Speaker, die skokkende verslag van die Suid- Afrikaanse Instituut vir Rasseverhoudinge, dat armoede in Suid-Afrika oor 'n tydperk van 10 jaar verdubbel het, plaas groot vraagtekens oor die regering se verklaarde vermo "to drive back the frontiers of poverty".
Volgens die verslag het armoede in al die provinsies persentasie gewys toegeneem. Dit is duidelik dat die sogenaamde swart ekonomiese bemagtiging, SEB, net 'n clich is wat gebruik word om goed gekonnekteerde kamerade multimiljoenrs in multibiljoenrs te maak, wat weer op hulle beurt die primre donateurs van die regerende party word.
Die Uitgebreide Openbare Werke Program intervensie met sy polities-gedrewe verwagtinge bereik glad nie sy doel nie. Miljoene rande wat deur die Departement van Sosiale Ontwikkeling vir hulpbehoewendes bestem is, beland in die sake van duisende amptenare wat nog knussies in hul posisies sit met slegs 'n "slap on the wrist". Dan spandeer moedswillige en hartelose staatsamptenare nog miljoene aan hofonkostes teen mense soos Me Jonghi van die Oos-Kaap om haar te ontneem van toelaes wat sy verloor het omdat daar chaos in die administratiewe prosesse van die Departement van Sosiale Ontwikkeling is.
Dit is duidelik dat die 2014 Millennium-ontwikkelingsdoelwitte om armoede te halveer net 'n droom sal bly. Dat ons te midde van hierdie see van armoede en verbreekte beloftes van "a better life for all" nog miljoene wil spandeer aan die bou van 'n nuwe parlementre gebou beteken 'of iemand is die kluts heeltemal kwyt' of daar word weer geleentheid geskep, soos met die wapenaankope, vir die skuim om die room van ons land te steel. Ek dank u. (Translation of Afrikaans member's statement follows.) [Mr S E OPPERMAN: Speaker, the shocking report of the South African Institute for Race Relations, that poverty in South Africa will double over a period of 10 years, raises questions about the government's declared ability "to drive back the frontiers of poverty".
According to the report, poverty has increased proportionally in all provinces. It is clear that the so called black economic empowerment, BEE, is simply a clich used to make well-connected comrades millionaires into billionaires, who in their turn again are the primary donors of the governing party.
The Extended Public Works Programme intervention with its politically driven expectations is not achieving its goal at all. Millions of rands earmarked by the Department of Social Development for the vulnerable, land in the pockets of thousands of officials who are still sitting cosily in their positions with only a "slap on the wrist". Then wilful and heartless public servants spend more millions on legal costs against people like Ms Jonghi of the Eastern Cape to deprive her of grants she lost because there is chaos in the administrative processes of the Department of Social Development.
It is clear that the 2014 Millennium Development Goals to halve poverty will remain a dream. Since we intend, in the midst of this sea of poverty and broken promises of "a better life for all", to spend millions more building a new parliamentary building, it means that either someone has completely lost the plot, or another opportunity is being created, as with the arms deal, for the scum to steal the cream of our country. I thank you.]