Hansard: NCOP: Unrevised hansard

House: National Council of Provinces

Date of Meeting: 04 Dec 2012

Summary

No summary available.

Minutes

UNREVISED HANSARD

TUESDAY, 04 DECEMBER 2012

____

PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL OF PROVINCES

____

The Council met at 10:05.

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

ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS – see col 000.

NOTICES OF MOTION

Ms D Z RANTHO: Hon Deputy Chairperson, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the Council I shall move on behalf of the ANC:

That the Council –

notes that -

as World Aids Day was observed worldwide on 1 December 2012, South Africans had reason to acknowledge and celebrate the government’s achievements over the past three years in the fight against HIV;

the life expectancy of South Africans has increased by a remarkable 10%, or six years, in the last three years;

in the past two years, South Africa has increased the number of patients on antiretroviral treatment by 75%; and

new HIV infections have fallen by 41% while virtually all pregnant women were tested for HIV by 2010, resulting in a drop in babies being born with HIV from some 30% 10 years ago to a mere 2,7% last year; and

commends the government under the leadership of the ANC as well as the Minister of Health, hon Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, for providing the leadership in order to achieve this.

Mrs E C VAN LINGEN: Hon Deputy Chairperson, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the Council I shall move on behalf of the DA:

That the Council -

notes that –

hon Pine Pienaar, a member of the provincial legislature in the Eastern Cape, brought to my attention that the Eastern Cape Department of Public Works received a qualified audit report from the Auditor-General for the 2011-12 financial year;

the Auditor-General revealed that R492,8 million and other nonpensionable allowances of R104 million were spent without sufficient documentation during the same period;

more than 650 employees were awarded performance bonuses in excess of a total of R6 million; and

the DA in the Eastern Cape will call for a forensic investigation to determine the real rot in the department and what the costs are to the taxpayers.

[Interjections.]

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): Hon Gamede, make sure that your phone is off.

Mr D V BLOEM: Hon Chairperson, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the Council I shall move on behalf of Cope:

That the Council -

notes that –

after seven years of drought, Bloemfontein Celtic Football Club won the Telkom Knockout Cup on Saturday;

Bloemfontein Celtic has caused so much pain with this great win that the coach of Mamelodi Sundowns Football Club was fired;

Bloemfontein Celtic is the only team in the country with very disciplined supporters, win or lose; and

Cope wants to congratulate Celtic on their great performance.

Phunya Sele Sele, Phunya!

Mr D A WORTH: Hon Deputy Chairperson, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the Council I shall move on behalf of the DA:

That the Council -

notes that –

the DA wishes to offer its condolences on the death of the Free State MEC for Health, Ms Fundiswa “Fezi” Ngubentombi and her driver, Constable B C Motaung;

the driver apparently lost control of the vehicle on the wet road and collided with a pillar on a bridge near Bloemfontein before the car burst into flames;

the deceased MEC was a member of the National Executive Committee of the ANC Women’s League, amongst others; and

once again, we extend our condolences and sympathy to her husband and children.

Mr M P SIBANDE: Hon Deputy Chairperson, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the Council I shall move on behalf of the ANC:

That the Council -

notes that –

the so-called groundbreaking project of the City of Cape Town was launched by the mayor of the city a year ago, to supply electricity meters as well as water and sanitation services to certain backyard dwellers on council-owned properties; and

not all backyard dwellers on council properties will benefit from this project, while backyard dwellers living on privately-owned properties will not receive such services at all;

expresses concern about the city’s apparent discrimination against certain citizens; and

calls on the City of Cape Town to provide equal services to all citizens of the city.

Mr M C MAINE: Deputy Chairperson, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the Council I shall move:

That the Council —

notes that President Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma won the most nominations to lead the largest and longest liberation movement in Africa, the ANC, putting him on track to win a second term in leading the ANC and to be its presidential candidate in the elections in 2014;

further notes that President Zuma secured more than 60% of the total votes according to the results tabulated after six of the nine provinces nominated candidates to lead the party for the next five years;

takes this opportunity to congratulate all the ANC members and branches on convening their provincial general councils; and

wishes them well as they embark on the road to the 53rd national conference of the ANC in Mangaung from 16 to 20 December 2012.

[Interjections.]

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): Hon Gunda, before you speak, do me a favour. Can you behave when you are in the Chamber? This is the last warning. Continue.

Mr J J GUNDA: Hon Chairperson, I was ...

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): Continue, continue.

Mr J J GUNDA: Hon Deputy Chair, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the Council I shall move, on behalf of the ID:

That the Council —

debates the policies of broad-based black economic empowerment, BBBEE, concerning the Mining Charter, to:

(a) include our people in beneficiation processes, such as in manufacturing the steel rather than exporting the iron ore;

(b) empower ordinary people economically;

(d) create an 8% growth rate to alleviate poverty in South Africa.

Mr H B GROENEWALD: Hon Deputy Chairperson, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the Council I shall move on behalf of the DA:

That the Council —

debates that, according to the report of the audit firm KPMG, South Africa is the African country where the most fraud and corruption take place;

notes that the government is busy losing the battle;

also notes that state officials are the people who make the biggest contribution to fraud and corruption and that South Africa has the first place in Africa;

further notes that three quarters of corrupt state officials are not getting to court and there has been no punishment of any kind since President Zuma was elected;

also notes that there was an increase of 346% in financial fraud and corruption; and

further notes that the DA is hopeful that the delegates who are on their way to Mangaung will keep this high percentage in mind because the price the South African citizens paid for President Zuma is too high.

Mr F ADAMS: Deputy Chair, I hereby give notice that on the next sitting day of the Council I shall move:

That the Council —

debates the excellent performance of the Proteas cricket team that has beaten Australia in a three-match Test Series 1-0;

notes that the performance of the team was exceptional because it was the first time in history that our South African team has won a consecutive Test Series on foreign soil; and

wishes to express our gratitude to the Proteas, specifically the captain, Graeme Smith, and his bowlers, as well as the batsmen and all concerned with the Proteas cricket team that has made South African cricket the best in the world.

JOINT AQUACULTURE VENTURE IN NORTH WEST BETWEEN PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT AND RHODES UNIVERSITY

(Draft Resolution)

Mr G G MOKGORO: Deputy Chairperson, I move without notice:

That the Council -

notes that six dams in North West have been identified as having the potential to generate an income;

further notes that these dams will also ensure food security for local communities through aquaculture and fisheries after an extensive survey by Rhodes University on the ten largest dams in the province;

also notes that following this, the MEC for Agriculture and Rural Development of North West launched the province’s aquaculture and fisheries programme at Disaneng Dam near Mahikeng;

further notes that this is a joint venture between the provincial government and Rhodes University;

takes this opportunity to commend the provincial government and Rhodes University on this initiative; and

extends gratitude and appreciation to the university for its commitment and continued support in this regard.

Motion agreed to in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution.

LOCAL SUPERMARKETS PROMOTE BARRACOUTA FISH FROM NEW ZEALAND INSTEAD OF LOCAL PRODUCTS

(Draft Resolution)

Ms A N D QIKANI: Deputy Chairperson, I move without notice:

That the Council -

notes with concern that local supermarkets do not support local line fishers in buying and selling their snoek, one of the Cape’s most well-known and sought-after products;

further notes that instead they choose to sell Barracouta imported from New Zealand, a fish that is the same species as snoek;

also notes that supermarkets further label their New Zealand Barracouta products as “snoek” without necessarily indicating the origin of the fish clearly on the labels;

further notes that by doing this they create an impression that the fish is locally caught;

also notes that Western Cape line fishers operating in the informal fish market are therefore excluded from the cold chain into major retailers as there is no supply chain in supermarkets;

takes this opportunity to call on the Ministers of Trade and Industry and of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries to assess the situation; and

calls on Ministers once again, if necessary, to develop and implement appropriate policy and measures to rectify the matter.

Motion agreed to in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution.

SATISFACTION WITH GOVERNMENT’S ACHIEVEMENTS

(Draft Resolution)

Mnu D D GAMEDE: Sekela Sihlalo, ngiphakamisa ngaphandle kwesaziso:

Ukuthi lo Mkhandlu -

uzwakalisa ukweneliseka ngokuphatha kukahulumeni oholwa uMongameli wezwe uMsholozi futhi abantu abaningi bayalibona futhi bayalincoma igxathu elithathwe yilo hulumeni;

uyabona futhi uyavuma ukuthi kuningi okunye okusafanele kwenziwe ngoba phela ngeke konke kwenziwe ngesikhathi esisodwa; futhi

wamukele ukuthi–ke sifisela lo hulumeni inhlanhla njengoba uqeda unyaka nokuthi uma kuqala unyaka omusha uphinde uqhubeke la ugcine khona.

Ngiyabonga. (Translation of isiZulu draft resolution follows.)

[Mr D D GAMEDE: Deputy Chairperson, I move without notice:

That the Council -

is satisfied with President Msholozi’s [Clan name] administration and most of the citizens of this country are also satisfied with the achievements that this government has attained;

realises that there is still a great deal of work to be done since we cannot do everything at once; and

(3) acknowledges that we wish this government well as it has been in power for a year and that as the new year begins, it should continue with its work from where it left off.

Thank you.]

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): Is there any objection to the motion?

HON MEMBERS: Yes!

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): In the light of the objection, the motion may not be proceeded with. The motion without notice will now become notice of a motion.

POLICE OFFICER ARRESTED FOR ALLEGEDLY RAPING A WOMAN AT LANGEBAAN POLICE STATION

(Draft Resolution)

Ms B P MABE: Deputy Chairperson, I move without notice:

That the Council -

notes the recent arrest of a police officer for allegedly having raped a woman who was arrested and detained for possession of tik and Mandrax;

further notes with shock and dismay the allegations that the officer raped the woman at Langebaan police station in the Western Cape;

also notes that he then went to the cells later and raped her again;

further notes that despite the 16 Days of Activism of No Violence against Women and Children, these barbaric acts were committed by a member of the police service on duty;

also notes that this barbaric act was committed by a person holding a position of trust and with the duty to protect women and children regardless of whether they were involved in criminal activity or not;

condemns in the strongest possible terms this cowardice and these sadistic deeds against this apparently vulnerable and helpless woman;

takes this opportunity to call on the relevant authorities to ensure that the law takes its course; and

calls on authorities once again to put measures in place to root out the perpetration of incidents of this nature by the police.

Motion agreed to in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution.

TRAGIC DEATH OF FREE STATE MEC FOR HEALTH FUNDISWA “FEZI” NGUBENTOMBI AND HER BODYGUARD SERGEANT B C MOTAUNG

(Draft Resolution)

Mr M P JACOBS: Deputy Chairperson, I move without notice:

That the Council -

notes the tragic death of the Free State MEC for Health Fundiswa "Fezi" Ngubentombi, who died in a car accident on Saturday night;

further notes that the bodyguard of MEC Ngubentombi, Sergeant BC Motaung, also died in the accident;

also notes that two other people and a minor child, including the daughter, sustained injuries and burns;

further notes that MEC Ngubentombi served as a ward councillor from 2003 to 2006 and then as the executive mayor of the Metsimaholo Local Municipality from 2006 to 2009;

also notes that she was a member of the Provincial Executive Committee and provincial working committee of the ANC in the Free State since 2008;

further notes that she was also a member of the National Executive Committee of the ANC Women's League;

takes this opportunity to convey its profound condolences to the family of MEC Ngubentombi, her friends and comrades; and

wishes them strength in these difficult times.

Motion agreed to in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution.

SOWETO PASTOR ARRESTED FOR ALLEGEDLY RAPING 12-YEAR-OLD GIRL

(Draft Resolution)

Mr B A MNGUNI: Deputy Chairperson, I move without notice:

That the Council -

notes with concern and shock that a 62-year-old pastor of Soweto in Gauteng was arrested on charges of allegedly having raped a 12-year-old girl;

further notes that he was arrested for also having sexually assaulted two other young girls of 13 and 15 years over a period of time after having given them money to keep quiet;

also notes that these gruesome and barbaric acts follow various incidents of rape and sexual abuse of young girls by spiritual leaders who occupy positions of trust in their communities and with whom children should feel safe;

further notes that instead of honouring the trust placed in them and instead of protecting the children, they were the perpetrators who sadistically raped and abused these children;

takes this opportunity to call on communities to be on the alert for sexual abuse and assault of children at all times;

calls on communities once again to immediately report such incidents to the police; and

calls on all relevant authorities to leave no stone unturned to bring the perpetrators to book.

Motion agreed to in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution.

