Hansard: NA: Mini-plenary 1
House: National Assembly
Date of Meeting: 17 May 2022
Summary
No summary available.
Minutes
UNREVISED HANSARD
MINI PLENARY - NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
TUESDAY, 17 MAY 2022
VOTE NO 4 – GCIS
Watch: Mini-plenary
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PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY MINI-PLENARY 1 – VIRTUAL
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Members of the mini-plenary session met on the virtual platform at 10:02. Acting Chairperson Mr M G Mahlaule took the Chair and
requested members to observe a moment of silence for prayer or meditation.
The Chairperson announced that the virtual mini-plenary sitting constituted a meeting of the National Assembly.
APPROPRIATION BILL
Debate on Vote No 4 – Government Communications and Information System:
The MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: Hon Chairperson of this Mini
Plenary, ... Am I audible?
The ACTING CHAIRPERSON (Mr M G Mahlaule): Yes, you are!
The MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: Deputy Minister in the Presidency, Ms Pinky Kekana, Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Communication, hon Boyce Maneli, members of the Portfolio Committee on Communication, hon members, Director- General of GCIS, Ms Phumla Williams, members of the management of GCIS, Chairperson, we are honoured to be presenting this Budget Vote of the Government Communication and Information System, GCIS, since my appointment in this job.
I want to dedicate this Budget Vote to the memory of the nearly 500 compatriots we lost in the recent natural disaster in KwaZulu-Natal. I also dedicate this Budget Vote to those South Africans and international partners who came to the assistance of our people who were affected by the disaster in so many unfortunate ways.
This dedication is borne out of our appreciation that the provision of information to the nation and to our partners globally - and our engagement with stakeholders at home and abroad - is about touching and transforming lives and our economic fortunes for the better.
Just a few weeks ago, I was deeply touched by the visit undertaken by our President, some of my colleagues in Cabinet and provincial and municipal leadership to flood-affected communities in KwaZulu-Natal.
The ACTING CHAIRPERSON (Mr M G Mahlaule): Hon Minister, you are muted. And hon McGluwa, you are the one causing disturbances in a meeting. Can you please mute your microphone? Continue, hon Minister!
The MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: On that visit, we shared heartrending moments, sympathising with bereaved and affected families. From all walks of life, backgrounds and political persuasion, citizens, businesses and partners in the rescue and recovery efforts had questions that needed answering. These were questions about: How people could access relief and support services; where do we report missing persons; how do we find out who is searching for our relatives; how will we find out if missing people are found; who can help us with food ... [Phone rings.] ... or accommodation – I beg your pardon, Chair; will government provide assistance with funerals; and will other schools take in learners from schools that are damaged?
These basic questions of survival and the necessities of life brought into sharp focus the responsibility that rests on the Government Communication and Information System as the centre of public communications in government. This is also a collective responsibility that is shared by all clusters, departments and entities that make up the government communication system.
The disaster in KwaZulu-Natal reminds us that the effective dissemination of information based on engagement with communities and social partners is a key contribution towards healing psychosocial and physical scars, and restoring a decimated landscape. This hour of difficulty also reminds us that effective communication has the ability to unlock the very real power of our national treasure of ubuntu, and to open the hearts and pockets of South Africans who want to reach out to people in distress.
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Tragically, the floods of destruction in KwaZulu-Natal
followed waves of Covid-19 infections that claimed many lives
and livelihoods, but which also fostered resilience,
compliance and creativity in our nation.
Hon members, what I have outlined is part of the backdrop
against which we are tabling GCIS’s 2022-23 Budget Vote,
today. The Government Communication and Information System has
been allocated R719,9 million for the 2022-23 financial year.
This allocation reflects baseline reductions of R37,5 million
in 2022-23; R5 million in 2023-24; and a baseline increase of
R31,9 million in 2024-25.
The baseline reductions can be attributed to the fact that
there is no additional allocation for the Covid-19 Vaccine
Roll-out Campaign, compared to 2020-21 and 2021-22 financial
years. Over the next three-year MTEF period, 2022-23 to 2024-
25, GCIS spending plan amounts to R2,182 billion which is
spread as follows: In 2022-23 - R719,9 million; in 2023-24 -
R714,9 million; and in 2024-25 - R746,8 million.
The department’s current budget of R719,9 million for the
2022-23 financial year is allocated as follows: Operating
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budget of R461,8 million consumes 64,2% of the budget
allocation; an operating budget caters for compensation of
employees to the value of R282,1 million, for funded
establishment of 498 permanent positions and goods and
services to the value of R179,7 million; transfers and
subsidies of R255 million consumes 35,4% of the entire GCIS
budget allocation; included in the transfers and subsidies
allocation is R36,822 million allocation for the Media
Development and Diversity Agency, MDDA; and R218,122 million
allocation for Brand South Africa, Brand SA.
The capital budget of R3,1 million consumes 0,4% of the budget
allocation. These funds are set aside for the purchase of
capital assets that will enhance the smooth operations of the
department as well as improve service delivery mechanisms. The
funding provided to Brand SA and the Media Development and
Diversity Agency will allow these two important entities to
continue their work in support of the President’s investment
drive, our nation brand, ... social cohesion and to ensure a
vibrant and sustainable community media sector.
The funding provided to the GCIS over the three-year Medium-
Term Expenditure Framework period, MTEF period, 2022-23 to
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2024-25, will allow us to carry out the constitutionally
mandated task of ensuring that all citizens and communities
have access to information.
The ACTING CHAIRPERSON (Mr M G Mahlaule): Hon Minister!
The MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: Chair!
The ACTING CHAIRPERSON (Mr M G Mahlaule): My apologies! There
is a small button on the side of your phone that will allow
you phone to be on silent. It is causing some disruptions.
Thank you so much. You may proceed!
The MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: Chair, I have just switched it
off. Thank you for that intervention, Chair. The Deputy
Minister, Pinky Kekana, will give a full account of the work
of these two entities, however, I want to highlight a few
important undertakings by the MDDA and Brand SA. During the
2021-22 financial year, the inaugural Marketing, Advertising
and Communication- B-BBEE Sector Council was established. The
main function of council is to ensure that transformation in
the media, advertising and communications sector, including
JSE-listed companies, is promoted, monitored and reported on.
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Furthermore, in the 2021-2022 financial year, GCIS developed a
Draft Media Development and Diversity Amendment Bill which is
expected to be finalised in the outer financial year. During
the 2022-23 financial year, working with the sector, the GCIS
will facilitate the development of the Media Transformation
and Diversity Sector Code. Brand SA continues to build our
nation brand and to market South Africa internationally.
Work continues to leverage on the African Continental Free
Trade Area, AFCFTA, platform to ensure that South Africa and
the rest of the continent can build a strong African
reputation brand. While existing initiatives such as Play Your
Part are being expanded to focus on international audiences.
The GCIS is keenly aware of the constraints on the fiscus that
affect all components of government and we nurture the hope
that economic reconstruction and recovery will in the
foreseeable future place more resources at our disposal.
While we will not abandon our hope of a brighter budget, we
are forced to acknowledge that after years of doing more with
less, we are approaching the precipice of doing less with
less. We are therefore in a position where we do need to be
strategically selective in what we choose to focus on, without
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compromising the nation’s right to information. And, we need
to do so without stemming the flow of information to
neighbours and partners on our continent and around the world.
The GCIS’s content focus is built around the priorities
President Ramaphosa set out in the 2022 State of the Nation
Address, namely: Overcoming the Covid-19 pandemic; a massive
rollout of infrastructure; a substantial increase in local
production; an employment stimulus to create jobs and support
livelihoods; and the rapid expansion of our energy generation
capacity.
