ... [Applause.] ... in cases that involve gender-based violence.
Hon members, we will not let up our fight against corruption and state capture. We will need to work together to root out corruption and strengthen the rule of law.
We should not solicit or pay bribes or engage in corrupt acts. [Interjections.] We should upgrade our culture of reporting crime when we see it being committed.
This battle can only succeed if it is taken on by the whole of society, if we build a formidable social compact of all formations. We therefore welcome the work of the government and Civil Society Joint Working Group charged with developing a national anticorruption strategy and implementation plan, which is close to completion of its work. We plan to launch the strategy by mid-year.
The Zondo Commission of Inquiry into State Capture continues with its critical work with the full support of government and other institutions.
I have received a detailed and voluminous report on the Commission of Inquiry into the Public Investment Corporation. I will make it available to the public together with a plan on taking the findings and recommendations forward in a few days. [Applause.]
As we fix the fundamentals, and as we deepen the reforms we have made, we pursue a critical number of areas of inclusive growth.
In the previous Sona, I said that it is a critical area of investment that supports structural transformation and job creation.
The Infrastructure Fund implementation team has finalised the list of shovel-ready projects and has begun work to expand private investment into public infrastructure sectors with revenue streams. These include areas like student accommodation, social housing, independent water production, rail freight branch lines, embedded electricity generation, municipal bulk infrastructure, and broadband roll-out.
The team has a project pipeline with potential investments of over R700 billion over the next 10 years, including both government and nongovernmental contributions.
The cranes and yellow equipment that we have longed to see across the landscape of our country will once again soon be an everyday sight.
The social housing programme to build rental housing for low-income families is at implementation stage, which could leverage as much as R9 billion of private investment in the construction of 37 000 rental apartments.
The young people who are at university and TVET colleges face serious accommodation challenges. Some don’t even have places to sleep after lectures and resort to sleeping in libraries.
We are going to spend R64 billion over the next years in student accommodation ... [Applause.] ... and will leverage at least another R64 billion in private investment. These building projects are ready to start.
We have been speaking about another important project for years, the Umzimvubu Dam in the Eastern Cape. We have been talking about it for more than a decade, with little to show on the ground.
We are determined to overcome the financial and other challenges that have held the progress back and denied the people of the Eastern Cape such a vital resource. Road construction on the site has commenced, and I will soon be visiting the site to ensure that we take this work forward. [Applause.]
We are launching a Tourism Equity Fund this year to stimulate transformation in tourism.
Last year, I asked the nation to join me in dreaming - in imagining a new smart city ... [Interjections.] ... in imagining how we can build a truly post-apartheid city that would rise to change the social and economic apartheid spatial architecture.
Now, I have news for you. A new smart city is taking shape in Lanseria, Gauteng which will have 350 000 to half a million people who will call that place home in the next decade. [Applause.] This process is being led by the Investment and Infrastructure Office in the Presidency alongside the provincial governments of Gauteng and North West, working together with the cities of Johannesburg, Tshwane and Madibeng. This is a real city that is rising from the ground and going up. [Applause.]
Working with development finance institutions we have put together an innovative process that will fund the bulk sewerage, electricity, water, digital infrastructure and roads that will be the foundation of the new city. It will not only be smart and 5G-ready, but will be a leading benchmark for green infrastructure continentally and internationally as well.
We will be piloting an alternative township and rural roads paving programme during we will start off with experimenting road stretches of 50km each that will be constructed in various parts of the country. And this is a very special programme for me.
This initiative will ensure cost-effective solutions for the state in terms road building. It will also deliver meaningful skills to the young people in our country and has a higher potential for labour-intensive job creation than conventional roads construction methods.
We are confronted by the crisis of youth unemployment. Of the 1,2 million young people who enter the labour market each year, approximately two thirds remain outside of employment, training and education.
More than half of all young people are unemployed. This is a crisis. We need to make this country work for young people so that they can work for our country.
The solution to this crisis must be two-pronged. We must all create opportunities for youth employment and self-employment.
On youth employment, as from today, we begin the implementation of the Presidential Youth Employment Intervention. There are six priority actions that we will be taking over the next five years to reduce youth unemployment.
Firstly, we are creating pathways for young people into the economy. We are building cutting-edge solutions to reach young people wherever they are through online platforms, on the phone and in person. This will allow them to receive active support, information and work-readiness training to increase their employability and match themselves to opportunities.
Starting this month, we are launching five prototype sites in five provinces that will grow to a national network reaching three million young people through multiple channels. [Applause.] This will allow them to receive active support, information and work readiness training to increase their employability.
Secondly, we are fundamentally changing how we prepare young people for the future of work - providing shorter, more flexible courses in specific skills that employers in fast-growing sectors need. In the past we have often said to young people, go for training for two or three years. We are saying, we now need to structure training opportunities for young people, which are focused and short, so that young people can enter work quickly and be effective.