CONDOLENCES ON PASSING OF FORMER CHIEF JUSTICE ARTHUR CHASKALSON

(Draft Resolution)

Mr T M H MOFOKENG: Deputy Chairperson, I move without notice:

That the Council -

notes with sadness the passing on of former Chief Justice Arthur Chaskalson during the weekend at the age of 81;

further notes that his legacy stretches from his career as a human rights lawyer who defended the brave and the oppressed, including former President Nelson Mandela;

also notes his legacy further stretches to his founding of the Legal Resources Centre in 1979, his invaluable contribution towards the crafting of South Africa’s new Constitution and establishing and heading of the new Constitutional Court;

acknowledges that with his death South Africa has not only lost a moral force who guided South Africa from apartheid to democracy, but also one of its most important guardians against the erosion of our Constitution and human rights;

further notes that South Africa has also lost a legal practitioner and Chief Justice with formidable legal skills and commitment to human rights, integrity, selflessness and righteousness that were recognised and respected worldwide;

takes this opportunity to honour the legacy of former Chief Justice Arthur Chaskalson; and
extends its sincere condolences to his family and loved ones.

May his soul rest in peace.

Motion agreed to in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution.

CONDOLENCES ON PASSING OF BLESSING “KILLER” MGIDI

(Draft Resolution)

Ms B L ABRAHAMS: Deputy Chairperson, I move without notice:

That the Council -

sends condolences to the Mgidi family of Blessing “Killer” Mgidi, as he was fondly known by the soccer fraternity throughout South Africa;

notes that Blessing was born on 24 April 1948 in Washbank in Natal and died on 28 November 2012;

further notes that he suffered a mild stroke while attending the funeral of one of his ex-team-mates namely “Didiza” Sibeko;

also notes that Blessing started his soccer career playing for the Moroka Swallows Big XV and joined Orlando Pirates at the end of 1971;

further notes that he was the top goal scorer taking Pirates to greater heights;

also notes that he was an ambassador during the 2010 World Cup;

further notes that he was also a member of the SA Soccer Legends right up to his untimely death;

also notes that he believed in and dedicated his life to the development of soccer; and

hopes that his soul will rest in peace and rise in glory.

Motion agreed to in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution.

CONGRATULATIONS TO SOUTH AFRICAN CRICKET TEAM ON BEATING AUSTRALIA

(Draft Resolution)

Mr W F FABER: Deputy Chairperson, I move without notice:

That the Council -

congratulates the South African cricket team on thumping the Australians by 309 runs in Perth to hold onto their number 1 test ranking;

notes that the SA team ruined an emotional farewell for Ricky Ponting, the Australian captain, who was bowled out after a 17-year test career;

further notes that South Africa set an improbable 632 runs for Australia to win; and

recognises that Australia was dismissed for 322 runs with a day to spare and gave SA an easy victory.

Motion agreed to in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution.

TABLE MOUNTAIN RECOGNISED AS ONE OF NEW SEVEN WONDERS OF WORLD

(Draft Resolution)

Mr V M MANZINI: Deputy Chairperson, I move without notice:

That the Council -

notes that Table Mountain has officially been recognised as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World;

further notes that on Sunday, Cape Town mayor Patricia de Lille unveiled the Seven Wonders of Nature plaque in front of 41 international delegates from six other countries which make up the natural wonders;

also notes that Table Mountain being crowned with the Wonders of Nature will bring socioeconomic benefits to South Africa and Cape Town;

further notes that the mountain received more than 100 million votes from 200 countries after a three-year campaign;

acknowledges that it is a natural heritage that belongs to all South Africans and the world;

recognises that the new status will be good for marketing Cape Town and South Africa; and

recognises further that Table Mountain and Cape Town will be on the bucket-lists of many people.

Motion agreed to in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution.

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): Hon Bloem, please come to order.

ANNUAL NATIONAL ASSESSMENT CONFIRMS HIGH LEVELS OF ILLITERACY IN PRIMARY SCHOOLS

(Draft Resolution)

Ms R N RASMENI: Hon Deputy Chairperson, I move without notice:

That the Council -

notes the annual national assessment results announced by the Minister of Basic Education, hon Ms A Motshekga, on 3 December 2012 in Tembisa in Gauteng;

further notes that the latest annual national assessment results relate to 7,2 million pupils from Grades 1 to 6 from more than 20 000 schools;

also notes that these results affirmed independent schools’ dominance as the institutions of choice, with pupils in these private institutions achieving better result than their public school counterparts;

further notes that Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande admitted that the test results of pupils in Grades 3 and 6 remain some of the worst in the world despite the continually increasing levels of spending on foundation phase education;

also notes that the majority of learners entering the intermediate phase remain largely illiterate;

further notes that these learners experience increasing levels of difficulty as they progress through the education system; and

takes this opportunity to call on the Minister to convene an education summit to map out a ten-year intervention strategy for our education system.

Motion agreed to in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution.

CALL FOR CAUTION ON ROADS DURING FESTIVE SEASON

(Draft Resolution)

Mr D JOSEPH: Hon Deputy Chair, I move without notice:

That the Council -

notes the readiness of the law enforcement agencies to deal with irresponsible drivers, road blocks and drug trafficking;

further notes that driving under the influence of alcohol and at speeds that cause many accidents and deaths on the road is a bad choice;

also notes that government authorities will deal with such reckless behaviour in the strongest possible terms;

urges passengers and pedestrians to take responsibility for their own safety and report bad driving behaviour; and

wishes all road users a safe journey during the festive season.

Motion agreed to in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution.

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): Hon members, we’ve run out of time. May I then ask the outstanding members to bear with me when I say that we cannot take any further motions without notice. Shall we proceed? Is that acceptable? Thank you.

Mr D A WORTH: There is a question, Deputy Chair, on a point of clarity, because I get very easily confused. Deputy Chair, you get a Father Christmas. Do you get a Mother Christmas? [Laughter.]

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): Hon member, knowing the gender equality rules, it should be 50/50. [Laughter.] [Applause.]

SUSPENSION OF RULE 239(1) ON TUESDAY, 4 DECEMBER 2012

(Draft Resolution)

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE COUNCIL: Madam Deputy Chairperson, I hereby move the draft resolution printed in my name on the Order Paper, as follows:

That Rule 239(1), which provides inter alia that the consideration of a Bill may not commence before at least three working days have lapsed since the committee’s report was tabled, be suspended for the purposes of consideration of the Repeal of the Black Administration Act and Amendment of Certain Laws Amendment Bill [B 40 - 2012] (National Assembly – section 75) on Tuesday, 4 December 2012.

Question put: That the motion be agreed to.

IN FAVOUR: Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Northern Cape, North West, Western Cape.

Motion agreed to in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution

REPEAL OF THE BLACK ADMINISTRATION ACT AND AMENDMENT OF CERTAIN LAWS AMENDMENT BILL

(Consideration of Bill and of Report thereon)

Mr T M H MOFOKENG: Hon Deputy Chair, the Select Committee on Security and Constitutional Development, having considered the Repeal of the Black Administration Act and Amendment of Certain Laws Amendment Bill referred to it, reports that it has agreed to the Bill without amendments. Thank you very much. [Applause.]

Debate concluded.

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): I would like to pose a question to hon Mofokeng.

Mr T M H MOFOKENG: Chair?

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): Did you or did you not vote?

Mr T M H MOFOKENG: No, I did not vote. [Interjections.]

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): All right. [Laughter.] I did not intimidate anybody; I was just waking him up!

Bill agreed to in accordance with section 75 of the Constitution.

NATIONAL HEALTH AMENDMENT BILL

(Consideration of Bill and of Report thereon)

Ms M G BOROTO: Ke a leboga, Motlatsa Modulasetilo. [Thank you, Deputy Chairperson.]

The National Health Amendment Bill seeks to amend the National Health Act, Act 61 of 2003. If we remember, hon members, the Ministry introduced a 10-Point Plan in 2009, which was mostly for accountability, as we need people to be accountable to the health establishment. We will remember that in 2010 the National Core Standards for Health Establishments were introduced to make sure that we no longer have an unacceptable quality of care that does not meet the public’s expectations.

This Ministry makes sure that there isn’t a poor return on investment due to lack of compliance. This Ministry makes sure that we have accountability which, in the past, has been weak, with very few consequences found. We want to retain the ethics and professionalism that seem to be eroded. As a response by the ANC and the Ministry of Health, this Bill seeks to empower the Minister to establish an independent entity called the Office of Health Standards Compliance.

Ngaloko ngithi ... [In conclusion ...]

... as the select committee, we would like you to vote for this amending Bill. Thank you very much. [Applause.]

Debate concluded.

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): Hon members, before we proceed, I draw your attention to Limpopo, North West and the Northern Cape. There haven’t been mandates received thus far. Should I repeat the list of those without the mandates thus far? Gauteng’s mandate has come through. It is North West, Limpopo and the Northern Cape. [Interjections.] Is there any response? Maybe the hon members from the respective provinces might have something that has not been forwarded to the Secretariat.

Mr G G MOKGORO: No, I don’t have anything, Deputy Chairperson.

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): I hope that you understand that when the voting comes, you won’t be counted.

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE COUNCIL: I think, Deputy Chair, the Rule says that if six provinces have sent mandates, we can continue.

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): That is what I have just said, with the exception of the three who cannot vote.

We will then proceed.

Question put: That the Bill be agreed to.

IN FAVOUR: Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, Western Cape.

ABSTAIN: Limpopo, Northern Cape, North West.

Bill accordingly agreed to in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution.

HIGHER EDUCATION AND TRAINING LAWS AMENDMENT BILL

(Consideration of Bill and of Report thereon)

Ms D Z RANTHO: Deputy Chairperson, we have a growing need for advanced learning through tertiary education institutions in the country. However, for a variety of historical and socioeconomic reasons, there is a shortage of capacity to deliver this service.

As a leader of further education in the country, the Department of Higher Education and Training has a statutory obligation to ensure that government delivers more higher education institutions, and that their governance and management function effectively.

As the Select Committee on Education and Recreation, we have found that the Higher Education and Training Laws Amendment Bill [B23B-2012], closes several gaps in the establishment and implementation of national institutes for higher education.

In the main, the Bill amends the Higher Education Act, Act 101 of 1997, to extend the powers of the Minister to establish and disestablish national institutes for higher education. We have found that public higher education institutions that are underperforming tend not to authorise investigations against themselves.

Should the institution fail to comply with the directive, then the Minister will be permitted to issue a specific directive to the board or council informing them of the nature of their challenge, steps to resolve the challenge and timeframes within which action should be taken to remedy the situation.

The Bill resolves, amongst other things, the interface between government intervention which is essential for transformation of education, and institutional autonomy which is necessary for continuity of education.

In cases of serious financial or other maladministration, the Minister will be given the right to dissolve the board and to replace and appoint an independent administrator to take over the management, governance and administration of the national institute to ensure its survival.

The independence of the administrator is assured by the appointment of such administrator from a predetermined list of assessors selected by the Council for Higher Education. As such, the Minister will not be able to appoint someone of his or her own choice.

It is imperative that teaching and learning in our national institutes for higher education not be disrupted by the consequences of allegations of corruption and the back-and-forth investigations. The temporary measure of an administrator will fall away once a new council is constituted.

Deputy Chairperson, the ANC supports the Bill. I thank you. [Applause.]

Debate concluded.

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): That concludes the debate. I shall now put the question. The question is that the Bill be agreed to.

In accordance with Rule 63, I shall first allow political parties to make their declarations of vote if they so wish.

We shall now proceed to the voting on the question. Members will vote by pressing in favour, against or abstain.

Declaration of vote:

Mr S H PLAATJIE: Chair, Cope wants to put on record that it is voting against the Bill.

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): So be it. [Interjections.] Hon member, the machine in front of you gives the power to abstain, to vote in favour or against, but I have recorded your concern; it is fine. Let’s proceed with the voting.

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE COUNCIL: Chair, I don’t think hon Plaatjie is wrong, because you called for parties to declare their votes. So that’s exactly what he did. It shouldn’t be recorded as if he was out of order.

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): Even at this stage, I did not say so, hon Chief Whip. I’m sure every member in this House will also say so. I never said he is wrong. Thank you.

Have all the members voted? The voting is now closed. Could the Table staff give me the report?

Hon Gamede, have you voted? Hon Gamede and hon Abrahams, please concentrate! Hon Gamede, have you voted now? [Laughter.] We will separate their seating.

In favour 28, against 16. The majority has voted in favour.

Bill agreed to in accordance with section 75 of the Constitution.