To this we have added the shameful and tragic pandemic of
gender-based violence which, in the past few days, has again
visited horrific violence and death on families, including the
family of a former Member of this House, Mr Godrich Gardee. I
trust, hon members, that all of us are united in offering our
condolences to the Gardee family; as well as families just a
few kilometres away from Parliament on the Cape Flats; and
further afield in the Northern Cape who have been struck by
this social disaster.
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Hon Chairperson of the session, the focal areas I have
highlighted call for communication that is credible,
compelling and competitive in the sense that our
communications flow beyond our national boundaries into a
global marketplace.
We will deepen the symmetry between proactive communications
that will build the nation’s trust and pride in what
government and our country is achieving, and communications
that will particularly bring opportunities and hope to South
Africa’s 12 million unemployed people.
We will deepen regular engagement with the nation through
media and through direct interaction to demonstrate that we
are a government of our word and we are a government in
partnership with all sectors of society. This is the social
compact to which the President refers.
Our content and form of presentation fights for eyeballs,
airtime, readership, viewership and followings around our
country, around our continent and around the world. This means
we have to respond to change and we need to be ambitious
enough to set trends and practices that others could follow in
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the spirit of contributing, through communications, to a
better Africa and a better world.
South Africa, as a country, and our President, as a leader,
are significant and highly respected players in global
affairs, and our communications must project and respect this
reality. The much-changed communication environment in the
past two years has necessitated that GCIS fast-track the
upskilling of the workforce to align the organisation to the
occupational demands associated with the Fourth Industrial
Revolution, 4IR.
It also required that Information and Communications
Technology, ICT, systems had to be upgraded to provide the
capacity for regular virtual/webinar meetings using various
platforms. It is self-evident that the numerous virtual
platforms and social media platforms used by GCIS in this
period will have to be maintained or further increased into
the future. This will go hand in hand with stepped-up face-to-
face engagement. A number of Presidential outreach izimbizo
are planned for this year, and GCIS will continue to play a
key supporting role in this regard.
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Hon members, in the coming period, GCIS will continue actively
building on our many partnerships and collaborations to
support our country’s efforts to vaccinate over 70% of the
target population. We will also continue to drive the message
that vaccines are effective in preventing serious illness,
hospitalisation and death, and they remain our quickest path
to normality. GCIS will also continue to play a pivotal role
in proactive campaigns such as KeReady and Vooma Vaccination
Weekends, which have succeeded in driving higher vaccination
numbers, especially amongst younger people.
On 9 December 2021, I joined my colleagues at the GCIS on a
picket commemorating International Anti-Corruption Day. During
this event we spoke on the importance of whistle blowers in
the fight against corruption. Many of the worrying revelations
at the Zondo Commission of Inquiry were only brought to light
because citizens stepped forward and told their stories.
As government, we know that there have been many occasions
where we have fallen short. Public trust has been eroded and
people are rightly sceptical at times. As a collective, we
have vowed to do better and we must continue to do so.
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Corruption threatens to eat at the very soul of our young
democracy, and it has to end.
It is therefore heartening that government has made huge
strides with a number of successful investigations by the SIU,
as well as the forfeiture of assets. GCIS supported the anti-
corruption drive by profiling our various anti-corruption
initiatives and programmes on our suite of platforms, across
media and social media, public engagements, and through
comprehensive messaging.
The overall thrust has been to highlight positive
interventions while also calling on the public to join the
fight. Active citizens are the bedrock of any democracy and
are key to greater social cohesion and nation building.
I believe our key task in this period is to ensure that no
South African is left behind, in line with the President’s
call to action in this year’s State of the Nation Address. Our
communication must touch and change lives, while also being
relevant and easily understood. We dare not rest on our
laurels by believing that what worked today will still be
relevant tomorrow.
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We cannot allow a new divide to be created between those with
access to resources and technology and those without. Our
communication must therefore be a mixture of the old and the
new. We must blend the best of both worlds and find ways to
reach people where they live in a language or medium they
understand.
We will deploy our tried, trusted and necessary direct
engagement methods of imbizo, activations, outreach
activities, community dialogues and loud hailing. Similarly,
Vuk’uzenzele newspaper, which is distributed once a month in
hard copy, with 850 000 copies per edition since October 2021
and published twice a month online, is steadily changing
lives.
The media sector as a whole has walked with GCIS and
government every step of the way during these past two years.
They have covered every angle of the pandemic and have been
instrumental in supporting the call to vaccinate. They have
been our partners in fighting vaccine hesitancy, dispelling
vaccine myths and have tackled fake news head on.
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GCIS has worked closely with our partners in the media on a
daily basis either through media conferences, engagements,
sharing of online content, webinars and the bi-weekly Cabinet
media briefings and statements. We intend to build on these
relationships to ensure an informed, educated and ultimately
active citizenry.
Honourable members, a close companion on our journey of
reaching out to the nation and the world is the esteemed
Portfolio Committee on Communications. This is a committee we
respect deeply as the elected representatives of our nation.
It is a committee we respect for its commitment to the
integrity and efficiency of government communications.
It is a committee we respect for its firm exercise of
oversight and its creative exercise of making proposals that
aid us in moving government communications forward. It is a
committee that is tough in its critique and generous in its
appreciation of the work we do.
We thank the chair and members from all parties for their
support and guidance and we look forward to another year of
partnership in the service of the nation – robust and frank
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about the future of our country. I assure the committee that
its commitment will be reciprocated by that of my colleagues
at the GCIS, who will ensure that no one is left behind as we
talk to and with South Africans. It is an honour for me to
table the GCIS Budget Vote for 2022-23. I thank you, Chair.
Mr B M MANELI: Hon House Chairperson, hon members, hon
Ministers and Deputy Ministers, fellow South Africans, let me
from the outset state that I rise on behalf of the ANC to
support Budget Vote 4 - Government Communications and
Information Systems. This debate takes place in the month
dedicated to the continent of Africa every year with 25 May as
the most important highlight of the month.
Let us, as Africans, use this month not only to remember the
formation of the Organization of African Unity now the African
Union or the wars and instability in some countries on the
continent. But use this as an opportunity to communicate the
achievements and further the implementable plans to take
Africa and its people progressively to new heights. This
brings to the fore the importance of the Department of
Government Communications and Information Systems in factually
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reporting on what the African governments do on behalf of the
people who installed them.
Fellow South Africans, in the context of South Africa, it is
always important to remind ourselves that the Constitution of
the Republic of Africa, adopted in 1996, as the supreme law of
the country, directs the mandate of the Department of
Government Communications and Information Systems. Section 195
(g) of the Constitution directs that the public should be
provided with information that is timely, accurate, and
importantly, accessible as a way of ensuring transparency. It
is against this constitutional mandate that in 1998, the SA
Communications Services, a perceived former apartheid
government propaganda machinery was dissolved and the
Government Communications and Information Systems Department
was established by the Cabinet.
This was largely based on recommendations contained in the
report of the Task Group on Government Communications, known
as Comtask. Therefore, the department is responsible for
providing strategic leadership and coordinating a government
communication and information system that ensures the public
is informed and has access to government information,
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programmes, and policies that benefit them. The Media
Development and Diversity Agency, MDDA, an entity of this
department established in terms of the Media Development and
Diversity Agency Act of 2002, strengthens the need for the
government and the public to communicate by ensuring the
plurality of views through community broadcasting and print
media. The Media Development and Diversity Agency, MDDA, makes
grants available to deserving applicants as a way of ensuring
the lack of resources is not the reason for community media
not to give life to the spirit and intent of the Media
Development and Diversity Agency Act. In his 54th national
conference, the ANC, amongst others, resolved the following
with regards to government communication. One, is that
government communications must be improved, coherent and
centralised through the Department of Government
Communications and Information Systems; government
communicators, including spokespersons, must comply with
government policy on communications and continues.