Thirdly, we are developing new and innovative ways to support youth entrepreneurship and self-employment.
Fourthly, we are scaling up the Youth Employment Service and working with TVET colleges and the private sector to ensure that more learners receive practical experience in the workplace to complete their training.
Fifthly, we are establishing the first cohort of a Presidential Youth Service programme that will unlock the agency of young people and provide opportunities for them to earn an income while contributing to nation-building.
Finally, we will lead a youth employment initiative that will be funded by setting aside a portion of our budget to deal with the high levels of youth unemployment. I have said to my colleagues that youth unemployment is the biggest problem that we face and I therefore, want us, through top slicing from the budget, which will require that we all tighten our belts and redirect resources to address the national crisis of youth unemployment. [Applause.]
The Minister of Finance will prioritise this initiative and give specific details when he delivers the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement later this year. [Interjections.]
These actions will together ensure that every young person in this country has a place to go, that their energy and capabilities are properly harnessed, and that they can contribute to the growth of their communities and their country.
As part of this intervention, the National Youth Development Agency and the Department of Small Business Development will provide grant funding and business support to 1 000 young entrepreneurs in the next 100 days, starting tomorrow. [Applause.]
We have invited three of these young entrepreneurs to join us here this evening: Siyabonga Tiwana, Sibusiso Mahone and Tholakele Nkosi. There they are. [Applause.] They are already participating as budding participants and entrepreneurs, and engineers in the programme that we are crafting for them and supporting them in. This is for real. We are going to give the young people of our country ... [Applause.] ... great opportunities so that they can participate in the economy. [Applause.]
They and others like them prove that, given the necessary support, young people can create their own opportunities. These three young entrepreneurs form part of a larger and more ambitious programme that we are embarking on, to assist 100 000 young entrepreneurs over the next three years to access business skills training, funding and market facilitation – and we are going to do it. [Applause.]
The empowerment of women is critical to inclusive economic growth. We are introducing the SheTradesZA platform to assist women-owned businesses to participate in global value chains and markets.
Over the next five years, the Industrial Development Corporation is targeting R10 billion of own and partner funding for women empowerment businesses. [Applause.]
To create a larger market for small businesses, we plan to designate 1 000 locally-produced products that must be procured from SMMEs.
The Procurement Bill will soon be presented to Parliament as part of our efforts to empower black and emerging businesses and advance radical economic transformation.
This year, we intensify our investment drive with the establishment of an integrated investment promotion and facilitation capability coordinated from the Presidency.
We will hold our third South Africa Investment Conference in November to review the implementation of previous commitments and to generate new investment into our economy. At the second South Africa Investment Conference last year, over 70 companies made investment commitments of R364 billion in industries as diverse as manufacturing, agro-processing, infrastructure, mining, services, tourism and hospitality.
In the first two years of our ambitious investment drive, we have succeeded in raising commitments totalling R664 billion, which is more than half of our five-year target of R1,2 trillion. [Applause.]
More importantly, these investments are having a real impact. Already, projects with an investment value of R9 billion have been completed and 27 projects worth just over R250 billion are in implementation phase, with more coming on-stream this year.
I have visited newly-built factories that make smart phones, and plants that produce cars, and I have walked through the dust on construction sites at supplier parks, both in KZN and in Gauteng.
We have been to the opening of facilities producing goods ranging from power cables to sanitary products, to tyres and to food.
We have made important progress in finalising and implementing the master plans that I spoke about in 2018, in vital parts of our economy. These master plans have enabled us to focus on particular sectors of our economy rather than just being too generalised. We have decided that we want to focus on certain sectors, build social compacts with the role-players – with the owners of capital, with the workers, and with communities in those various sectors. These master plans bring government, labour and business together to develop practical measures to spur growth at sector level and each partner contributes to making it work.
Thanks in large measure to the Auto Master Plan, we sold more cars to the rest of the world last year than ever before, providing jobs for young people in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal. [Applause.]
We launched a new auto SEZ hub in Tshwane, which will expand production and local manufacturing of components.
The Clothing and Textiles Master Plan, which was signed last year – and this was signed by all the role-players as they make commitments - aims to create 121 000 new jobs in the retail-clothing and textile and footwear sector over the few years. It involves commitments by retailers to buy goods locally, by manufacturers to invest and support transformation, and by labour to develop bargaining structures that promote agile manufacturing.
For its part, government has already begun to act vigorously against illegal imports, seizing almost 400 containers with under-invoiced products in the last quarter of 2019. [Applause.] Buying locally and focusing on what is made in South Africa is an important task that we must all take.