Consideration of Report of Select Committee ON Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs - termination of intervention in Okhahlamba Local Municipality

Consideration of Report of Select Committee ON Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs - extension of intervention in Indaka Local Municipality

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): Excuse me. Hon Zulu, can you move from there! Can you move from there and take another seat. Hon Zulu, stand up! Sukuma-ke! [Stand up!]

Mr W F FABER: Chair, I just thought we had another delegate from the Northern Cape here. [Laughter.]

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): Continue, hon member.

Mr T M H MOFOKENG: Madam Deputy Chairperson, the Select Committee on Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs recommends that the National Council of Provinces approves the termination of the intervention in the Okhahlamba Local Municipality in terms of section 139(1)(b) of the Constitution. It also recommends that the National Council of Provinces approves the extension of the intervention in the Indaka Local Municipality in terms of section 139(1)(b) of the Constitution for a period of six months after the adoption of this report by the Council. I thank you. [Applause.]

Debate concluded.

Question put: That the Report on the Termination of Intervention in Okhahlamba Local Municipality be adopted.

In FAVOUR: Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Northern Cape, North West, Western Cape.

Report on Termination of Intervention in Okhahlamba Local Municipality accordingly adopted in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution.

Question put: That the Report on the Extension of Intervention in Indaka Local Municipality be adopted.

In FAVOUR: Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Northern Cape, North West, Western Cape.

Report on Extension of Intervention in Indaka Local Municipality accordingly adopted in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution.

CONSIDERATION OF REPORT OF SELECT COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS - PROPOSED DIVISION OF REVENUE AND THE CONDITIONAL GRANT ALLOCATIONS TO PROVINCIAL AND LOCAL SPHERES OF GOVERNMENT AS CONTAINED IN THE 2012 MEDIUM-TERM BUDGET POLICY STATEMENT

Mr T E CHAANE: Hon Deputy Chairperson, the committee observed the following regarding the proposed division of revenue and the conditional grants allocation to the provincial and local government spheres over the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework as outlined in the MTBPS, the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement.

Government’s spending plans continue to reflect social and economic development priorities, specifically for education, health, social development, infrastructure development, crime prevention and enhancing competitiveness. Government departments have reprioritised spending and identified savings of R40 billion to improve value for money and ensure alignment with the National Development Plan.

The committee is, however, concerned that what is regarded as savings is actually underspending and their reprioritisation might have unintended consequences such as opportunity costs and social costs to the communities concerned.

The baseline expenditure announced in the 2012 Budget will be revised by R40 billion due to reprioritisation and draw-down on the contingency reserve. Priority will be given to infrastructure development and service delivery improvement. Government will also provide funds in support of HIV/Aids programmes due to the reduction in the United States’ donor funding for HIV/Aids prevention, care and treatment. There are no additional funds for the 2012-13 financial year, which implies that any additional funding during the outer years of the MTEF are to augment the shortfalls created by the reduced donor funding.

Government has finalised the local government equitable share formula. The committee will therefore monitor how the revised equitable share formula addresses issues such as the revenue collection capacities of municipalities, as well as how the revised formula is reflected in the indigent policies of municipalities. The human settlements and public transport functions will be devolved to urban municipalities, and greater technical support for rural municipalities would be provided for the Integrated National Electrification Programme, the INEP, to combat wastage of water and electricity.

The Select Committee on Appropriations, having considered the MTBPS, recommends that this report be accepted by the House. Thank you. [Applause.]

Debate concluded.

Question put: That the Report be adopted.

IN FAVOUR: Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Northern Cape, North West, Western Cape.

Report accordingly adopted in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution.

FAREWELL SPEECHES

The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Deputy Chairperson, hon members, allow me first to start by passing our condolences, as the NCOP, to the family of MEC Ngubentombi and the legislature of the Free State. We were shocked by her sudden death. May her soul rest in peace!

Hon members, you will recall that during the course of the year we were told, by some prophets of doom, that the earth would experience massive physical trauma of great proportion destroying most, if not everything, on the planet. Save for the snowfall and floods across some of our provinces, we are in the last month of 2012. Remember the story of Nongqawuse.

We come to the end of a year in which we continued to carry forward our mandate of seeking a better quality of life for the people. Our theme for the year - the knowledge economy and development opportunities - spoke to the role Parliament could play through its law-making and oversight responsibilities in enhancing South Africa’s development in the age of knowledge. It is a theme that spoke to our future potential as a country.

Let me just say that, in our strategic plan as the NCOP, last year we raised these following issues which I would want you to bear in mind as you go home. We haven’t finished our work. We will continue next year with this job.

We mentioned that we would be dealing with the challenges relating to functional arrangements between spheres, unfunded mandates, resources to support provinces’ supervisory powers, and the limited legislative role of provinces; management of legislative processes between the NA and the NCOP, including co-ordination of oversight activities across the legislative sector; promoting shared understanding and articulation of principles of co-operative government and intergovernmental relations; the need to improve the processing of committee reports adopted by the House, with particular reference to the tracking mechanism; the need to monitor and evaluate committee strategic plans and their implementation, increasing time for overtime committees; having a strategy to deal with audit challenges between clean audits in municipalities; and the need for effective use of video conferencing to enhance engagement with provincial legislatures in particular. I see that you are still not using the audiovisual technology to communicate with provinces. I don’t know what the problem is. We will have to look into that. It may be that you don’t like it; I don’t know.

Mr J J GUNDA: They don’t pay airtime!

The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: The provinces don’t pay airtime. We will look into that.

Also, during the course of the year, when we marked the 15-year anniversary, we talked about other things. Our programme for the marking of this 15-year anniversary included the following. We organised and hosted a Child Seminar, which was very successful, thereby giving effect to one of our stated objectives for the term, which is to initiate and implement programmes aimed at assisting the vulnerable groups in society. Engaging the leadership of the SA Local Government Association on the need to play a meaningful role in the NCOP culminated in the hosting of the Local Government Week. We continued to use the Taking Parliament to the People programme to make certain interventions in our poor communities, and initiated a process for the hosting of the NCOP lecture series to further reflect on the work of the NCOP within our democracy. The University of the Western Cape is ready to host such a lecture early next year and to work with us to pilot a relationship-building programme that will extend to other tertiary institutions across the country.

Without doubt, the NCOP, after 15 years, needs to show maturity in how it conducts its business, compared to when it was five and ten years old. I know that this is difficult to achieve given that the majority of our current permanent delegates have not been in the NCOP for a long time. Nonetheless, we must continue to advance this cause.

Allow me to express my personal and heartfelt thanks to all of you seated here in this House today for maintaining your balance, your commitment, your fortitude and sometimes a necessary sense of humour throughout the year. There was a bit of squabbling, and politicking and boxing each other. That’s how parliaments work throughout the world.

I must also thank, in particular, the permanent delegates who spent much of this year crisscrossing the country and consulting South Africans on the Protection of State Information Bill. We thank them for their intensive consideration of this piece of draft legislation. Although a section 75 Bill, the nature of the Bill necessitated that we devote more attention to it, particularly given the huge public interest it attracted. For some time now, as the NCOP, we have used public participation to help us make informed decisions and to add value to our work. I therefore want to thank the ad hoc committee, under the chairmanship of hon Tau, for the sterling work it has done. Thank you very much. [Applause.]

Let us continue to work hard. Remember that “the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph”. We have very little time remaining before the end of this term of Parliament. As a result, I expect 2013 to be very challenging. However, for now, you should take some time to work in your constituencies.

Please ensure that you find time to rest or relax during the festive season. I look forward to seeing you in the coming year, fully recharged and ready to continue the tasks you have. As Eleanor Roosevelt said, “With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts.”

The new year must come with new strength, new thoughts and new commitment.

In conclusion, I would like to acknowledge the support of my colleagues and the Deputy Chair, hon Memela; the House Chairperson, hon Magadla; and the House Chairperson, hon Tau, as well as the Chief Whip of the NCOP, hon Ntwanambi. A big thank you also goes to provincial whips, all of you; the chairpersons of select committees, all of you; and the co-chairpersons of joint committees, as well as all the members of the NCOP for ensuring that the business of this House and that of Parliament is carried out diligently. That is the most important thing. [Applause.]

I also want to acknowledge the tireless work of the nonpolitical component, that is, the staff in the NCOP, particularly the Secretary, Advocate Phindela, together with the Table staff and all the staff in the rest of Parliament, who continue to support us in our different capacities. We thank everybody who has given us support.

Lastly, the Presbyterian minister, author and songwriter, the late Fred Rogers, says of the holiday season:

I like to compare the holiday season with the way a child listens to a favourite story. The pleasure is in the familiar way the story begins, the anticipation of familiar turns it takes, the familiar moments of suspense, and the familiar climax and ending.

In short, this is not the first holiday season you will experience. It will be familiar. So take good care of yourselves and your families. I thank you. [Applause.]

Mrs E C VAN LINGEN: Hon Deputy Chairperson, hon Chairperson, colleagues, and NCOP support staff, we have come to the end of 2012 and it has been a very good year for the NCOP. We celebrated our 15th birthday this year and I think we have grown a lot, as our Chairperson has stated.

Probably the most important piece of legislation that passed through this House has been the Secrecy Bill ... [Laughter.] ... or the Protection of State Information Bill; my apologies. We understand the processes. There was immense public participation and all that was to secure freedom of speech, democracy and transparency. At the same time we wish to thank the public, the NGOs, the press and everybody else for their participation.

This year the provinces have done themselves proud by participating in our debates; by making us feel at home when we did oversight for our provincial weeks. They also ensured that our section 76 legislation got the necessary public participation. A special thanks goes to the SA Local Government Association, Salga, which is comprised of councillors acting in their own right and on their own without any finance. They are attending our debates and doing it free of charge simply because they care.

We also wish to thank the Ministers who attended our plenaries and our committee meetings, the directors-general, deputy directors-general and all the departments who presented us with their statements. It has been very interesting and we appreciate it very much.

Some of our members bade farewell to close family members. We also said goodbye and paid tribute to a number of very special leaders who contributed their lives to democracy and freedom in this country. It was not always an easy year for many of us.

We celebrated the achievements and joy of our sports teams like the Olympics and Paralympics teams; it was great fun. Today we celebrated the victory of our cricket team. We are always there to back up our sports teams.

During the Taking Parliament to the People programme, we went to De Aar and it has been a good time for the people of that community. We hope that we can follow up to make sure that all the promises are kept.

Chairperson, we wish to thank you specifically for your leadership and your guidance in the NCOP; you make a special contribution. To our Deputy Chairperson and the other leadership in the House, thank you so much for what you are doing and what you have contributed.

To our spouses, partners and our families who were not always with us and had to share their time with the people of South Africa, we thank them as well.

Last, but not least, thank you to all our many staff members who have been supporting us throughout the year. We need to say that we truly appreciate your contribution to the operations of this House. We also thank our staff in our respective party offices for their support. Many of you have gone beyond the call of duty and I can recall many occasions where you have proved that you put South Africa first because you care; you care about the people out there, about justice, truth and good governance.

This is the end of 2012. On behalf of the DA, we wish you all and your families a blessed Christmas and festive season. May God protect you all so that we can meet again in 2013 to complete the work we set out for ourselves to do in the fourth term of Parliament. We wish all of you a happy new year and a very successful 2013.

Thank you, Deputy Chairperson. [Applause.]

Mr J J GUNDA: Deputy Chairperson, Chairperson, Chief Whip and colleagues ...

Dit is inderdaad die einde van 2012 vir ons ... [Tussenwerpsels.] ... en ek wil vir u sê dat dit ’n goeie jaar was. Ons het hard gewerk en ons het ons doelwitte bereik. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraph follows.)

[For us it is indeed the end of the year 2012 ... [Interjections.] ... and I would like to say to you that it was a good year. We worked hard and we achieved our aims.]

This team sometimes differs, but it’s a very good team that sits in this House. It’s a team of excellence. It’s a team that fights to get the right things done, and for that I would like to congratulate all the members in this House. Thank you for working so hard. Sometimes we might agree to differ, but the end product is that people must benefit, and I thank you for everything.

Let me also mention our families who are at home. It’s very important because I am a family man. [Interjections.] Without the support of your family, you will get nowhere. Our families make sacrifices in order for us to sit here. They pray for us so that God will protect us, and so that we can do the right thing. [Interjections.]

This has been a hectic year with the Bills that we have passed and those that are still with us. However, it was a good year for us to work together to achieve the goals that we set.