The Department of Government Communications and Information
Systems should play a central role in government communication
and must be adequately capacitated to achieve this; more
emphasis should be placed on the co-ordination role of the
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Department of Government Communications and Information
Systems to ensure coherent messaging Two, that existing co-
ordination mechanisms such as the Government Communication
Forum should be strengthened. There is a need to review the
location of the Department of Government Communications and
Information Systems in the Presidency, as a way to give it the
necessary authority to oversee and co-ordinate government
communications. Three, the imbizo concept needs to be
strengthened to ensure that it achieves its purpose, which is
unmediated and direct communications with the people. More
creative ways are needed to enable and achieve this. In giving
meaning to these resolutions, Budget Vote 4 allocates the
department R719,9 million in 2022-2023, R714,9 million in
2023-2024 and R746,8 million in 2024-2025, which includes
transfers to public entities Brand South Africa, BSA and the
MDDA. In terms of programmes, the department has allocated 75%
of the budget to the programme of content processing,
dissemination, governmental co-ordination and stakeholder
management, and 25% to the programme of the administration.
Fellow South Africans, the department's track record in
spending allocated resources in line with approved priorities,
inspires confidence, as demonstrated in the previous financial
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years. His Excellency President, Cyril Ramaphosa’s February
2021 state of the nation address, set out the key government
priorities which centred, at the time; on defeating the COVID-
19 pandemic, promoting economic reconstruction and recovery;
building a capable state and combating corruption. In
addition, the fight against gender-based violence and femicide
should remain a top priority. This informed the Government
Communications and Information Systems Department’s co-
ordination of government-wide communication at the time. The
department was also allocated R50 billion in the 2021-2022
financial year to drive a centralised COVID-19 vaccination
roll-out campaign. Through this allocation, communication
activities raised across the following areas from Brand SA
2021 to date; Educating and reassuring the public around the
roll-out of COVID-19 vaccines during the early phases of the
vaccination programme; Combating vaccine hesitancy and
disinformation; profiling the President's globally important
role as an AU COVID-19 champion; Communication support to the
Deputy President as chair of the Inter-Ministerial Committee,
IMC, on Vaccines; Communication support to the National
Coronavirus Command Council and the President's Co-ordinating
Council, PCC, and special sessions of the Cabinet devoted to
COVID-19 et cetera.
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This was also demonstrated during the hard lockdown periods
when the message was focused on saving the lives of South
Africans. The department did not only ensure a reliable single
message from the government, but it also ensured that a clean
audit record is kept even with the emergency measures imposed
by the State of Disaster. We appreciate that the reliable
message was not without destructive fake news. However, the
department, working with all communications stakeholders,
including social media platforms, was able to rebut the fake
news as it occurred. Whilst noting with appreciation that
technology advancement as content processing and
dissemination, thereby making information easily accessible.
South Africa remains a country with fault lines of poverty,
unemployment and inequality, owing to many years of apartheid
national oppression characterised by race, gender, and class.
Almost three decades since the advent of democracy, there are
areas that have not yet enjoyed the benefits of connectivity
brought about by the information age due to limited or no
access to mainstream information platforms, especially those
controlled by the private sector. The constitutional
obligation of public service transparency brought about by
providing the public with information that is timely,
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accurate, and importantly accessible, shall remain a dream yet
to be fulfilled.
Therefore, government communications play an important role in
closing the information gap as envisaged by the 2016
Government Segmentation Model, which ensures all five agreed
societal segments receive diverse communication products and
platforms. This Budget Vote 4 ensures that the department
delivers on this, irrespective of the limited resources
available.
As I conclude, allow me to reflect on a few observations and
recommendations as follows; observations, in this Budget Vote,
the Department of Government Communications and Information
systems commits to increasing its capacity, which includes
bringing in the youth through internships and general internal
training of the government communicators in different aspects,
to meet the demands of our times. I also make an observation
that inadequate budget allocations forcing budget cuts on key
programmes like ICT infrastructure, leaving studios
unutilised, will not only diminish the relevance of the
Department of Government Communications and Information
Systems but has imminent potential to collapse the whole
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government communication and information system envisaged by
the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa if low
intervention is made.
And, therefore, we want to make the recommendation that the
Ministry and the committee must engage the National Treasury
and the Portfolio Committee on Appropriations respectively, on
the funding of the Department of Government Communications and
Information Systems to prevent the potential collapse. Once
again, House Chair, the ANC supports Budget Vote 4, and I
thank you.
Ms T BODLANI: Thank you, Chairperson, good morning hon members
and good morning fellow South Africans. The Government
Communication and Information System, GCIS, is well on its way
to turning a corner, after years of being used as a personal
instrument for personal enrichment by those in the ruling
party. Noting the above, it is unfortunate that the GCIS is
featured prominently in the Zondo Commission of Inquiry into
State Capture, which was headed by then Acting Chief Justice
Raymond Zondo.
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To appropriate from President Cyril Ramaphosa in his state of
the nation address, 2022, after receiving the first two parts of
the Zondo Report, he said: “The first two parts of the report
make it plain to see that there was indeed state capture.
Chairperson, this means that public institutions and state-
owned entities were infiltrated by a criminal network intent
on looting public money for private gain. The President goes
on to say that: “The reports have detailed the devastating
effects of this criminal activity on SA Airways, SAA, Transnet,
Denel, the SA Revenue Service, SARS, as well as Government
Communications.”
Unfortunately, due to a lack of political will in prosecuting
these criminals, some of whom have not fled to Dubai, and are
still out there, we can only pray for divine intervention for
such humans. Let me place it on record that President
Ramaphosa has done very little to bring stability to this
department with the continued cabinet reshuffle, which has
just added to the instability in the department over the past
few years. That said, we now have a Minister who has reached
only 19% of the Presidential Performance Agreement targets.
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While the DA applauds the GCIS for seven consecutive years
that it has repeatedly demonstrated sound corporate
governance. It is apt that we make a clarion call to President
Ramaphosa to do his part in stabilising the department and its
entities. We note that the 2021-22 financial year has been
premised on the government’s key priorities, as set out in
President Ramaphosa’s February 2021, state of the nation
address. These priorities centred on defeating the Covid
pandemic, promoting economic reforms and recovery, building a
state capable of combating corruption, and the dreadful
gender-based violence.
The department plays an integral part in championing
programmes which highlight the scourge of gender-based
violence. As the DA, we are concerned about how these
programmes will be compromised due to the budget cuts at a
time when women of South Africa live in fear because of
gender-based violence and femicide. The department managed to
reduce the vacancy rate from 8,44% in the 2020-21 financial
year to 6,32% by February 2022, with the appointment of three
new Deputy-Director Generals, DDGs, who assumed duty on 1
March 2022. Overall, the department experienced a turnover
rate of 5,95% between 1 April 2021 and 28 February 2022.
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Noting that the compensation of the department’s 441 employees
in 2020-21 was the largest expenditure item, comprising of an
estimated 38,3% percent of the total budget over the Medium-
Term Expenditure Framework, MTEF, period, the DA categorically
states that, it is not the responsibility of the state to
create jobs, but rather, as research has shown, the government
should strive to create an environment suitable for economic
growth and indeed jobs. Nonetheless, we do need to state our
support for public servants to earn competitive salaries to
avoid having the government used as a training ground for the
private sector, leading to brain drain and the institutional
knowledge drop.