The suit that I am wearing today - and it’s a brand new suit, I must confess ... [Laughter.] ... was proudly made by South African workers here in Cape Town. [Applause.] We would like to encourage all of us to buy South African-made goods.
We completed the Poultry Master Plan to support chicken farmers and processors and save 54 000 jobs while creating new jobs. The industry is now focused on growth, greater production and more investment. We will, within two weeks, set a new poultry-import tariff adjustment to support local industry.
We have developed a plan with farmers and industrial users to save jobs also in the sugar industry, and will finalise a Sugar Master Plan within the next six weeks; and expect a new steel Master Plan to be finalised in the coming six months.
Effective today, new regulations published in the Government Gazette will enable investigation and action against abuse of buyer power and price discrimination. This will help even the playing field for small businesses and emerging entrepreneurs.
Market inquiries into data services, the grocery retail market and health care have provided the basis for measures to reduce costs to consumers and make these sectors more competitive.
The competition authorities are now working towards a resolution with the large mobile operators to secure deep cuts to data prices across pre-paid monthly bundles.[Applause.] Additional discounts targeted at low-income households, a free daily allocation of data and free access to educational and other public interest websites is going to also happen.
This is an important step to improve lives, bring people into the digital economy and stimulate online businesses. The digital economy will increasingly become a very important driver of growth and a creator of employment.
The Presidential Commission on the Fourth Industrial Revolution has made far-reaching recommendations that impact on nearly every aspect of the economy and in many areas of our lives. The Commission’s report provides us with the tools to ensure that we extract the greatest benefit of these revolutionary technological changes.
An important condition for the success of our digital economy is the availability of high-demand spectrum to expand broadband access and reliability. The regulator, Icasa, has undertaken to conclude the licensing of high-demand spectrum for industry via auction before the end of 2020.
Because of additional requirements, the licensing of the wireless open access network – or WOAN – is likely to be completed during the course of next year.
Agriculture is one of the industries with the greatest potential for growth. This year, we implement key recommendations of the Presidential Advisory Panel on Land Reform and Agriculture to accelerate land redistribution, expand agricultural production and transform the industry.
Government stands ready – following the completion of the Parliamentary process to amend section 25 of the Constitution – to table an Expropriation Bill that outlines the circumstances under which expropriation of land without compensation will be possible. [Applause.]
To date, we have released 44 000 hectares of state land for the settlement of land restitution claims, and will this year release round 700 000 hectares of state land for agricultural production under the leadership of the Deputy President. [Interjections.]
We are prioritising youth, women ... [Interjections.] ... people with disabilities and those who have been farming on communal land and are ready to expand their operations for training and allocation of land. A new beneficiary selection policy includes compulsory training for potential beneficiaries before land can be allocated to them. [Applause.]
Because of the drought in many parts of the country, farmers have lost their crops and livestock, and many workers have lost their jobs and their livelihoods. Working with the Agricultural Research Council and other scientific and agricultural bodies, we have developed drought-mitigation strategies that focus on developing drought-resistant seeds, planting and storing fodder, removing of invasive plants and management strategies to prevent soil degradation.
This year we will open up and regulate the commercial use of hemp products, providing opportunities for small-scale farmers. This is our approach to the opportunities that are offered by cannabis farming which happens throughout the country. [Applause.] We will formulate policy on the use of cannabis products for medicinal purposes to build this industry in line with global trends. [Interjections.]
The regulatory steps – I can see when I talk about cannabis people get quite excited. [Interjections.] I begin to wonder whether they are excited because they know about it or know how it is used, or are users themselves. [Applause.]
A fundamental condition for growth and development is a healthy and productive population, with access to quality and affordable health care.
We have noted the enthusiastic support from South Africans during public hearings on the National Health Insurance ... [Interjections.] ... and are putting in place mechanisms for the implementation following conclusion of the parliamentary process. [Applause.]
In preparation for NHI, we have already registered more than 44 million people at over 3 000 clinics in the electronic Health Patient Registration System [Applause.]
I have established the Presidential Working Group on Disability to advise my office on measures to advance the empowerment of persons with disabilities as government plans, budgets and implements its programmes.
Following the recognition by the Department of Basic Education in 2018 of South African Sign Language as a home language and the recommendation by the Parliamentary Constitutional Review Committee that it be the 12th official language, we are now poised to finalise the matter. [Applause.]
Earlier this week, I returned from Addis Ababa in Ethiopia, where South Africa assumed the chairship of the African Union for 2020. We take up this responsibility at an important time for our continent.
This year, the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement, AFSCTA comes into effect. This is our moment, as the people of the continent, to give effect to the dreams of the founding fathers of African unity. [Applause.],
South Africa will host an Extraordinary AU Summit in May this year where we will finalise the modalities of the Free Trade Area Agreement before implementation, and side by side with that summit, we will also hold a summit on silencing the guns on our continent.