Let me thank the staff who worked very hard to make our jobs easy. To the staff members who sometimes go out of their way to see to it that members are not found wanting, I say congratulations on a job well done. I would especially like to thank the staff in the Chief Whip’s office. Some of you might not work with them but I do. Whenever there is something to be done by the Chief Whip’s office, the staff make sure that it’s done well. They are doing a fine job. [Applause.] If it’s possible for some of you to travel with them one day, you will see what I mean. That’s an excellent team. Chief Whip, well done on having good staff. [Interjections.]

May God bless the staff and their families. May He keep you and give you a prosperous festive season and a glorious 2013.

In conclusion, let me say to my colleagues that I would like to bless all of you and your families in this House with the Word of God in the Third Book of John. [Interjections.] It’s a wonderful passage. From verse one to three it says:

The elder unto the well-beloved Gaius, whom I love in the truth. Beloved, I wish above all things that you may prosper and be in health, even as your soul prospers. For I rejoiced greatly, when the brothers came and testified of the truth that is in you, even as you walk in the truth.

[Interjections.]

I thank you. Siyabonga. Baie dankie. [Applause.]

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): Hallelujah, Gunda!

Mr D V BLOEM: Hon Deputy Chairperson, I am asking in advance for one extra minute. [Laughter.] I am serious when I say that I need one extra minute. This is our last sitting day ...

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): No!

Mr D V BLOEM: ... and I don’t think it’s the time for long and boring speeches. Let me repeat what I said here 12 months ago.

I can say without any doubt that the leadership and members of this House, including the Chairperson, Deputy Chairperson, Chief Whip and all the presiding officers, are equal to their tasks. They are doing excellent work.

We are looking back on the highs and lows of this year. For me the highlight of this year was a ruling that you, Deputy Chairperson, made. [Laughter.] The ad hoc ruling was that the majority rules. [Laughter.]

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): Yes, I will repeat it.

Mr D V BLOEM: I left the Chamber to look at my Rule book ... [Laughter.] ... and up until today I have not seen a Rule that says the majority rules. That was ... [Interjections.] ... the highlight of this year. Congratulations on that ... [Laughter.] ... very, very good ruling. [Interjections.] I must say ...

The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms T C Memela): I am saving you on the other side. [Laughter.]

Mr D V BLOEM: I am coming to you, Mama. [Interjections.] Mama, I’m coming to you. I don’t know now ... [Laughter.]

I want to say again that we are very fortunate to have a Chairperson like Mr Mahlangu, who leads this House very professionally and with dignity. [Interjections.] His dedication and wisdom makes this House a success ... [Applause.] ... but there is a saying that behind every successful man ... [Interjections.] ... is a woman. [Interjections.] In this case, that woman is our Deputy Chairperson, Mama! [Interjections.] In my view, they complement each other very well. [Interjections.]

Let me say to all the members, that the people in your constituencies who have elected you can be proud of you ... [Interjections.] ... because I can testify that you have worked very hard this whole year. Let me also take this opportunity to apologise to anybody whom I have hurt unintentionally during this year. [Interjections.]

Let me thank the Table staff for the hard work they have put in during the year to make our work successful. [Interjections.] I can’t forget to say thank you to the service officers for everything that they have done for all of us in this House. [Interjections.] It’s because of them that we are successful.

Cope wants to wish the Chairperson, Deputy Chairperson, Chief Whip, all members and their families a merry Christmas and a prosperous new year. [Interjections.] If some of you are driving home after today, please drive safely.

Let me remind all of you to spend quality time with your families because you neglected them the whole year, albeit unintentionally. Please kiss, kiss, kiss and love them very much. Thank you. [Interjections.] [Applause.]

The CHIEF WHIP OF THE COUNCIL: Hon Chairperson, Deputy Chairperson, hon House Chairpersons, one in absentia, hon Whips and chairpersons of committees, leaders of political parties, hon members, comrades and compatriots, thank you very much for all the things you’ve done this year.

I want to start by saying, as I look at all of you - I don’t want to miss anyone’s face - thank you for your support during a hard time in my life. It was tough and difficult, but because you were there, you made my heavy burden a light one. Thank you so much.

We convene a few days after the nation has lost three of its selfless servants: Prof Jakes Gerwel, who died in Kuils River Hospital; former Chief Justice Arthur Chaskalson who was buried yesterday and, of course, our comrade Fezi Ngubentombi, whom I last saw last week on Monday. She was a very active and lively person. She was participating as if she’d come to say goodbye to us. Of course, we live so that one day we may die. We lost these dear comrades at the right time, when they had really contributed. They did not just eat, sleep and die. Each one of them did their best to make sure that South Africa achieved its freedom.

Allow me, therefore, Chair, to extend our sincere condolences to friends, families and comrades of these leaders of our nation who bestrode the globe like colossuses and whose thoughts and wisdom shaped our nation and democracy.

Today we conclude another momentous and, indeed, one of the busiest years for our hon members and the committees of our Council. I want to take this opportunity to thank all of you for the utmost dedication to your work. You have demonstrated to South Africans that, in you, they have committed men and women who are champions of their plight and welfare.

I would also like to take this opportunity to extend our deepest appreciation to the support staff of the Council, as the Chair has said, from Adv Phindela down to our service officers, without whom we would all be thirsty and, who knows, might have been admitted for dehydration had they not been in the House. Thank you so much for all you do. Sometimes, I want sweets from Mrs Themba. They now know, when I send them to her, that it cannot be for anything but sweets! [Laughter.]

Our Council had 35 sittings this year, totalling over 4 046 minutes and, on average, we spent 12 hours on motions this year. This means that our hon members spent over 182 hours in four days debating the issues facing our people. Our hon members processed over 44 pieces of legislation. Central among these was the Protection of State Information Bill, which resulted in over 800 amendments in over 40 committee meetings and public hearings in a period of less than eight months.

I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate all members of that ad hoc committee and thank them for their unwavering dedication and commitment throughout the processing. It was arguably one of the most controversial pieces of legislation since 1994. You’ve done us and the people of our country proud.

However, I would be failing if I don’t specifically thank the members of the ANC who, last Thursday, acted so well – you were so disciplined, so attentive and I wish you’d always do that. Keep it up, hon members and dear comrades! That is us at our best when we are at work. [Applause.] We really did it. You know, hon Sebe said, “the others did it; why can’t we did it too?” I want to ask us to “did” it because when we “do” it, we might fail, but if we “did” it, we won’t. Thank you, hon members.

I also want to say that when we came here many of our members did not know what to do. However, I think everyone now knows what he or she has come to do here. I also think we will do our best next year. I must say, as we moved around the country, that the people of KwaZulu-Natal are still very grateful to us. They are still phoning us for having been to Nquthu and other areas in uMzinyathi District. They are still phoning our offices. People in De Aar are still excited. I remember one garage owner who phoned the office to thank the NCOP for having been there, because in one week he ordered petrol three times - something he does once in three months. When we were there he ordered three times in a week. Thank you so much, hon members. At least we brought something to that community.

The women who run the bed and breakfast accommodation were very excited. They were so happy with us being there and they treated us like parents. For a change, the issue of race did not matter and that is something you have to agree with. If there was anyone who was racist, it was just that one individual, otherwise we really enjoyed ourselves in a very dusty place like De Aar.

As I conclude, I want to say to those who are going to Mangaung: Sodibana eMangaung [We will meet at Mangaung.]

For those who are not ANC members, let us tell you that there is no competition here. This is what we practise in the ANC: democracy. Let us also tell you: Come 17 December, it will be the best ANC you’ve ever had! I’m telling you! To all of you ...

... wanga Lowo usigcina singenachaphaza sonke, singahlala sinje, side siphinde sibonane kunyaka ozayo. [... may the One who has the power to keep us all pure keep us so, till we meet again next year.]

Thank you. [Applause.]

STATEMENTS AND INSINUATIONS REGARDED AS BEING OFFENSIVE

(Ruling)

The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Thank you, Chief Whip. Let me thank all of you for the motivation that you have given us all. We will go home reinvigorated, and come back with great vigour to do our work. You may wonder why I am taking the Chair at the end.

The practice of all parliaments is that when they end their business for the year, they do not leave anything behind for the following year. So, I have got some rulings to make ... [Interjections.] ... rulings which were raised on Thursday during the debate. I cannot leave them out. I cannot make a ruling on them next year because it will be forgotten business. It will be in the records of Parliament that I did not rule on those issues that were raised on Thursday last week.

There are only two of them. Of course, there were many points of order that were raised, but they are encapsulated in the ruling that I am going to make.

I am going to make a ruling myself on a point of order that was raised by hon Lees. I would like to make a ruling on a point of order that was raised by hon Lees during our plenary on Thursday, 29 November 2012. The hon member asked whether it was parliamentary for hon Chaane to say that other Members of the Council were deceitful.

I have looked at the Unrevised Hansard on the debate on the Consideration of Protection of State Information Bill [B 6B - 2010] where hon Chaane made the following statement, and I quote ... [Interjections.] Yes, Mr Lees?

Mr R A LEES: Chairman, I understood that one had to stand when you were making a ruling.

The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Not really! No, you can sit down. It is all right. You can stand if you want to stand ... [Interjections.]

Mr R A LEES: I do not want to be out of order.

The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: ... but it is not necessary. I quote a statement from the Unrevised Hansard. Mr Chaane said:

Chairman ...

I do not know whether it is “Chairman” or “Chairperson”. We should be consistent in the future -

... allow me the opportunity to address some of the accusations levelled against the ANC during the so-called dramatic event of 27 November 2012 when the opposition parties walked out of the meeting. The question is: Why did they leave, and what does it mean? Contrary to what they deceitfully said to the public, they left because, when we were busy engaging with volumes of submissions that were received from the general public, they were busy enjoying free media airtime to profile themselves and their parties.

Hon members, section 71 of the Constitution, read with Rule 30 of the NCOP Rules, guarantees every member of this august Council the right to freedom of speech during debate in the Council and its committees or subcommittees. However, this right, like all other rights, is subject to limitation. In particular, Rule 46(a) stipulates that:

No member may use offensive or unbecoming language in the Council.

I appeal to hon members to guard against making statements or insinuations which could be regarded by other hon members or this august Council or a certain section thereof as being offensive and/or unbecoming of hon members - neither worthy of the dignity of this august House nor conducive to orderly and effective debate.

I am referring this to all of you because it does occur from time to time. I therefore rule that the remark that was made by hon Chaane is unparliamentary. I call upon the hon member to withdraw the remark!

Mr T E CHAANE: I withdraw it, Chair. Thank you!

The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Thank you very much. [Applause.]

POINTS OF ORDER IN RESPECT OF MEMBERS MISLEADING THE COUNCIL

(Ruling)

The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: I want to make a second ruling on the statement that a member is “misleading the Council”, which was raised by several members of this Council. It is becoming the norm. Whenever I or any other Presiding Officer sits here and chairs the sitting, points of order on “misleading the Council” arise.

I want to make this ruling. Perhaps we need to have a debate, a discussion, and a special workshop on this issue at some time so that we understand ourselves and what we are raising in terms of some of these points of order. Hon members and delegates, I would like to make a ruling on a number of points of order which were raised by delegates during our plenary on Thursday, 29 November 2012, particularly on the allegations that another delegate was misleading the House.

Delegates should be mindful that, as hon delegates, we are supposed to conduct ourselves in a manner befitting the decorum of this august Council. Can I repeat that ruling: Delegates should be mindful that, as hon delegates, we are supposed to conduct ourselves in a manner befitting the decorum of this august Council!

I have recently observed that, on many occasions, when a delegate does not agree with another delegate who is participating in the debate, a general allegation is made that the delegate is misleading the Council. The practice of this Council and parliaments in general is that if a member holds a different view from that of the speaker, they should use their debating time to raise those matters. This is what debates are all about. [Interjections.]

Mr W F FABER: Yes!

The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: An allegation that a delegate is misleading the Council is serious. It cannot, and should not, be lightly made. Neither should it be made without any substantive proof. I want to repeat that: An allegation that a delegate is misleading the Council is serious. It cannot, and should not, be lightly made by you as members of this House. Neither should it be made without any substantive proof.

Delegates are aware that, as presiding officers, we are privy neither to your speeches prior to a debate nor your deliberations in committees or public meetings. It would therefore be impossible to rule on such matters without having provided us with substantive information. You are making things difficult for us. I cannot rule if I do not know what you are talking about, in your committee room or wherever you were, without giving us or this Council and the public substantive information.

In the event that a delegate is of the opinion that another delegate has made a statement knowing it to be false, such a delegate should move a substantive motion with facts to back up his claim. This would be investigated, and indeed, if found that the delegate is misleading the Council, knowing that their statements or remarks are not true, this might lead to an inquiry.