The DA supports the endeavours of the department to
professionalise government communication and making it as
cost-effective as possible. This can be achieved if the
department streamline its processes and get rid of deadwood
and political appointees who are just burdening the system.
Chairperson, the recruitment of 22 graduate interns in line
with the Presidential Youth Employment Programme during the
2021-22 financial year, with the aim of alleviating
unemployment amongst young graduates and providing
opportunities to gain work experience, is indeed welcomed. In
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the same breath, we warn and cautions that these opportunities
should be given to persons on merit and not on political
affiliation, as is the norm in our government.
While the Vuk’uzenzele newspaper is distributed digitally and
physically countrywide, and is the only national publication
that is focused on the government’s key priorities, with an
emphasis on service delivery programmes and the opportunities
created by the government, we are worried that the department
has no measures in place to monitor its impact, only focusing
on stock levels as opposed to the impact of the distribution
mechanisms and that of the ... [Interjections.] ... [Time expired.]
Mr V PAMBO: Thank you very much, Chairperson, the EFF rejects
Budget Vote 4 on Government Communications and Information
Systems, GCIS. We reject the committee report and the proposed
budget of more than R700 million a year because, to support
this budget is to support Mr. Cyril Ramaphosa propaganda
machinery at the expense of taxpayers’ money. One of the
primary purposes of having a platform such as government
communications ought to have been to ensure that there is
uniformity in the manner government communicates its
decisions, plans and how it responds during times of crises.
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This department has been caught napping far too long, and
often during key moments when a solid and reaffirming message
from government was needed over the past twelve months. In
July last year, when the country was caught up in violent
frenzy whose origins can only be the destructive factional
battles in the ANC, during which a President foolishly claimed
that the violence in KwaZulu-Natal was a result of an
insurrection and ethnic mobilization.
It was left up to the then Minister of Defense to correct that
foolishness and dismiss claims of an insurrection. The GCIS
was nowhere to be seen. ... [Interjections.]
The ACTING CHAIRPERSON (Mr M G Mahlaule): Hon Pambo.
Mr V PAMBO: Yes, sir.
The ACTING CHAIRPERSON (Mr M G Mahlaule): My apologies. There
is a hand from hon Radebe.
Mr B A RADEBE: Correct. Thank you, hon Chairperson, I’m rising
on Rule 84. The member has just uttered unparliamentary words,
like saying that the President is foolish.
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The ACTING CHAIRPERSON (Mr M G Mahlaule): Hon Radebe, I did
not hear him referring to the President as such, but I will
consult with the Table. Can you proceed in the meantime, hon
Pambo.
Mr V PAMBO: The GCIS was nowhere to be seen as infrastructure
was destroyed, and as many as 400 African people were killed
by a mob of racists in Phoenix, and when the police and the
army were caught literally napping, unable to reassure
citizens what the government was doing in that part of the
country. This GCIS is also fiddling today, unable to
communicate in any meaningful way the government’s position on
measures to fight the Coronavirus pandemic.
It is exactly as a result of this sloth-like way of working
those corrupt opportunists such as the former Minister of
Health saw an opportunity to loot millions of public money
through the Digital Vibes scandal. If we had a properly
functioning government communications systems, there would be
no confusion on the government’s approach to vaccination,
there would be little room for information peddlers and
swindlers who confuse the general public about the so-called
dangers of vaccination.
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The end result of this poor handling of such a critical
intervention is surely going to be loss of life of people who
are not vaccinating because the information market is flooded
by negative messages of the impacts of the vaccine. To date,
government’s response to the humanitarian crisis in KwaZulu-
Natal and the Eastern Cape that resulted from the torrent
rains and floods in those two provinces has been left to a
corrupt and inept bunch that constitutes the provincial
government of KwaZulu-Natal with stink tank water.
Thousands of people still do not know where to go for help,
because the state has no capacity to communicate to her own
people. Today, the country does not know whether SA Airways,
SAA, has been sold or just handed over to a group of private
people with ties to the ANC or not. This has been left to
Jamnandas’s department, a department that consistently gives
out conflicting messages on the matter. The country also has
... [Interjections.]
The ACTING CHAIRPERSON (Mr M G Mahlaule): Hon Pambo.
Mr V PAMBO: Yes, sir.
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The ACTING CHAIRPERSON (Mr M G Mahlaule): There is a hand from
hon Radebe.
Mr B A RADEBE: Thank you, hon Chairperson, I’m rising on Rule
82. The member knows very well that we cannot call each other
on first name terms. Thank you, Chair.
The ACTING CHAIRPERSON (Mr M G Mahlaule): Hon Pambo, I heard
that as well, you called hon Gordhan, Jamnandas. Can you use
proper names to call colleagues?
Mr V PAMBO: Mr Gordhan. The country also has been left
wondering as to what exactly the government is doing to deal
with load shedding, as this responsibility is left to an
evasive group of people who are intent of defending the
current incompetence at Eskom. These are key communication
messages the GCIS ought to be communicating on behalf of
government, to ensure that there is uniformity and a
standardized way of communicating. Government information
sources such as the Vuk’uzenzele newsletter that has the
potential to spread information to all corners of the country
have been neglected and used only to give tenders to a
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disinterested group of ANC aligned tenderpreneurs, whose sole
obsession is looting of state resources.
To date, more than 74% of young people who are unemployed do
not have a faintest clue of what the department is doing to
avert an unemployment disaster in this country. The so-called
Thusong Service Centers that the GCIS runs are hopelessly
useless for the vast majority of our people. Minister, under
your leadership, the GCIS is a shadow of what it once was and
is woefully incapable to restoring our people’s confidence in
the government. You even collapsed the Media Development and
Diversity Agency, the MDDA.
The firing of the CEO is just a symptom to a much larger
problem of political incompetence. In the absence of a
functional MDDA, it is black media companies that continue to
be marginalised when the same white-owned media companies
continue to curate their racist message and print even through
taxpayers’ money. The EFF rejects this budget. I thank you,
Chair.
The ACTING CHAIRPERSON (Mr M G Mahlaule): Thank you very much,
hon Pambo. Hon Pambo, as much as you did not appear to call
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the President foolishness, you appeared to refer to his
actions as foolishness. I want to caution that, hon members,
we use proper language that is deemed to be fit for
Parliament. Thank you very much.
Mr M HLENGWA: Hon Chairperson, I read this on behalf of the
hon Majozi. It is fitting that we meet on 17 May, World
Telecommunication and Information Society Day. It is a day
founded to help raise awareness of the possibilities the
internet and other information and communication technologies
can bring to societies and economies. Communication is central
to everything we do. It is how we share information, and in
today’s world there are multiple platforms and mediums used to
get messages across to audiences.
The importance of the Department of Government Communication
and Information System can therefore not be overstated. In
brief the department is responsible for providing strategic
leadership and co-ordinating a government communication system
that ensures that the public is informed and has access to
government information, programmes and policies that benefit
them.
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As the IFP we would like to remind all those present today,
and joining us online, that the Department of Government
Communication and Information System, GCIS’s, co-ordination
role cuts across all three spheres; national, provincial and
local government. One would hope that this would automatically
ensure co-operation between various departments. However, it
seems, this is not the case. According to the portfolio
committee, and I quote:
Although GCIS has a constitutional mandate, it however
still relies on the power of persuasion to compel some
departments to fulfil their communication obligations.