Here we will finalise on the AFSCTA, the rules that define what is ‘Made in Africa’, the tariff lines that will be reduced to zero over the next five years, and the services sectors that will be opened up across the continent.
Allow me to take this opportunity to congratulate our compatriot, Mr Wamkele Mene, who was this past weekend elected as the first Secretary-General of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area. [Applause.] He will depart and be based in Ghana, which is the seat of the AFCTA and we assure him of our full support as he assumes this historic and challenging responsibility.
South Africa has therefore prioritised the empowerment of Africa’s women during its term as AU chair, working together with all member states on measures we all need to take to promote the financial inclusion, the preferential procurement and preferential trade arrangements for women.
The AU Heads of State have pledged their support for measures to end gender-based violence on the continent, and will work towards the adoption of an AU convention on violence against women during the course of this year.
Through the Africa Peer Review Mechanism, South Africa will work with other countries to advance good governance and democracy. We will use all the means at our disposal including the membership of the UN Security Council, to promote peace and security on the continent.
Honourable members, everything we must do must be underpinned by effective implementation. That is why we have developed the District Development Model, a unique form of social compacting that involves the key role-players in every district so that we can unlock the development and economic opportunities in all area of our country. It builds the capability of the state where it has been most broken.
During the state of the nation address in February 2019, I addressed the five most urgent tasks of the moment. Key amongst them was the need to strengthen the capacity of the state to address the needs of our people.
A broad range of critical work is being done across government to strengthen the capacity of local government, as the sphere of government closest to the people, so that it can achieve its developmental mandate of finding sustainable ways to meet the social, economic and material needs of communities and improve the quality of their lives.
Provincial and national government will redouble their support and strengthen the capacity of municipalities as required by section 154 of the Constitution and we will also redouble our efforts to monitor and support the municipalities across our country.
It is only when the structured support has failed that the provincial executive or the national government will invoke a section 139 to intervene in strengthening local government. Currently there are 40 municipalities in the country subjected to such intervention. The measures that will be taken will complement the objectives of the new District Development Model that seeks to take an integrated approach to service delivery.
The residents of the Mamusa Municipality in North West are the people who have already seen the actual practical workings of
The District Development Model as they had to deal with a municipality that had collapsed. Through the District Development Model we were able to ensure that the various services that had collapsed were actually re-established.
This year, we plan to expand this District Development Model to 23 new districts, drawing on lessons from the three pilot districts that we had already been to – OR Tambo District Municipality, Ethekwini and Waterberg District Municipality.
To strengthen the capacity of the state and increase accountability, I will be signing performance agreements with all Ministers before the end of this month. These agreements which are based on the targets contained in the Medium-Term Strategic Framework will be made public so that the people of South Africa can hold those whom they elected into office to account. [Interjections.]
We see these performance agreements as the cornerstone of a new culture of transparency and accountability, where those who are given the responsibility to serve – whether as elected office bearers or public servants – do so as is expected of them.
It is a culture where corruption, nepotism and patronage are not tolerated, and action is taken against those who abuse their power or steal public money.
Since I took office, we have built and have been building capacity in the Presidency and elsewhere in the state to fast-track progress on a clear list of urgent reforms.
We have established the Project Management Office, the Infrastructure and Investment Unit and the Policy and Research Services to address obstacles to reform and improve government delivery. These units are working closely with the Presidential Infrastructure Coordinating Commission, InvestSA and the Ease of Doing Business Task Team to remove impediments to investment and growth and ensure that government demonstrates visible progress quickly.
With efficient and capable machinery now in place at the centre of government, we will focus on the most urgent reforms and intervene where necessary to ensure implementation.
As South Africans, we find ourselves at a decisive moment in our history. It is a time of great difficulty and doubt, but also a time laden with great opportunities.
Over the last two years, we have worked together to build a foundation for progress. Now is the time to build on that foundation, to unite, to work, to persevere.
We will not surrender our future to doubt, or despair, or division, or to those who are permanently negative to the work that is being done to improve the lives of our people. [Applause.]
We will continue with our onward march to improve the lives of our people. We will embrace change. We will cherish life. We will fear nothing.
As we do so, we will recall the inspired lyrics of one of South Africa’s most treasured musicians, uBaba uJoseph Shabalala, the founder of Ladysmith Black Mambazo, whose passing we mourn this week.
uBaba Joseph Shabalala wrote but in a different era, and his words still ring true:
We may face high mountains,
Must cross rough seas,
We must take our place in history,
And live with dignity,
As we climb to reach our destiny
A new age has begun.
I thank you. [Applause.]
The Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces adjourned the Joint Sitting at 22:00.
TAKE ENDS AT 20:45
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