Therefore, I urge delegates not to rise on frivolous points of order and as such interrupt speakers on the floor. Indeed, delegates should raise genuine points of order.

The Rules guide delegates on what a point of order is. I want to urge you again to have your Rules right in front of you. All of you have a copy of the Rules. Let me tell you what I would appreciate as a chairperson of this Council.

When you stand up on a point of order, you must say, for example: Chairperson, I am standing up on a point of order in terms of Rule 45. Quote that Rule for me, and tell me what your point of order is. Then you are making it possible for me to rule immediately. If I cannot rule immediately I will do it later, as I am doing now.

I need to study the Rule, the convention, the general practices, and look at what other parliaments are doing. I would thereafter come to give a ruling that can assist all of us. I would advise delegates to continuously familiarise themselves with the Rules of the House.

I therefore conclude that no delegate may make an allegation that another delegate is misleading the Council, except in terms of a substantive motion. That is my ruling on the matter. Thank you very much! [Applause.]

The Council adjourned at 11:53.

__________

ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS

FRIDAY, 30 NOVEMBER 2012

COMMITTEE REPORTS

National Council of Provinces

1. Report of the Select Committee on Labour and Public Enterprises on an Unannounced Oversight Visit to the Sheltered Employment Factory at Ndabeni in the Western Province, dated 27 November 2012.

1. Background

The Committee visited the factory on 12 September 2012. The Sheltered Employment Factories (SEFs) were established more than 65 years ago to provide employment opportunities for those handicapped people who were unable to find employment in the open labour market due to the nature of their afflictions. There are more than 2.5 million handicapped people in South Africa and 10 to 15 per cent of this number requires an environment such as that provided by the Sheltered Employment Factories. Currently, 100 per cent of the workers in SEFs fit this profile. This is not merely a haven for the unemployed, but for those who cannot compete – often the emotionally or psychologically challenged.

The Department of Labour inherited the SEFs from the previous government and has in the recent past taken the bold step of embarking on a turnaround strategy, that is aimed at converting the SEFs into entities that:

• have a clear and definable legal status;

• operate as efficient entities; and

• serve to advance government’s national agenda on active participation in the economy of the country by people with disabilities.

Ownership of the factories is vested in the State through the Department of Labour, and they trade under the name SERVICE PRODUCTS. The primary purpose of the SEF is the economic empowerment of people with disabilities, and people with disabilities are the sole beneficiaries. The SEF is a non-profit organisation.

The SEF has 12 factories across South Africa operating in 7 of the 9 provinces, with only Mpumalanga and Limpopo without these facilities. Factories are located in Bloemfontein, Cape Town, Durban, East London, Johannesburg, Kimberley, Pietermaritzburg, Port Elizabeth, Potchefstroom and Pretoria.

2. Objectives

The Select Committee decided during its strategic planning session, held at the beginning of this year (2012), to investigate the working conditions at a number of SEFs in the country. As a result, the Committee undertook to conduct oversight visits to all the SEFs in order to assess that these factories achieve their objectives. The first visit of this kind was on 24-27 January 2012 where the Committee visited, among others, the Sheltered Employment Factories in the Eastern Cape. The Committee found that conditions in the SEF in the Eastern Cape were unsatisfactory and it decided to expand these visits to other factories in the country. The second leg of these visits was in the Western Cape on 12 September 2012.

3. Delegation

The delegation of the Committee comprised Mrs MP Themba (Chairperson and Leader of the delegation), Mrs L Mabija, Mr MP Sibande, Mr MP Jacobs, and Mr HB Groenewald.

4. Support Staff

Ms PH Sibisi, Committee Secretary; Mrs R Barreto, Committee Researcher and Ms C Adams, Committee Assistant, accompanied the delegation.

5. Sheltered Employment Factory at Ndabeni

The Committee undertook an unannounced oversight visit to the Sheltered Employment Factory (SEF) trading under the name Service Products at Ndabeni in the Western Cape.

6. Findings

The factory employs 180 people with disabilities. The factory was not clean and the windows were also very dirty.

The Committee felt that factory employees were doing a good job, although the factory in a good physical state. The factory employees stressed that they were satisfied with the general conditions of their employment but for a few minor problems that they experienced.

The factory manufactures furniture for the Western Cape schools. The factory also produces clothing and bedding material for government hospitals in the province.

Employees’ salaries ranged from R3 000 to R4 000 a month. There were complaints from the factory employees that they are paid too little for the hard physical work that they do. Most of the employees have long service which ranges from 16 to 30 years, which means that there are no new or young people employed in the shelter.

The factory Manager advised the delegation that the factory does not have enough funding to employ more individuals even though there are hundreds of applicants who apply when a post is advertised for factory employees. He said that it was a tragedy as the factory had the capacity to employ more people but that they needed additional funding to do so.

There was no lift that went to the Administration section of the building that the managers of the factory utilise. The Committee asked the factory Manager how these offices were accessed by individuals who were physically disabled and could not climb stairs. The Committee was informed that there had been multiple requests for a lift and eventually Public Works had advised that they would be conducting a “repair and replace” operation on the factory during December 2012. The request for a lift has been approved. The Committee was not satisfied with this explanation as the factory had not had a lift for many years which they considered to be a disgraceful situation.

The Committee promised to compile a report (about its oversight visits) and send it to the relevant departments.

7. Challenges

The Committee found that some buildings were inaccessible by people with disabilities.

The factory management said one of the biggest challenges facing the factory was the severe shortage of finance from government.

There were insufficient funds, and suppliers were not being paid. All the administrative decisions that affect the factory are taken in Pretoria and not in the Western Cape. This causes delays and affects the process of payments. The organisation merely does the manufacturing, and the split between the administrative processes and the manufacturing processes makes it difficult to run the factory efficiently. The sustainability of the factory depends largely on the accounts being paid on time.

8. Recommendations

The Committee recommends that government reconsiders the funding of these SEFs as it is clear that funds were a serious challenge.

The Committee is of the view that some buildings were dilapidated and posed a health hazard, which needed immediate attention. Repairs to assist disabled employees, such as lifts, should be given priority.

Young people with disabilities need to be recruited so that they can benefit from the training and become skilled employees. This would necessitate adequate funding.

The Committee proposes a revision of the salary scales or a subsidised accommodation scheme for factory employees as some employees were paying almost two thirds of their salaries towards rent.

Report to be considered.

2. REPORT OF THE SELECT COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS ON THE HEARING ON THE FOURTH QUARTER EXPENDITURE ON THE SOCIAL SECTOR EXPANDED PUBLIC WORKS PROGRAMME INCENTIVE GRANT FOR PROVINCES, DATED 27 NOVEMBER 2012

1. Introduction

The Social Sector Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) Incentive Grant for provinces was first introduced in the 2010 Division of Revenue Act as the Expanded Public Works Programme Grant for the Social Sector. The Grant was aimed at subsidising non-profit organisations working in the home– and community-based care sector and the purpose was to fund the remuneration of previously unpaid volunteers in order to maximise job creation and skills development. The Grant framework allowed for a subsidy to non-profit organisations (NPOs) to be transferred via the provincial departments of Health and Social Development. In 2011, the Grant was restructured into an incentive grant, aimed at incentivising provincial social sector departments to increase employment in NPOs and to improve the reach and quality of NPO services.

1.1 Terms of reference

The Committee invited the Department of Public Works (DPW) and the National Treasury (NT) to a meeting on 22 May 2012 to make presentations on the provincial fourth quarter spending on the Social Sector Expanded Public Works Programme - Incentive Grant for Provinces. This followed an initial meeting on 14 February 2012, during which the DPW and NT made a presentation to the Committee on the purpose and implementation of the Grant.

In addition, the following provincial Members of the Executive Council (MECs) were invited to the meeting of 22 May 2012 to make presentations on their fourth quarter spending on the Grant:

Eastern Cape MEC for Social Development
Western Cape MEC for Education
Western Cape MEC for Health
Free State MEC for Health

During the meeting of 22 May 2012, the Committee noted certain discrepancies between the expenditure information presented by the National Treasury and the Department of Public Works. The two departments were requested to submit an accurate, consolidated expenditure report to the Committee. This report was received by the Committee on 18 September 2012.

2. Briefing by National Treasury

National Treasury reported that, based on past performance data, DPW used an incentive model to identify provincial departments that were eligible for the Grant. These departments then received an allocation from national government through the DPW. The allocation criteria were based on the payment of stipends for volunteers and wages for other community development workers at a minimum of R60 per day. National Treasury further indicated that provinces may use a portion of the funds to expand the programme to different social service benefit areas, like community sport development and community safety awareness. According to National Treasury, provinces were required to sign an incentive agreement with DPW to ensure that conditions were met and targets achieved. Provincial departments were also required to submit quarterly reports on performance.

National Treasury reported that a total of R200 358 million of Grant funds for the 2011/12 financial year had been allocated as follows:

Eastern Cape Department of Social Development: R5.07 million;
Free State Department of Health: R15.59 million;
Gauteng Department of Social Development: R15.07 million and Department of Health: R19.78 million;
KwaZulu-Natal Department of Social Development: R4.5 million and Department of Health: R25.77 million;
Limpopo Department of Social Development: R3.38 million and Department of Health: R24.95 million;
Mpumalanga Department of Health: R3.31 million, Department of Education: R9.9 million and Department of Safety: R0.2 million;
Northern Cape Department of Social Development: R5.66 million, Department of Health: R2.07 million and Department of Education: R6.16 million;
North West Department of Social Development: R10.96 million, Department of Health: R17.37 million and Department of Education: R13.89 million; and
Western Cape Department of Health: R8.66 million and Department of Education: R8.07 million.

National Treasury reported that it had noted the following challenges in provinces:

According to Treasury’s records, the Eastern Cape’s spending for 2011/12 was zero per cent. It was also noted that the Eastern Cape Department of Social Development had under-spent its overall budget by R18 million, particularly by under-spending on transfers.
The Free State Department of Health was paying beneficiaries R55 per day instead of the required R60 per day. National Treasury was awaiting feedback on engagements between the DPW and the province on this matter.
Gauteng was in the process of addressing payment backlogs to service providers and non-government organisations (NGOs). The provincial Department of Health and Social Development would be reconfigured into separate departments, which Treasury felt would assist with the administrative challenges experienced by the province.
The Mpumalanga Department of Education was slow in submitting reports to the DPW. National Treasury had met with Mpumalanga Provincial Treasury to address this issue.
The Western Cape was paying care-givers in an inconsistent manner – from R52 to R65 per day. DPW had been engaging with the Province on this matter and were still waiting on feedback.

National Treasury indicated that it had noted an acceleration of expenditure during the fourth quarter. This pointed to a lack of readiness at the start of the financial year by provinces and DPW. National Treasury was of the opinion that it was critical for DPW to adopt a strict approach to finalising agreements and business plans, in order to avoid the delays experienced in the 2011/12 financial year. Treasury further reported that the first scheduled payment of the Grant for the 2012/13 financial year was 25 May 2012. In terms of the Division of Revenue Act, these transfers could only be made if the business plans and agreements had been signed. Failure to conclude this process would lead to further delays in provincial transfers and expenditure. National Treasury reported that, at the time of the meeting, no business plans had been submitted.

3. Briefing by Department of Public Works

The Department of Public Works (DPW) reported that it had transferred a total amount of R199 684 million (i.e. 99.7 per cent) of the total allocation of R200 358 million by the end of the 2011/12 financial year. The expenditure by provinces was reported as follows:

Province	2011/12 allocation ‘000	Actual payments to provinces in 2011/12 ‘000	Provincial expenditure in 2011/12 ‘000	Expenditure as % of total available	Pre-Audited (over)-/under-spent
Eastern Cape	5 070	5 070	5 606	110.6%	(536)
Free State	15 586	15 586	11 481	73.3%	4 105
Gauteng	34 848	34 848	29 895	85.8%	4 953
KwaZulu-Natal	30 269	29 595	29 822	98.5%	447
Limpopo	28 332	28 332	26 210	91.4%	2 467
Mpumalanga	13 407	13 407	9 066	67.6%	4 341
Northern Cape	13 890	13 890	12 841	92.4%	1 049
North West	42 222	42 222	37 284	88.3%	4 938
Western Cape	16 734	16 734	13 400	60.6%	8 718
Total:	200 358	199 684	175 605	85.2%	30 482

DPW reported that the following challenges had impacted on the Grant performance and expenditure during the 2011/12 financial year:

Delayed payment of volunteers due to delayed project transfers by provinces or late finalisation of administration processes such as the signing of service level agreements. KwaZulu-Natal’s Department of Social Development and the Health departments of the Western Cape and Free State Provinces had been affected in this respect.
Delays in the submission of reports to DPW through provincial treasuries remained a problem.
Non-aligned reports between National Treasury and DPW.
Under-funding of the programme by provinces resulted in departments seeking to do EPWP only through the incentive grant.