Considering the type of information GCIS is tasked with
disseminating at times, life-saving, we call on all
noncompliant departments to get their houses in order.
It is further of concern to the IFP that in a country with
over 60 million people, the digital footprint of this
department is relatively small. Despite the department’s claim
to have seamlessly adapted to the modern ways in which the
public consume or receive information by embarking on an
intensive penetration and sustained presence in the digital
media space, the numbers tell a different story. On Facebook,
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this department has just over 8 000 followers, on Twitter,
slightly more with almost 122 000 followers, while on YouTube,
the department has 64 000 subscribers.
However, who is speaking to the youth? Why does the
department, for example, not have an Instagram account?
According to international research agency, Statista, as of
March 2022, there were 6,8 million Instagram users in South
Africa, with 18 to 23-year-olds making up 30,8% of Instagram’s
audience and users aged 25 to 34 years with 30,3%.
Interestingly, no mention is made in the budget report of
specific allocations to increase the department’s footprint on
social media. Instead, it seems that GCIS is directing a large
chunk of its budget on what is arguably a dying medium, print.
The ACTING CHAIRPERSON (Mr M G Mahlaule): Hon Seoposengwe, can
you please mute your microphone. You are disturbing the
proceedings. Continue, hon Hlengwa.
Interestingly, no mention is made in the budget report of
specific allocations to increase the department’s footprint on
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social media. Instead, it seems that GCIS is directing a large
chunk of its budget on what is arguably a dying medium, print.
According to the report over the medium-term the department
plans to produce 30,6 million copies of Vuk’uzenzele at an
estimated cost of R75 million to R50,4 million per year for
printing. Has the department conducted any monitoring and
evaluation on the efficiency of Vuk’uzenzele as a vehicle to
convey essential news to the broader public? This is a line
item that possibly might need to be reviewed and the monies
invested more wisely.
We welcome the plans for 1 140 community and stakeholder
engagements per year, which include community radio talk
shows, activations at taxi ranks and mall, information blitzes
on commuter trains and social media campaigns. As the IFP, we
feel this type of engagement is much more appropriate for
reaching South Africans where they travel, work and engage and
should be expanded.
We further welcome the department’s plans to invest in
technological reforms in light of cybersecurity issues, as
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well as to enable to department to function effectively in a
fast moving digital environment.
As the IFP, we must register concern in relation to the Media
Development and Diversity Agency that overall expenditure on
community and small commercial print and digital projects and
community broadcast projects is expected to decrease from
R5,8 million in 2021-22 to R4,3 million in 2022-23. This
agency’s all important goal is to enable historically
disadvantaged communities and individuals to gain access to
the media. There should be more funding directed to this
agency, and not less. [Time expired.]
The DEPUTY MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY (Ms P S Kekana): Hon
House Chair, let me recognise the chairperson of the portfolio
committee, hon Maneli, hon members, the Minister in the
Presidency and members of Parliament, as we table the
Government Communication and Information System 2022-23
budget, let us reflect on a year that has showed the resolve
of South Africa, our people and this government.
Most recently, devastating floods hit several parts of our
country causing a tremendous upheaval in the lives of our
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people, mostly in KwaZulu-Natal, who was still in the process
of building back after the riots less than a year ago.
Ravaging floodwaters and the endless COVID-19 pandemic proved
though, that yet again, when we stand together as one nation
there is no challenge that we cannot overcome.
We heard inspiring stories of citizens who risked their own
lives to save others, and how communities across geographical,
racial, and cultural divides came together in support of one
another. The helping hands and brave actions that the whole
world bore witness to crystalised President Cyril Ramaphosa’s
concluding words of the 2022 state of the nation address when
he said that we should leave no one behind. The one silver
lining in the midst of any crisis in South Africa is that we
don’t talk about ubuntu; we live it.
Honourable House Chair, during these testing times, our
nation’s communication system, spearheaded by the Government
Communication and Information System, GCIS, has been at the
forefront to ensure that South Africans are kept abreast of
critical developments and interventions. Communication became
an essential tool as it provided reliable information that
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enabled residents to access government support and make
informed decisions.
Government Communication and Information System convened the
communication workstreams consisting of government
communicators to provide accurate, useful and up to date
information frequently to assist those affected by the floods,
while at the same time ensuring that the media network in the
country was well informed of all official undertakings and
processes.
We will continue to use the power of communication to support
the rebuilding efforts, and in the same way draw all South
Africans into a united and focused national drive on the
President’s Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan towards
a prosperous South Africa that we can one day say we built
back better.
Hon members, the work of Brand South Africa remains crucial in
ensuring that South Africa is positioned to strengthen our
competitiveness and effectively bring the world to our door.
As such, we will invest R33 million to drive Brand SA
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activities that contribute to social cohesion, national pride,
and active citizenship, through the Play Your Part programme.
We must create favourable conditions to attract both domestic
and foreign investment, tourism and optimised trade relations
with other countries. Therefore, the main thrust of the
programme will be promoting constitutional values, encouraging
entrepreneurship to boost the economy and job creation, and
doubling efforts to deal with the issues that negate our
nation brand’s reputation. Brand South Africa will invest
R63 million in activities that advance our country’s nation
brand reputation to improve our global attractiveness and
competitiveness. In doing so, we will support our drive to
attract foreign direct investment as part of the government’s
work to reignite economic growth and create much needed jobs.
Through targeted marketing campaigns of “We invite you to
believe in SA” and “Think South Africa, think opportunity”,
will positively position our nation with international,
regional and domestic investors. The campaigns will bring to
the fore South Africa as a strategic entry point for
investors, through the African Continental Free Trade Area,
AFCFTA, and we will optimise these campaigns through support
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of programmes for example, to train 1 million women and youth
on the AFCFTA by 2025.
We will also use our nation’s participation in the World
Economic Forum, Mining Indaba, BRICS and United Nations
General Assembly to position South Africa as a trade and
investment partner of choice. This will be complemented by our
growing brand advocacy through the global South Africans
network that targets South Africans living in the USA, UK,
China, Australia and other key markets on the African
continent.
Hon members, I would like to draw your attention to an
important sector that is the heartbeat of our nation’s vibrant
smaller communities. Community media has emerged as an
alternate voice to the mainstream media. It adds to the
plurality of voices we desperately seek as a thriving
democracy.
This sector has been hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic which
placed a massive strain on the financial resources of many
community media initiatives, compromising the many gains we
have achieved in the sector since the start of democracy. This
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year will therefore be a period of recovery for the community
and small commercial media supported by government through the
Media Development and Diversity Agency, MDDA. The MDDA is in
the process of finalising the sustainability model for the
community and small commercial media projects, which will be a
first for the local community media sector and is supported by
the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organisation, UNESCO. The thrust for the model is centred
around the theme of building a resilient and future-forward
community and small commercial media sector.
We will also support the sector through a grant funding policy
to ensure the growth of the community and small commercial
media projects. The MDDA has approved grant and seed funding
for 24 community radio stations and 10 community and small
commercial print projects across the country. We believe that
this will go a long way in helping the sector stabilise and
begin a path to recovery.
Community media that operate in the poorest, vulnerable and
most economically underdeveloped communities find it nearly
impossible to generate revenue through traditional means such
as advertising. Our fundraising and support strategy aims to
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assist these media to become self sustainable over the longer
term.