DPW reported that they had put the following measures in place to deal with the above-mentioned challenges:

The social sector had developed a plan for technical support to provincial treasuries by the Independent Development Trust (IDT) to ensure compliant reporting, in line with section 32 of the Public Finance Management Act.
IDT would periodically deploy finance managers in sector departments to assist with the reconciliation and submission of grant expenditures of their programmes to their respective chief financial officers, in line with in-year monitoring reporting requirements.
A clear grant management plan had been developed to ensure efficient monitoring of the grant performance.
Capacity was available in the EPWP Monitoring and Evaluation Unit to execute the plan in conjunction with other national stakeholders.
Provincial EPWP social sector coordinators had work plans with clear indicators for managing the grant performance in the 2012/13 financial year.

4. Briefing by Eastern Cape Department of Social Development

The Eastern Cape Department of Social Development reported that they had received a total allocation of R5.07 million for the Social Sector EPWP Incentive Grant and R536 000 as a Social Infrastructure Grant to accelerate the expansion of job creation efforts. The Department indicated that they had managed to spend 100 per cent of the allocated funds. The Grant targeted 285 community caregivers providing services to 17 home community based care projects. In addition, 17 non-profit organisations (NPOs) received administrative support. The funds were used for the payment of stipends and administration costs.

The Department reported that it had achieved the objectives of the grant and had created a total of 367 work opportunities.

5. Briefing by Western Cape Department of Education

The Western Cape Education Department (WCED) reported that they had received a total allocation of R8.07 million for the Social Sector EPWP Incentive Grant. By the end of the 2011/12 financial year, they had spent 99.9 per cent, leaving a balance of R4 310. In terms of project achievement, the WCED indicated that they had identified 648 unemployed persons who would benefit from training as early childhood development (ECD) practitioner assistants, and eight unemployed matriculants who needed training and experience to improve their computing skills. The WCED further reported that the 648 ECD practitioner assistants had volunteered at ECD centres for four days a week and had attended a weekly training session at a Further Education and Training (FET) college on the fifth day. They had each received a monthly stipend of R1 200 for the duration of the course. This had been in line with the required R60 per day. The eight technical administrative support staff had each received a monthly stipend of R3 000 for the contract period of 12 months.

With regard to challenges, the WCED indicated that, even though the FET colleges had conducted thorough screening assessments, there had still been a total of 21 learners who had dropped out of the programme. The reasons for the drop-out had included ill health and pregnancy; some learners had found the stipend insufficient to cover all their expenses; some had been offered permanent employment elsewhere and some learners had been unable to cope with the expectations of the skills programme.

6. Briefing by Western Cape Department of Health

The Western Cape Department of Health (WCDH) reported that it had been allocated a total of R8.66 million for this Grant in the 2011/12 financial year. The WCDH further reported that it had split its allocation into two parts – R6.9 million (80 per cent) for stipends for the employment of an additional 438 community care workers (CCWs); and R1.7 million (20 per cent) for capacity building through the training of current CCWs in Community Rehabilitation, which had been identified as a need in the home-based care programme.

The WCDH reported that it had under-spent on this Grant by a total of R3.3 million by the end of the 2011/12 financial year. They attributed the R1.6 million under expenditure on the stipends portion to the following factors:

A higher attrition rate than normal had been experienced - 147 CCWs out of 3000 funded CCWs, thus 5 per cent.
Delays in appointments and therefore delays in expenditure.
Meetings with DPW, the Department of Social Development and the Department of Health to address and resolve the issue of non-compliance on the payment of stipends to CCWs had led to delays in implementation.
Many claims from the districts for the fourth quarter had been received late and could not be processed before the financial year end.

The WCDH further reported that the under-expenditure of R1.7 million on the capacity building portion had been due to delays in the procurement and awarding of a tender for a training service provider. The WCHD indicated that it had requested a roll-over of the R3.3 million from National Treasury, and that administrative processes would be reviewed to address the delay in the processing of claims.

7. Briefing by Free State Department of Health

The Free State Department of Health (FSDH) reported that a total of R15.58 million had been allocated for the 2011/12 financial year, and it had spent a total of R10.54 million or 68 per cent of the total allocation by the end of the financial year. The FSDH explained this under-expenditure as follows: The third tranche that had been due in October 2011 had been withheld by DPW due to non-compliance with the ministerial determination on wages of R60 per person per day. During a meeting between the FSDH and DPW, it had been resolved that this had been as a result of an oversight on the part of DPW. The business plan submitted by the FSDH in March 2011 and the signed memorandum of agreement had reflected the R55 wage per person per day. During this meeting it had also been resolved that the wage would be increased from R55 to R60. The FSDH indicated that they had used internal funds to pay stipends during the suspension to ensure the continuity of services. When the third and fourth tranches had eventually been received, it had been at the close of the financial year and the funds could not be journalised back to internal funding. However, the FSDH reported that it had reached its target of a total of 948 beneficiaries.

8. Findings

During interactions with the Department of Public Works, National Treasury, provincial health departments from the Western Cape and the Free State, the Eastern Cape Department of Social Development and the Western Cape Department of Education, the Committee made the following findings:

8.1 There were discrepancies between the provincial spending figures presented by National Treasury and those presented by the Department of Public Works during the meeting of 22 May 2012. They attributed this to the varying reporting structures in different provincial departments.

8.2 At the time of the meeting, three days before the first transfer of payments for this Grant was due, National Treasury had not received any business plans from provincial departments eligible for the Grant.

8.3 KwaZulu-Natal’s Department of Social Development and the Health departments of the Western Cape and Free State Provinces had experienced delayed payment of volunteers due to delayed project transfers by provinces or late finalisation of administration processes such as the signing of service level agreements.

8.4 The Western Cape and Free State Provinces were paying beneficiaries below the stipulated minimum of R60 per day - Free State was reportedly paying R55 while Western Cape was paying between R52 and R65.

9. Recommendations

After the interaction with the Department of Public Works, National Treasury, provincial health departments of the Western Cape and the Free State, the Eastern Cape Department of Social Development and the Western Cape Department of Education, the Select Committee on Appropriations recommends the following:

All reports on the Social Sector Extended Public Works Programme Incentive Grant from provincial departments should be signed off by the heads of department, and not the programme manager.

The Department of Public Works should ensure that all provincial departments managing projects funded by the Social Sector Extended Public Works Programme Incentive Grant are compliant with the grant framework regarding the amount of stipend to be paid, which is a minimum of R60 per day.

The Department of Public Works and National Treasury should investigate what punitive measures can be taken against the heads of departments that fail to submit business plans on time, as the failure to do so impacts negatively on communities that are reliant on the services provided by the programmes funded by this Grant. Furthermore this Grant funding directly promotes job creation and delays in the programmes that target job creation projects such as these is a major concern due to the growing unemployment rate in the country.

Report to be considered

3. REPORT OF THE SELECT COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS ON THE PROGRESS WITH THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT TURNAROUND STRATEGY, OPERATION CLEAN AUDIT BY 2014, AND THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE MUNICIPAL INFRASTRUCTURE SUPPORT AGENCY, DATED 27 NOVEMBER 2012

Introduction

The Committee invited the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) to a meeting on 29 August 2012, to make presentations on the following:

Local Government Turnaround Strategy;
Operation Clean Audit by 2014; and
Municipal Infrastructure Support Agency.

During the meeting referred to above the Committee decided not to continue with the engagement on the presentation on progress with Operation Clean Audit because it contained insufficient information. CoGTA was requested to prepare a more detailed report to present to the Committee at a later date.

During a follow-up meeting on 17 October 2012, a delegation from the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, led by the Director-General, presented a more detailed report on the progress with Operation Clean Audit by 2014, as requested by the Committee at the meeting of 29 August 2012.

2. Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs progress report on Local Government Turnaround Strategy

The Local Government Turnaround Strategy (LGTAS) had been approved by Cabinet in December 2009 and had been intended as the overarching strategy that included flagship projects such as Operation Clean Audit, Business-Adopt-a-Municipality, Revenue Enhancement as well as the Special Purpose Vehicle - now the Municipal Infrastructure Support Agency (MISA) - and Clean Cities /Clean Towns.

CoGTA indicated that as a result of restructuring in the Department there had been a state of paralysis for approximately 18 months from 2011 to the middle of 2012; with uncertainty on political and administrative levels. The original LGTAS team had also been disbanded in the beginning of 2011. However, CoGTA reported that due to the buy-in of the provinces and municipalities to the impetus of the LGTAS, some of them continued implementing some components of the strategy, like the establishment of provincial coordinating committees of OPCAs and the institutionalisation of LGTAS units in provinces.

With the arrival of the new Minister for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, there had been a renewed focus and emphasis on the acceleration of the LGTAS. The strategy had been revived with a refined focus on 108 targeted municipalities. These had been approved by MINMEC on 25 May 2012. The following priority areas, that would be critical in improving municipal audit outcomes, were identified:

Accelerating service delivery;
Enhancing good governance;
Promoting sound financial management;
Fighting corruption; and
Facilitating sustainable infrastructure development.

According to CoGTA, the LGTAS was being co-ordinated by a team of senior officials from three branches within CoGTA. The state of permanence of the team was being finalised. CoGTA branches were in the process of incorporating and mainstreaming the LGTAS into their Annual Performance Plans (APPs).

CoGTA identified the following key stakeholders for the roll-out of LGTAS:

National Departments of Energy, Water Affairs, Public Works, Economic Development, Human Settlements, Rural Development and Land Reform, and Environmental Affairs;
Heads of provincial CoGTA departments;
Provincial sector departments;
Provincial LGTAS coordinators;
Municipal Managers of district and local municipalities
CoGTA Technical Support Units;
CoGTA branch representatives;
South African Local Government Association (SALGA) National and Provincial Executive Officers; and
Municipal Infrastructure Support Agency (MISA) deployees.

3. Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs progress report on Operation Clean Audit by 2014

3.1 Vision, goal and purpose

CoGTA reported that the guiding vision of Operation Clean Audit by 2014 (OPCA), was that by 2014, all 278 municipalities would achieve unqualified audit opinions on their Annual Financial Statements. CoGTA further stated that their strategic goal was to provide assistance to all municipalities to achieve sustainable improvement of systems for maintaining quality financial and information management. They further reported that their strategic purpose was to address all issues raised by the Auditor-General and to reduce the vulnerability to risks in the municipal financial management and governance process through targeted interventions.

3.2 Objectives and performance

The first objective had been that between 2010 and 2011, no municipality would receive adverse and disclaimer audit opinions. This objective had not been achieved. According to preliminary results, 50 disclaimers and seven adverse audit opinions had occurred.

The second objective had been that 60 per cent of all municipalities would achieve unqualified audit opinions by 2012. This had not been achieved. According to preliminary results, 44.5 per cent of municipalities had achieved unqualified audit opinions for the 2010/11 financial year.

The final two objectives had been for at least 75 per cent of municipalities to achieve unqualified audit opinions by 2013; and for 100 per cent to achieve unqualified audit opinions by 2014. CoGTA conceded that these targets were unlikely to be achieved. They reported that, through combined effort and commitment, they believed that at least 70 per cent of municipalities would achieve clean audit opinions by 2014.

3.3 Alignment with LGTAS focus areas

CoGTA reported that from July to the end of August 2012, visits had been conducted to all provinces to discuss the provincial LGTAS action plans for the 108 identified municipalities. A report on the profile of the 108 municipalities in relation to the five LGTAS focus areas would be concluded by the end of November 2012.

3.4 Audit outcomes

CoGTA presented the progress report with regard to municipal audit outcomes from the 2008/09 to the 2010/11 financial years as follows:

Audit Opinion	2010/11	2009/10	2008/09
Clean	5%	2%	0,3%
Financially unqualified with findings	41%	43%	41%
Financially unqualified financial statements	46%	45%	42%
Qualified	20%	26%	17%
Adverse	5%	3%	4%
Disclaimer	23%	25%	37%
Audits not issued	6%	2%	0,3%
Total municipalities	278	278	278
AFS submission outstanding	3%	2%	0,3%
(Based on information as at 27 July 2012)

CoGTA reported that the above table showed an improvement in the municipalities that had received financially unqualified opinions without findings and those with findings from 42 to 46 per cent. They further pointed out that the number of municipalities that received a qualified opinion had fluctuated. In the two previous financial years, there had been no improvement in municipalities that had received adverse and disclaimer opinions.