We are targeting international donors and major media
companies for financial and non-financial support. In this
regard, over the last financial year, we launched an official
fundraising strategy. This year the agency introduced bold and
innovative interventions to the community media sector. The
agency has set aside R40,5 million for its digital innovation
strategy, embracing innovation as a catalyst for change within
the community media sector. We will also champion research to
advance media development and create a body of knowledge for
the sector. Our programme will ensure that research becomes
the bedrock for the strengthening and sustainability of the
community and small commercial media sector.
The MDDA has developed capacity building programmes to provide
community and small commercial media with the necessary skills
and training, specifically targeting historically
disadvantaged groups. The agency has set aside R4 million for
research and training interventions.
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Next year the MDDA will celebrate its 20th anniversary, and as
we prepare to mark this milestone, we remember many successes
such as the funding of 512 community media projects. We will
continue to build on this legacy as we create an environment
for media development and diversity that reflects the needs
and aspirations of South Africans.
Hon House Chair, as I conclude, on behalf of our Deputy
Minister, Siweya, communication allows us to transcend
barriers and division. It allows us to drive our economy and
society forward. We will use the power of communication to
harness the unyielding spirit of South Africans. [Time
expired.] Thank you very much, hon House Chair
Dr M BASOPU: Hon Chairperson, hon members of the House,
perhaps, upfront, allow me to declare that, as the ANC, we
support this Budget Vote, in case you stop me before I do
that. The Budget Vote for the Government Communication and
Information System is presented this year whilst we are still
experiencing the devastation of the deadly Covid-19 pandemic,
which continues to leave behind a trail of debt and a wrecked
economy.
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The pandemic spurred a massive loss of revenue for both the
mainstream and community media sectors. It brings in sources
for the community media sector, who are normally represented
by small publishing houses who are working on minimal budgets.
Community media have to rely on sourcing advertising revenue
from even smaller businesses around their localities.
The responsibility of government, therefore, is to work to
restore hope among workers in the sector and communities
ravelled by this pandemic. This hope must not only be
coherently communicated, but it must show practically what it
is doing and how it is working with social partners to rebuild
the national economy and advance what would hold communities
together.
The Media Development and Diversity Agency, MDDA, plays an
important role in diversifying our media space, by providing
financial and nonfinancial support to community media
projects. Community and small commercial media print, as well
as digital projects demanded of the MDDA to promote indigenous
languages, contribute to community development. And poverty
alleviation and equality is critical during this recovery
period.
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Its medium-term plan to intensity its focus on sectors such as
people with disability, who are under the mainstream media and
on issues associated with gender and young people, aligns very
well with the President’s pledge made during the Sona that
government is focused on empowering women and young people in
its programmes.
Underscoring the agency’s commitment to grassroots
empowerment, an estimated 50% of its budget over the medium
term will be directed towards grant funding for 60 community
broadcast projects and 80 community and small commercial media
print and digital projects.
the community broadcast grant assists with the initiation of
new projects and the strengthening of the existing projects
and account for an estimated 30% of the agency’s total budget
for the MTEF period. In this context, the MDDA should continue
to play a critical role in ensuring a flourishing, sustainable
and robust local media sector, a sector which supports nation-
building and defends and strengthens our democracy, social
cohesion as well as good governance.
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As the world embraces an information society, and the Fourth
Industrial Revolution becomes even more of a reality, it is
critical therefore that all citizens have access to the widest
range of information, in order to participate fully and
effectively in an increasingly connected world.
The budget allocation to the MDDA supports the work to
transform the media industry, it assists to align it to key
technology development in the sector and ensures good
corporate governance practices. Community radio has proven to
be one of the most effective platforms that was utilised from
the start of this pandemic. In the process, GCIS increased its
network of community radios from 60 up to about 199 connected
community radio stations. This increased network is a
significant shift towards the transformation of the media
through community media.
The MDDA has been able to carry out different aspects of this
mandate to a greater or less degree. To its grant funding, the
agency has channelled resources to the community and small
commercial media sector in this way, hence, contributed to the
expansion of ownership and control, as well as access of media
to historical disadvantaged communities.
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There is evidence of the flourishing of both community and
small commercial media, with radio audiences managing to reach
an impressive 25% of South African audiences and print media
being read by about 25 million monthly readers. This media is
also being published and broadcasted in all indigenous
languages, reflecting the diversity of our country.
Training and capacity-building interventions have been rolled
out to support projects that have been experienced gaps. In
this context therefore, the MDDA continues to play a critical
working role towards ensuring a flourishing, sustainable and
robust media sector.
As the ANC, it is our firm belief that democracy in South
Africa entails a movement from a closed society into one based
on free flow of information and a culture of open debate. At
the core of democracy lies the recognition of the right of all
citizens to take part in societal decision-making processes.
This means that individuals are armed with the necessary
information and have access to contesting options they require
to make informed decisions.
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An ignorant society cannot be democratic and that is a fact.
With this as a foundation, we believe that the focal point for
media transformation involve diversifying a range of our media
voices through decisive action, to break down the massive
monopolies dominating information generation and distribution
on all media platforms, and achieve equitable distribution of
media resources, development programmes and a deliberate
effort to endeavour a culture of debate.
This will add new media voices to the sector that are able to
record the word from other perspectives, and not that which is
currently offered by the South Africans, largely homogenous
media, and able to rethink the standards of accuracy,
reliability and credibility of the content of the South
African media, with a combination of incentives and sanctions,
to motivate allocation of greater resources to the production
and distribution of more reliable, accurate and credible
information.
In conclusion, the ANC is working tirelessly to achieve a
diverse, dynamic and sustainable media space, which is able
... [Time expired.] As the ANC, we support the Budget Vote.
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Mr S M JAFTA: Hon Chairperson, the Government Communication
and Information System, GCIS, articulate its mandate as
involving the co-ordination of wide government communication
system. Thus ensuring that citizens are informed and have
access to government policies, plans and programmes.
In our support for this Budget Vote we must be convinced that
our citizens enjoy uninterrupted access to government
information. This information must be readily available and
accessible to poor communities and communicated in the
language of their choice.
In the past, we have seen how the diminished GCIS role has
weakened public trust in government processes. The most
immediate example of this trust deficit pronounced itself in
the form of the arms deal corruption in the early 90s. The
nuclear procurement saga involving Russia in 2017. And just
recently, the government’s poor communication relating to
COVID-19 vaccine. More disturbing is the GCIS’s absence in the
the work of the Independent Electoral Commission, IEC, to
drive voter education and registration campaigns.
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As a result, - in order for us to support this Budget Vote, we
need clarity on the following questions. Firstly, is the GCIS
currently rolling out telecentres and multipurpose community
centres with the idea of putting an end to a one stop
government service centre? Secondly, what practical steps is
the GCIS taking to feature the work of this government in the
arena of the 4th Industrial Revolution? Thirdly, what is the
main flagship programme the GCIS is currently driving in the
country? Lastly, what was the role of the GCIS in the launch
of the Department of Health’s corrupt COVID-19 communication
strategy under the former Minister of Health.
Hon members, our view is that GCIS is sleeping on the job. Its
very Facebook handle page has no substantial volume. We will
nonetheless support this Budget Vote. I thank you.
Mr M S MALATSI: Thank you very much, House Chairperson. In
life some problems can be fixed by having the money to afford
the resources we need to succeed. Others require us to spend
the little we have wisely so that we can live within our
means.
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In the case of the Media Development and Diversity Agency,
MDDA, it requires both. The harsh reality is that it is
severely underfunded to support the development of a vibrant,
innovative, sustainable, and people-centred community and
small commercial media sector through resourcing, critical
sector insights, capacity building and ensuring inclusive
participation of historically disadvantaged communities.
South Africa has over 270 community radio stations, at least
200 community newspapers and five licensed community
television, TV, stations. The majority of these are in
financial distress often scrambling to pay basic bills like
office space. Therefore, to measure the effectiveness of the
MDDA to deliver on its mandate to support the development of
community media outlets, we must at all times measure its
performance targets against outputs. By so doing, we will only
be in a position to fairly establish whether it is fulfilling
its mission or betraying it. To this end, the entity is
underperforming.
In the 2020-21 financial year, the MDDA funded only nine of
the 120 community newspapers that applied for financial
assistance. While the entity will no doubt argue that its
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funding performance depends on the quality of the number of
applications it has received per financial year, the reality
is that it has a legal obligation to raise more awareness
about services it offers to the community media.
It is simply not good enough to release two media statements
and embark on a few roadshows and hope that it will reach the
expansive public awareness needed to reach the extent of its
beneficiaries. It is our view that the MDDA is struggling to
fully leverage its proximity to the GCIS to widely market its
support programmes to the community media sector, so that they
can take full advantage of the services it offers, thereby
enhance its promotion of media development and diversity.
Given the financial struggles that many of the community media
outlets face to keep basic operations afloat, it is incumbent
on the MDDA to do more. Yet, the current funding percentages
and projections for the rest of the Medium Term Expenditure
Framework, MTEF, period are too low to meet the demand. In
addition, the MDDA needs to be more proactive in supporting
these entities into adopting commercially viable strategies
that will empower them to be more financially sustainable and
not solely dependent on charitable interventions.
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Currently, many of the community media outlets have no
credible financial viability, leaving them to scramble for
survival on a month-to-month basis. This makes many of them to
be vulnerable to unhealthy professional influences that can
often influence their journalistic independence. Yet, we know
that community media outlets are the lifeblood of journalism.
For many communities, they consume their news through their
community newspaper or local radio station. They help to keep
millions of South Africans, mostly in poor communities to be
informed of current affairs and international affairs.
Some of the most shameless theft of public funds that would
have otherwise remained uncovered in secrecy in local
municipalities have been exposed by community papers such as
the Limpopo Mirror. On the one hand, these community media
platforms continue to launch hundreds of careers for many
broadcasters who go on to become household names in media and
are the flagbearers of journalism best practices in our
country.
House Chairperson, one of the immediate ways in which this
administration can proactively provide the financial injection
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that these community media outlets need to improve their
revenue generation streams, is to increase government spending
on advertising. As recently as two-years ago, government’s
advertising spending on community media was as low as 5% of
its total advertising expenditure.
In response, this administration made all the right noises
about lobbying National Treasury to commit government to
dedicate 30% of its advertising budget towards community-based
media. Yet two-years later, this remains a pipedream.
The ongoing tension between the MDDA Board and the suspended
chief executive officer, CEO, needs to be resolved as soon as
possible to restore the entity’s prospects of operating as
optimally as it should. Quite frankly speaking, the MDDA can
no longer afford another extended episode of instability at
senior management level as has been the case for the last few
years. Nothing illustrates this more blatantly than the fact
that it has had at least nine different acting CEOs since
2017.
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There is no organization anywhere in the world that stands a
real chance of functioning smoothly with such a high turnover
of CEOs.
It is time to stop the MDDA from being reduced to a has been
reduced to an arena for a series of boardroom wrestling
contests between senior executives and the board. We need it
to function so that community media outlets can thrive in our
country and help entrench our democracy.
Minister, no matter how much money you dedicate to Brand South
Africa, the best way to build social cohesion is to make sure
that you deliver services where they are needed the most. That
you govern well, and that your administration becomes totally
intolerant of corruption whenever it happens. You cannot have
a situation where the only entity that is responsible for
marketing South Africa, positioning it as an investment
attraction being Brand SA, itself is beset by controversy with
internal squabbles between the board and the CEO.
With regards to Government Communication Information System,
GCIS, perhaps the Minister can use this opportunity to reply
in his final remarks to clarify the stand with regard to the
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former Presidential spokesperson’s role in government, Khusela
Diko. When she was suspended it was indicated that she will be
redeployed, and there was a hint that she will be redeployed
to the GCIS. We now need an indication of what is the outcome
of that disciplinary hearing and whether she would still be
recycled into government.
Lastly, Chairperson, the GCIS’s weakness is illustrated in the
level of misinformation and propaganda against vaccination
programmes of the government. If the GCIS was as well an oiled
machine as it should and it was leveraging all the resources
at its disposal, it would have been able to proactively push
back against this propaganda by ensuring that from local,
provincial and national government, it informs the public of
the advantages and benefits of vaccination. I thank you.
Mr T T GUMBU: Thank you, hon House Chair, Ministers and Deputy
Ministers, and hon members, we are facing unprecedented times
as a country and the world at large.
A few weeks ago, a great tragedy befell our nation causing
widespread destruction and a significant loss of life. The
floods in KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape and North West destroyed
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hundreds of livelihoods and important infrastructure that is
imperative for economic participation and growth.
Just when we are rebuilding the lives shattered by the COVID-
19 pandemic, and just as our economy was showing signs of
recovery, we have been plunged into mourning again. Our
thoughts and prayers are with all those who were affected by
the floods. This calls upon the media and the communication
sector to educate our people about the impact of climate
change and other environmental hazards facing the global
community and Africa in particular.
The Government Communication and Information System, GCIS, has
an important role to play in educating the nation about the
interventions government is making to provide support to
families and the work that is being undertaken to rebuild
infrastructure in the provinces destroyed by floods.
It is critically important that a diversified voice that
incorporates local and community media houses be capacitated
to arm society with the necessary knowledge to gain access to
government programmes and support.
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In line with the constitutional imperatives of the GCIS to
inform the public about the government’s plans and programmes,
conveying information that is accurate timely, empowers and
improves people’s lives. The GCIS must continue to support
communication on the rollout of vaccines by providing our
communities with relevant information regarding the national
programmes. This is to counter the conspiracy theories and
antivaccine advocates, some of whom are represented in this
House, who seek to show doubt amongst our people about the
efficiency of vaccines.
Through this Budget, the GCIS will continue to implement
outreach programmes designed to reach people where they work
or reside. This will include taxi ranks, mall activations,
panel discussions on local community media and maintain
mainstream radio and television stations. The packaging of
messages in all 11 official languages is essential in reaching
all South Africans of all backgrounds.
While the ANC welcomes the efforts of the Department of
Communications and Digital Technologies on the good work done
around generating key content that is user-friendly to help us
manage the spread of COVID-19, the ANC is of the view that the
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same effort needs to be channelled towards ensuring that the
country’s economic reconstruction and recovery efforts do not
leave a single South African behind.
The Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan, ERRP, provides
a good basis for a new growth trajectory. It focuses our
nation’s effort to pursue new sources of growth as we work to
rebuild and grow the economy. It redoubles our work on
critical areas such as securing our nation’s energy supply,
growing the small and medium enterprise sector, and an
agricultural sector that delivers food for security.
The GCIS has to take full advantage of the District
Development Model in its communication which seeks to do away
with the silo mentality of working by ensuring seamless co-
ordination, coherence, efficiency and effectiveness in the
implementation of government programmes.
The ANC supports the continued maintenance of the multilingual
Vuk’uzenzele newspaper that continues to provide government
related information and opportunities mainly to the persons
without access to the mainstream media. The 850 000 copies of
the GCIS prints every two weeks makes it the largest print
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circulation in South Africa. It reaches even the most remote
parts of the country and is also produced in braille, online
and on Apps.