3.5 Action plan

CoGTA reported that they had developed an action plan that clustered activities to be undertaken up to 2014 within the context of the following three critical areas identified from the Auditor-General’s report:

Leadership (political and administrative);
Governance; and
Financial management.

The action plan identified stakeholders responsible for particular actions in the drive to support municipalities to achieve better audit opinions. A Local Government MINMEC meeting had been convened in September 2012, to which municipalities that consistently achieved a clean audit; municipalities that consistently failed to submit Annual Financial Statements and municipalities that had shown significant improvement, had been invited. This had been in order for them to share with MINMEC what issues needed to be looked at, and for MINMEC to refine the action plan accordingly. From this engagement it had become clear that the key drivers for clean administration, leading to good financial management, included the following:

The leadership take ownership of key controls.
Audit recommendations are consistently implemented.
Governance structures (MPACs, finance portfolio committees, audit committees, internal audit units and risk management committees), are functional.
An action plan is developed and properly implemented.
There are proper financial management skills.
Record keeping is good.

At the same time, the following factors that negate the achievement of a clean audit had been identified:

Lack of ownership by political leadership and management.
Lack of financial management skills.
Repeated findings are not addressed properly.
Non-availability of critical staff during the audit process.
Non-functional governance structures.
1. Support to municipalities

CoGTA reported that they had already taken steps to support municipalities in the areas of governance and leadership, fighting corruption, and financial management.

Governance and leadership

According to CoGTA, they had supported the appointment of municipal managers and chief financial officers (CFOs). They reported that 219 out of 278 municipal manager posts and 278 CFO posts had been filled by the end of September 2012. In addition, draft regulations for municipal senior managers had been developed, governing the appointment and conditions of service of municipal managers and section 56 managers. These regulations had been tabled at the MINMEC of 16 September 2012 and consultations pursuant to the MINMEC decisions were being finalised.

CoGTA further reported that it had supported municipalities in developing and implementing recruitment and retention strategies. Work was being conducted in a pilot municipality, with the intention to roll it out to 69 municipalities. CoGTA had also supported municipalities to develop technical skills and in this regard, two human resources officials from 35 municipalities had attended a three day programme hosted by the Institute of Municipal Personnel Practitioners. In addition, CoGTA had partnered with the Department of Social Development to develop a programme for the 35 municipalities for IDP interventions.

CoGTA indicated that guidelines on the establishment of Municipal Public Accounts Committees (MPACs) had been put in place and they had also supported the establishment of MPACs. CoGTA also monitored governance structures such as Audit Committees and Internal Audit Units. They reported that, although 79 per cent of municipalities had established Internal Audit Units. CoGTA reported that these units may not meet the Office of the Accountant-General’s desirable maturity levels.

Fighting corruption

CoGTA reported that they continued to train municipal officials on ethics management and that the following district (DM) and local municipalities (LM) had been trained and were establishing ethics committees:

Cacadu DM ( Koega LM, Makana LM, Kougama LM, Camdeboo LM);
Alfred Nzo DM (Matatiele LM, Umzimvubu LM);
OR Tambo DM (Mhlontlo LM, Nyandeni LM, Ngquza Hill LM, King Sabata Dalindyebo LM); and
Overberg DM (Mosselbay LM).

Financial management

CoGTA reported that they had supported 39 municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal and 18 in the Northern Cape with credit control and debt collection policies. A programme had also been developed to roll this out to municipalities in other provinces. They further reported that they had strongly encouraged municipalities to develop and implement audit remedial action plans in a timely manner. According to CoGTA, 89 per cent of municipalities had developed audit remedial action plans by 20 July 2012. CoGTA indicated that provincial cooperative governance departments and treasuries would monitor the implementation of these plans.

4. Municipal Infrastructure Support Agency

4.1 Background

The acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Municipal Infrastructure Support Agency (MISA) reported to the Committee that MISA was one of the Local Government Turnaround Strategy (LGTAS) targets meant to introduce a turnaround mechanism in dealing with the provisioning, refurbishment and maintenance of municipal infrastructure. MISA had officially been proclaimed as a government component on 11 May 2012, with CoGTA as its principal department. Prior to this, CoGTA had piloted the implementation of MISA and its programmes through a unit within the Department called the Special Purpose Vehicle for Infrastructure Development Unit. The acting CEO further reported that MISA became the direct successor in responsibility to the support programme that the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) had been providing through the Siyenza Manje project. In 2011 government had taken a decision to unbundle Siyenza Manje, with the infrastructure component transferred to CoGTA and the financial management component transferred to National Treasury.

4.2 Strategic focus

The acting CEO reported that CoGTA had taken into account the lessons to be learned from the implementation of Siyenza Manje, identified in both the Siyenza Manje Evaluation Report and the submission by the Financial and Fiscal Commission to the Select Committee on Finance. In light of these, the following five key strategic focus areas had been identified:

Municipal Infrastructure Diagnosis

This was a scientific and in-depth assessment of the state of the municipal infrastructure required for the provision of water, sanitation, roads, electricity and refuse removal services.

Technical Support

This entailed providing specialised technical support to municipalities through the deployment of technical experts to develop master plans, feasibility studies, business plans, as well as the design and implementation of infrastructure projects.

Municipal Capacity Development

This involved the building and/or strengthening of the in-house capacity of municipalities to be able to develop, operate and maintain their infrastructure on their own in the medium to long term.

Sector capacity and skills development interventions

This referred to interventions designed to enhance the technical capacity of local government. These include skills development programmes such as bursaries, learnerships and internships for infrastructure development as well as partnerships with tertiary institutions and professional bodies.

Monitoring and Evaluation

This involved specialised technical experts undertaking the monitoring of the development, management and maintenance of the municipal infrastructure to ensure enhanced and sustainable delivery of municipal services.

Diagnosis and findings

The acting CEO reported that a total of 88 municipalities had been subjected to a diagnosis to evaluate their municipal infrastructure provisioning. These municipalities had been identified in conjunction with provincial governments using the following criteria as a basis for prioritisation:

High infrastructure and basic services backlogs;
Low technical capacity;
High vulnerability; and
Low economic base and/or inability to collect revenue.

The acting CEO reported that, although findings had differed from one municipality to the next, the following common findings had been identified:

Lack of appropriate skills in planning and technical units for infrastructure maintenance.
Absence of infrastructure master plans.
Overloaded infrastructure requiring refurbishment (especially waste water treatment plants).
Ageing infrastructure leading to service interruptions.
Serious challenges in supply chain management processes when procuring infrastructure projects as well as in contract management.
Lack of infrastructure maintenance (water, sanitation, roads, electricity, land fill sites).
Lack of bulk infrastructure (water, sanitation, roads, electricity, land fill sites).
Huge infrastructure backlogs.
Insufficient government funding and a need for MISA to support municipalities to mobilise additional private sector funding for infrastructure projects.
High vacancy rate in technical positions.

He indicated that MISA had learned the following lessons from the above findings:

There was a need for central and effective coordination of support in order for the programme to succeed.
Multi-year planning was a key instrument for infrastructure delivery.
MISA’s programmes must focus on the sustainability of the infrastructure and the municipality. All MISA’s interventions must recognise the central role of skills development and capacity building.
All MISA’s support programmes must have clear deliverables and milestones and there must be consequences for non-delivery.

4.4 Interim arrangements

The acting CEO reported that, apart from himself - who was a directly appointed employee of MISA - and two senior officials seconded from COGTA, MISA was staffed with short-term transferees and employees of the DBSA, whose contracts would end by the end of September 2012. Included in the DBSA transferees were 81 technical experts in the fields of engineering and planning. This situation would allow MISA to finalise its organisational development and policies. According to the acting CEO, full implementation was targeted for 7 September 2012. The 2012 Medium Term Expenditure Framework provided a total amount of R613 million for MISA, and was distributed as follows:

R197 million (2012/13);
R202 million (2013/14); and
R214 million (2014/15).

5. Findings

During interaction with the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs and the National Treasury the Select Committee on Appropriations made the following findings:

There is no capacity within provincial departments to implement the plan presented by CoGTA.

There is a need for CoGTA and MINMEC to jointly monitor the implementation of the action plan.

There is a need for a local government fiscal framework summit to clarify local government fiscal policy.

There is a long turnaround time to fill strategic positions in municipalities such as municipal managers and chief financial officers positions.

CoGTA has no clear strategy to deal with the lack of capacity within municipalities and provincial departments.

There is a need to analyse the correlation between the improved audit outcomes and failure to submit audited financial statements in time or not at all. While clean audit improved from 0.3% in 2008/09 to 5% in 2010/11, financially unqualified remain at 41% and financially qualified increased from 42% to 46%; the failure to submit audited financial statements incidences increased from 0.3% in 2008/09 to 3% in 2010/11 and outstanding audits increased from 0.3% in 2008/09 to 6% in 2010/11.

There is a need for CoGTA to specify the number of seconded officials to MISA and places where they are stationed.

CoGTA is silent on non-compliance with the MFMA which is a general cause of negative audit opinions in most municipalities.

CoGTA over-emphasised the establishment of certain structures such as municipal public accounts committees (MPACs) rather than their performance. Analysis of the facts do not show any positive correlation between the establishment of such structures and improved audit opinions and that casts doubt on the effectiveness of such structures.

The Departmental rapid response team that used to do such good work is no longer active.

There is a need to assess the viability of certain municipalities.

There is a need for the Committee to call all CoGTA MECs during the in-year monitoring of the plans by municipalities to address audit queries.

The majority of municipalities continue to rely on consultants.

The lack of progress in municipalities receiving disclaimer and adverse audit opinions casts doubt on the value for the money spent.
There are some duplications of support to municipalities by various stakeholders.

The target of clean audits for all municipalities by 2014 will not be achieved.

6. Recommendations

After interaction with the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs and the National Treasury, the Select Committee on Appropriations recommends the following:

6.1 The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs should conduct a skills audit in provincial departments to assess the extent of the lack of capacity within provincial departments.

6.2 The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs and MINMEC should develop a joint strategy to monitor the implementation of the action plan.

6.3 The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs should facilitate the planned local government fiscal framework summit to clarify the local government fiscal policy.

6.4 The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs should ensure that the turnaround time to appoint municipal managers and CFOs is minimised.

6.5 The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs should come up with a clear strategy to deal with the lack of capacity within municipalities and provincial departments.

6.6 The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs should ensure that failure to submit financial statements for audit is taken seriously.

6.7 The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs should provide the Committee, in writing, with the number of seconded officials in the Municipal Infrastructure Support Agency (MISA) and also the places they are located, within two months of the adoption of this Report by the NCOP.

6.8 The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs should ensure that steps are taken against failure to comply with applicable legislation since such incidences are the main causes of wasteful and fruitless expenditure and corrupt practices.

6.9 The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs should not only focus on compliance with the establishment of certain structures but also on their functionality as well as effective leadership.

6.10 The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs should revive the rapid response team that was established when Operation Clean Audit was introduced.

6.11 The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs should provide clarity on what constitutes viability so as to guide future municipal demarcations.

6.12 The Committee will in future invite the provincial CoGTA MECs during the in-year monitoring of municipalities’ compliance with audit queries.

6.13 The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs should develop a strategy that will minimise the use of consultants by municipalities and where consultants are used, there is transfer of skills.

6.14 The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs should prioritise municipalities with disclaimer and adverse audit opinions for intervention.

6.15 The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs should ensure that there is proper coordination of all the interventions in municipalities to avoid any duplication of support.

6.16 Due to the consistent criticism by the Auditor-General about the poor quality of Annual Financial Statements submitted by municipalities for auditing, the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs should re-evaluate the 2014 Operation Clean Audit target because it is not possible to achieve.

Report to be considered.

MONDAY, 3 DECEMBER 2012

TABLINGS

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces

1. The Speaker and the Chairperson

(a) Report of the Electoral Commission on the 2011 Municipal Elections [RP 123-2012].

National Council of Provinces

1. The Chairperson

The President of the Republic submitted the following letter dated 22 November 2012 to the Chairperson: National Council of Provinces, informing Members of the Council of the employment of the South African National Defence Force for service in co-operation with the South African Police Service for the purpose of prevention and combating of crime and maintenance and preservation of law and order in the Marikana area, North West Province.

PRINTER PLEASE INSERT T121203E-INSERT.PDF – PAGE 5142

(b) Submission of a petition from Mr Andrew Sehume of Midrand, Gauteng regarding the alleged violations of his human rights.

Referred to the Select Committee on Petitions and Members’ Legislative Proposals for consideration and report.