In 2020, the GCIS commenced with the appointment of Marketing,
Advertising and Communication Charter Council to ensure that
transformation in the sector is reported and monitored. The
GCIS’ success extend to using its flagship communication
platform and products to share information on government’s key
priorities such as employment, economic opportunities, youth
programmes, service delivery and the fight against corruption
and gender-based violence and femicide – I hope, hon Bodlani
is listening.
Marketing, advertising and communication serves as a catalyst
of a free market-based economy and its intrusive form of
communication to which over 47 million South Africans are
subjected to every day of their lives. For such a small
industry, its power to influence South Africa is
disproportionate to its size, hence the need to make it a
truly South African industry separately.
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We further recognise that the industry plays a critical role
in the creation of wealth and the development of our economy,
and believe that transformation of the industry is essential
for its long-term growth and the upliftment of people who have
been historically disadvantaged.
In the spirit of the Constitution of South Africa, we believe
that South Africa belongs to all who live in it, united in our
diversity, and committed to improve the quality of lives of
all citizens, and the potential of each person.
Communication should serve as a strategic tool in
implementation of people-centred social policy. As such, it is
imperative that the government’s message is heard while
providing the citizenry with ample opportunities to express
their views and opinions through a range of communication
platforms.
The ANC believes that communication should be used to
strengthen our nation’s fight against all social ills by
empowering people with information to reverse the moral
degeneration that leads to these social problems.
Communication should also be used to mobilise people to become
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their own liberators. It is important, therefore, that the
GCIS should build confidence in the people of South Africa by
continuously updating them on what is done in the fight
against the foremost concerns such as crime and corruption.
As I conclude, as we move forward, we must never forget the
vision that Oliver Reginald Tambo shared with us and I quote:
It is our responsibility to break down barriers of
division and create a country where there will be neither
whites nor blacks, just South Africans, free and united
in diversity.
This vision of a diverse but united nation is urged into a
Constitution and the GCIS helps to foster this values of
nationhood. Let this serve as a reminder that Oliver Tambo has
never died because the ideals which he sacrificed his life
lives on the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa.
Communication allows us to transcend the barriers and
divisions and it allows us to propel our economy and society.
It is for this reason the ANC supports this Budget Vote
because it advances key policy priorities of the ANC
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government of building one nation, united in diversity of its
people.
Tshiven?a:
Ndi a livhuwa, Mulangadzulo wa Nn?u.
English:
I thank you.
The MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY: Hon Acting House Chairperson,
I think one, needs to acknowledge and highly appreciate very
constructive engagements by Members of Parliament on this
debate. I think a number of issues have been raised around
capacity and its implications. There was also the optimal use
of our limited resources at our disposal and the question of
digital footprint has also been mentioned. Although we are not
absent there but one thought it is important to share.
We have 838 000 followers on the Facebook page which is a
number but government should move fast and we accept that. But
it is not the number the AIC member said. We are present in
YouTube and Instagram and we want to get better. Of course we
cannot do better than we are doing. Are we comfortable with
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those numbers? Not at all but there is some presence in the
digital space. That criticism is openly taken hon members.
Of course members spoke about continuous clarification of a
series of a narrative relating to the state in the eyes of the
public. That is a point that has been raised and is a point we
are going to take action on. There is also a Call me to ensure
various departments do not treat communication as “by the
way”. In other words, a need to demonstrate that the entire
government, not just the Government Communications and
Information System, takes communication very seriously. I
think we take that point.
We also acknowledge positives comments, like the department
has been recommended for a good explanation record and the
audit record. Those are the things we should be proud of
because those are “ABCs” that can send a message that, at
least the platform where we start is a transparent and a
credible one in as far as the use of state resources is
concerned. We acknowledge that.
We take the points on the various entities, be it the Media
Development and Diversity Agency MDDA and Brand South Africa,
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BSA. I am very happy that Deputy Minister Kekana has been able
to elaborate on the work done by those entities. Having said
all that, we also take the criticism there. I am happy that
one of our members clarified that on the MDDA, I think it was
hon Malatsi, that no one was fired there. There are internal
issues but we deliberately let the board to deal with them. We
take a view that corporate governance requires that and we
respect certain principles. Agencies have got boards who must
actually take responsibilities for the challenges that their
agencies are facing. We should only come in as government when
it is necessary to do so.
That MDDA is the one that got clean audit and so on.
Generally, when it comes to administration MDDA’s record has
been improving over time but there will always be teething
problems, people not seeing things alike and that is when we
prefer to leave that to the agency. It is not that we are
excited about it. We do not like the negative story about any
agency. We acknowledge the criticism and a lot of
constructively made comments, hon members.
Another issue that has been raised is the community media
houses that lacked resources. One of the members mentioned a
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point that community media houses that lack resources can be
vulnerable to exploitation for nefarious purposes. We take
that point very seriously and taking into account that if they
were funded, a number of them would be a benefit to the
country.
I thought I want to make this point and acknowledge that you
talked about Vukuzenzele Publication which continues to be on
the Cutting Edge. We acknowledge that members have spoken
positively about that and that it can still do better than it
is doing. We must also acknowledge that it has given space to
young people who have made Cutting Edge stories.
We also want to assure members, on the use of young
journalists that it is going to be a transparent and a clean
procurement process. There is nothing that is going to be done
which is not auditable in as far as that regard. On the issue
of Thusong Service Centre we just want to put it to members
that no less than 122 Thusong Service Centre are really
functioning. What is most amazing in the recent past alone is
the total four Thusong Service Centre that have been
revitalised.
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In the Northern Cape, for instance, we want to share with
members that the Manne Dipico Thusong Service Centre in
Kimberley which was totally overalled and relaunched following
its devastation in a community protest. The centre is now
offering a full range of government services. Additionally,
the Augrabies Thusong Service centre which was in disrepair
has been resuscitated in partnership with the NGO called Wifi
which is offering free digital services to young Augrabies
people.
We want to say that the Department of Government
Communications and Information System will continue to work
with the Department of Co-operative Governance and Traditional
Affairs and Offices of the Premiers to identify additional
centres for resuscitation and improvement. It is also
important to draw the attention of the House that 70 centres
have been decommissioned due to funding which is not a good
story, by the way.
Having said all that, I want to repeat again and appreciate
the constructive engagements by all Members of Parliament,
even in the instance of scarce resources. Optimal utilisation
of our resources remains a key point. I thought I would not
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have made my point if I did not say this. I just want to say
to hon Phambo and maybe to his peers that, in the African
culture, the use of words like foolish, stupid and so on, to
elderly ...
IsiXhosa:
... kubantu abadala ...
English:
... is un African because I am deliberately saying this
because they claim to be the purest Africanist champions of
some time. You know, even if ...
IsiXhosa:
... umntu omdala usisibhanxa ...
English:
... it is not unthought-of to say ...
IsiXhosa:
... umntu omdala usisibhanxa ...
English:
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... even if he is an imbecile, it is un African because there
is a deliberate respect for ...
IsiXhosa:
... abantu abadala. Ngamanye amaxesha umntu omdala xa sele
ekhuphe umoya wesinqe, siyancumelana ...
English:
... we run out of the house because there is a particular
demeanour that is acceptable towards elderly. You can
criticise them frankly for their incapacity and for their
weaknesses but ...
IsiXhosa:
... musani ukuthuka abantu abadala.
English:
Thank you, hon Acting House Chairperson.
An HONOURABLE MEMBER: If they are old, they must go home. We
are in Parliament here. We are working here.
The mini plenary rose at 11:44.
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