(c) Submission of a petition from Ms Salome Barnes of King Williams Town, Eastern Cape, regarding the alleged illegal occupation of her farm.

Referred to the Select Committee on Petitions and Members’ Legislative Proposals for consideration and report.

COMMITTEE REPORTS

National Council of Provinces

THE FOLLOWING REPORT REPLACES THE REPORT OF THE SELECT COMMITTEE ON CO-OPERATIVE COVERNANCE AND TRADITIONAL AFFAIRS PUBLISHED IN ATC NO. 156, DATED 20 NOVEMBER 2012, PAGE 4771

1. REPORT OF THE SELECT COMMITTEE ON CO-OPERATIVE GOVERNANCE AND TRADITIONAL AFFAIRS ON CONSIDERATION OF THE TERMINATION OF INTERVENTION IN OKHAHLAMBA LOCAL MUNICIPALITY– DATED 20 NOVEMBER 2012

The Select Committee on Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs, having considered the directives of the National Council of Provinces (NCOP), to consider and report on the notices of termination of intervention in Okhahlamba Local Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal Province, reports as follows:

1. Introduction and Background

On 24 November 2009, the Provincial Executive Council of KwaZulu-Natal Province resolved to intervene at Okhahlamba Local Municipality in terms of section 139(1)(b) of the Constitution as a result of failures to fulfill various executive obligations. The MEC for Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) was authorized by the Provincial Executive to appoint Administrators at the aforementioned municipalities. The Administrators were appointed to undertake the functions in terms of section 51 of the Local Government: Municipal Systems Act (Act 32 of 2000), to establish and organize the administration in a manner that would enable the municipalities to achieve the objects of local government, as set out in section 152 of the Constitution.

1.2 On 18 July 2012, the Executive Council resolved to terminate the intervention at Okhahlamba Local Municipality. On 30 August 2012, the Office of the Chairperson of NCOP referred the notices of termination of intervention Okhahlamba to the Select Committee on Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs for consideration and reporting in terms of NCOP Rule 101.

2. Reasons for Intervention in Okhahlamba Local Municipality

2.1 The main issues identified by the Provincial Executive to intervene in the affairs of Okhahlamba Local Municipality related to the following matters:

The Municipality did not have a functional management team which contributed to the Municipality’s dysfunctional state.
The Auditor-General’s reports for the 2004/5, 2005/6, 2006/7 and the 2007/8 financial years, indicated that there were serious deficiencies in the management systems and other accounting and financial controls, and the Auditor-General issued disclaimed audit opinions in respect of two financial years, and an adverse opinion in respect of the last year.
The annual report for the 2007/8 financial year did not comply with section 121 of the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA), as no performance report evaluating the performance of the Municipality or Section 57 employees was attached.
The Council did not table or submit an oversight report as required in terms of section 129 of the MFMA. The Council did not have an established internal audit unit and audit committee as required in terms of sections 165 and 166 of the MFMA.
The Municipality experienced serious financial problems, and this is evident from the poor cash flow, and posted a deficit of R17 963 025.00 (un-audited) in the 2008/9 financial year. The accumulated deficit as at June 2009, totaled R24 517 042.00. The grant funding allocated for Housing was utilized irregularly to finance the operations of the Municipality. Unspent conditional grants to the sum of R20 196 551.00 were not cashed backed.
As reflected in the 2008/9 annual financial statements, general expenses increased from R11 306 725.00 in the 2006/7 financial year, to R57 294 633.00 in the 2008/9 financial year, resulting in a percentage increase of 407%. The Municipality failed to make payments to its creditors as and when it was due.

3. Progress of Intervention in Okhahlamba Local Municipality

In terms of progress achieved to date on the enhancement of revenue collection, the verification and assessment of the existing valuation roll and the compilation of the supplementary valuation roll for 2011/12 was done and completed in April 2011, with very few objections received, and were all subsequently resolved. For continuous maintenance of the valuation roll, a service provider has been retained by the Municipality and an advert for a service provider to assist with the new process was already out, for the 2013/14 financial year assessments.

The debt book of over R18 million in the financial year 2010/11 was drastically reduced to the extent of at least 50%. Equally, the collection rate had increased from the 36% collection rate recorded during the financial 2010/ 2011 to 61,44% accumulatively, as at 30 April 2012 against the annual target is 75%. The strict expenditure management measures resulted in the Municipality having a total R81 million in cash reserves, including all cash-backed conditional grants totaling just over R40 million. This simply means that the Municipality was now able to accurately report on a monthly basis on revenue, expenditure, cash flow, debt recovery and creditors.

All Council statutory, administrative and functional structures have been established and are all operational. Therein included is a fully functional audit committee and internal audit unit as well as IDP, Budgeting and PMS procedures. Whilst the Municipality took a resolution binding itself to the achievement of Clean Audit by 2013/14, it is highly likely that all queries raised by the Auditor-General during the last financial year may be resolved by this financial year, which may result in the Municipality obtaining a clean audit in 2011/2012.

The Municipality has compiled an Infrastructure Maintenance Plan which is being implemented since June 2012, where all plant and equipment is sent to each ward for a period of 10 days to ensure that all existing infrastructure is maintained. The Municipality has also experienced difficulty in spending grants relating to MIG-funded and Small-Town Development-funded projects during the period of between October 2011 and March 2012, with the assistance from Cogta where a dedicated project manager was sourced. All of these projects were now moving, and were fairly within the acceptable expenditure levels. Furthermore, the electrification project funding which was nearly lost due to non-expenditure and reporting, has now been re-secured with the Implementing Agent already appointed.

It was reported that all senior positions are filled, to the exception of a Director for Corporate Services, and based on the investigations by the PWC, irregular payments have been identified and criminal cases have been instituted. The main reason for the extension of the intervention on 13 December 2011 was the fact that the Municipality lacked a senior management team to sustain the progress and to implement any outstanding intervention priorities and sustain progress made. However, based on the fact that the senior positions were filled and that there was considerable progress in respect of the intervention priorities, the intervention was terminated on 13 December 2012.

4. Committee Observations

4.1 The Committee is of the opinion that, for the termination of intervention in Okhahlamba Local Municipality to be efficient and effective, there has to be a committed political and administrative leadership with sound administrative and management processes in place.

5. Committee Recommendations

5.1 The Select Committee on Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs recommends as follows:

5.1.1 The National Council of Provinces approves the termination of intervention in Okhahlamba Local Municipality in terms of section 139(1)(b) of the Constitution.

Report to be considered.

THE FOLLOWING REPORT REPLACES THE REPORT OF THE SELECT COMMITTEE ON CO-OPERATIVE COVERNANCE AND TRADITIONAL AFFAIRS PUBLISHED IN ATC NO. 156, DATED 20 NOVEMBER 2012, PAGE 4771

2. REPORT OF THE SELECT COMMITTEE ON CO-OPERATIVE GOVERNANCE AND TRADITIONAL AFFAIRS ON CONSIDERATION OF EXTENSION OF INTERVENTION IN INDAKA LOCAL MUNICIPALITY – DATED 20 NOVEMBER 2012

The Select Committee on Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs, having considered the directives of the National Council of Provinces (NCOP), to consider and report on the notice of extension of intervention in Indaka Local Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal Province, reports as follows:

1. Introduction and Background

On 24 November 2009, the Provincial Executive Council of KwaZulu-Natal Province resolved to intervene at Indaka Local Municipalities in terms of section 139(1)(b) of the Constitution as a result of failures to fulfill various executive obligations. The MEC for Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) was authorized by the Provincial Executive to appoint Administrators at the aforementioned municipalities. The Administrators were appointed to undertake the functions in terms of section 51 of the Local Government: Municipal Systems Act (Act 32 of 2000), to establish and organize the administration in a manner that would enable the municipalities to achieve the objects of local government, as set out in section 152 of the Constitution.

1.2 On 18 July 2012, the Executive Council resolved to terminate the intervention at Okhahlamba Local Municipality, and to extend the intervention at Indaka Local Municipality for a period of 6 months, ending 31 December 2012. On 30 August 2012, the Office of the Chairperson of NCOP referred the notices of termination of intervention Okhahlamba and extension in Indaka to the Select Committee on Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs for consideration and reporting in terms of NCOP Rule 101.

2. Reasons for Intervention at Indaka Local Municipality

2.1 In the year ended in June 2011, the Municipality incurred unauthorised expenditure of R4.644 millions and irregular expenditure of R22.500 millions; totalling R27.2 million.

Furthermore, in January 2012, the Mid-Year Review established a number of irregular, unauthorised and fruitless and wasteful expenditure which were reported to the Council, as part of the Mid-Year Review report. The copy of the report was forwarded to the Department as part of the monthly reporting. The Administrator advised the then Acting Municipal Manager (Mr. Maphanga) to report the said expenditures in terms of section 62 of MFMA and section 32(4) of the MFMA, to the MEC responsible for Local Government in the Province and the Office of the Auditor-General. The Administrator reported that such irregular expenditures were not reported to the MEC and the Auditor-General.

2.2 There have been various irregular financial activities resulting in an increase in unauthorized, irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure, which continued under the stewardship of the Administrator, without his knowledge. This reflected defiance by the administrative and political leadership of the Municipality and undermined good governance. In addition, the administrative leadership of the Municipality is still unstable with key senior positions of the CFO and Director for Technical Services remaining vacant. The Mayor and Council are still unable to exercise effective political oversight and strong leadership to promote financial prudence and good governance. Consequently, the intervention was extended at the Indaka Municipality.

3. Progress of Intervention in Indaka Local Municipality

3.1 The status on financial management was fair. The secondment of the Financial Expert from the Department of Cogta has had a major positive effect on the implementation of the Recovery Plan on financial management. The Expert together with the Administrator was in the process of reconstructing the financial records of Indaka, going as far back as 2009/10 on certain transactions to date. In addition, various financial irregularities had been reported and the intention of the Administrator was to issue civil summons to recover all the irregular and fruitless expenditure from the former Municipal Manager and affected Councillors.

3.2 The majority of priorities in respect of governance as identified in the recovery plan have been met. The Internal Auditor was effective, but was stifled by the management’s failure to either respond to the audit findings or failure to implement the recommendations. It appears that there is poor leadership in this Municipality, although all the necessary policy frameworks were in place. The problem, however, was a lack of implementation.

3.3. According to the Administrator’s assessment, the Council’s oversight and performance management and reporting, remain a concern and much work is yet to be done, despite efforts being made by the Administrator in this regard.

4. Committee Observations

4.1 The secondment of the Financial Expert from the Department of Cogta has had a major positive effect on the implementation of the Recovery Plan on financial management at Indaka Local Municipality.

4.2 Various financial irregularities had been reported in Indaka, and the Committee welcomes the intention of the Administrator to issue civil summons to recover all the irregular and fruitless expenditure from the former Municipal Manager and affected Councillors.

4.3 In addition to the consideration of the extension of intervention in Indaka Local Municipality, the administrative leadership of the Municipality is still unstable with key senior positions of the CFO and Director for Technical Services remaining vacant.

5. Committee Recommendations

5.1 The Select Committee on Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs recommends as follows:

5.1.1 The National Council of Provinces approves the extension of intervention in terms of section 139(1)(b) of the Constitution at Indaka Local Municipality for a period of six months, after the adoption of this report by the Council.

Report to be considered.

TUESDAY, 4 DECEMBER 2012

ANNOUNCEMENTS

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces

The Speaker and the Chairperson

1. Bills passed by Houses – to be submitted to President for assent

Bills passed by National Council of Provinces on 4 December 2012:

National Health Amendment Bill [B 24D – 2011] (National Assembly – sec 76).

Higher Education and Training Laws Amendment Bill [B 23B – 2012] (National Assembly – sec 75).

Repeal of the Black Administration Act and Amendment of Certain Laws Amendment Bill [B 40 – 2012] (National Assembly – sec 75).

COMMITTEE REPORTS

National Council of Provinces

1. Report of the Select Committee on Education and Recreation on the Further Education and Training Colleges Amendment Bill [B 24B – 2012] (National Assembly – sec 76), dated 04 December 2012.

The Select Committee on Education and Recreation, having considered the subject of the Further Education and Training Colleges Amendment Bill [B 24B – 2012] (National Assembly – sec 76), referred to it and classified by the Joint Tagging Mechanism as a section 76 Bill, reports the Bill without amendment.

Report to be considered

Audio

No related

Documents

NCOP: Unrevised hansard

Hansard: NCOP: Unrevised hansard

House: National Council of Provinces

Date of Meeting: 04 Dec 2012

Summary

Minutes

Audio

Documents

Bills

What's wrong with this page?