Speaker, hon members and hon Singh, yes, there has been progress with the implementation of the key agreements made at the Energy Advisory Council meeting on 8 December last year.
The Energy Advisor Ccouncil arose out of the Energy Summit convened by the National Economic Development and Labour Council, Nedlac, in May 2008. It consists of government, business, labour and the community as represented at Nedlac. The advisory council is supported by a national electricity response team comprising all social partners.
I would like to highlight some of the key areas of implementation; more details can be obtained from the Minister of Energy. Since the last advisory council meeting, Eskom's generator performance level has improved to the required levels.
In anticipation of increased electricity demand during the Fifa World Cup, a programme was initiated in the host cities to identify critical infrastructure that needed urgent attention. A more comprehensive strategy has since been completed to address the rehabilitation of municipal distribution infrastructure as a specific focus in the current government programme of action.
As to the policy framework for private-sector participation and the introduction of a nonconflicted independent system and market operator, since the last meeting the issues have been addressed through various processes through the Interministerial Committee on Energy that was created through a Cabinet decision. The committee comprises the Departments of Energy and Public Enterprises, the National Treasury, the Departments of Economic Development, Science and Technology, and Trade and Industry, and the Presidency.
The following has been achieved in relation to each of the elements above. The integrated resource plan will be promulgated by the last quarter of 2010. The plan will indicate the generation technologies that South Africa will require over the next 20 years, in a manner that diversifies our energy mix from being coal dominated. The process to revise the regulations promulgated under the Electricity Regulation Act, No 4 of 2006, has been completed after consultation with lenders and potential investors. The draft regulations, licensing framework and standard power purchase agreement provisions, together with the evaluation criteria for independent power producers, IPPs, will be issued by the end of November 2010 to coincide with the conclusion of the integrated resource plan.
Perhaps the most critical element for private-sector participation relates to the resolution of the conflicted role that Eskom plays as both a generator and a buyer. The introduction of an independent system and market operator will address this conflicted role of Eskom.
The cost recovery mechanism, in terms of which private-sector generators are given the assurance that their costs will be recovered from the electricity tariff over the term of the power purchase agreement, has been concluded in consultation with the National Energy Regulator of SA, Nersa.
Concerning solar water heating and a standard offer incentive, one of the other initiatives introduced since the last advisory council meeting involves providing solar water heaters in place of electric geysers to all residential users of hot water.
The public consultation process for the solar water heaters financial incentive scheme was concluded in July 2010. The process will culminate in the determination of the level of the incentive in rands by Nersa and this is scheduled for later this month. I thank you for your attention. [Applause.]
Hon Speaker, I would like to thank the hon Deputy President for that response. I must say, hon Speaker, that it was quite difficult to get information on the Net about what the council does, but I think the Deputy President has quite clearly elucidated the functioning of this council.
What I would like to ask the Deputy President is this: Given the fact that the provision of a cost-effective, uninterrupted and available supply of electricity is core to the economic development and the future growth path of this country, as well as to rural development - because there are still many rural areas that don't have electricity - is he satisfied that the work being done by this council is going to contribute in a meaningful way towards ensuring that, 20 years from now, we not only have an alternative energy supply and sources, but will be on a positive growth path?
Hon Singh, I am satisfied with the work that this council does. By its addressing, for instance, the control of the greed and monopoly of Eskom as a generator, buyer and distributor at the same time, I think we will be able to open up the requisite space for participation by independent power producers. That, together with the rest of the plan, as well as the imperatives of moving in the direction of renewable energy, means that we are looking, for example, at technologies that will enable us to extract gas from coal without mining the coal, and use that gas for electricity generation. I think that would also address the commitments to lower gas emissions with regard to the United Nations climate change imperatives. [Applause.]
If hon members do not intend speaking, they should please not press the "to talk" button; you should only press it when you want to talk.
Mr Deputy President, with regard to the Independent System and Market Operator, ISMO, the Department of Energy has actually confirmed that this is being done, and we welcome that. However, there is a concern, as Eskom now says that this authority will initially be established as an interim body, situated at Eskom, and that it could possibly take 5 to 10 years before a permanent structure is established. Clearly, this would mean that we are operating as though it is business as usual, and that would retard the entry of the IPPs into the system. We will therefore not draw the benefit from this input.
What I would like to know, Mr Deputy President, is this: What will you do to ensure that the establishment of the ISMO, independent of Eskom, is not unduly delayed so that the participation of IPPs can be fast-tracked to relieve the pressure on the national electricity grid?
Thank you, hon member. Hon members, that is certainly not my understanding. My understanding is that this matter is fairly urgent and that that is the attitude of the Ministry as well. The gate-keeping role of Eskom has got to be addressed so that we can, as I said, encourage and welcome the participation of independent power producers. That is my understanding. Thank you.
Position regarding strengthening of co-operation with neighbouring countries on security and border control
10. Ms S T Ndabeni (ANC) asked the Deputy President:
Whether the Government has strengthened its co-operation with neighbouring countries on security and border control; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details? NO2876E
Thank you, hon Speaker. Hon members, in April 2009 Cabinet took a decision to return the responsibility of border security to the SA National Defence Force. This therefore makes Defence the principal department on border security.
Very strong defence co-operation exists with all Southern African Development Community neighbours, with whom we share a border. These are underpinned by a SADC co-operation agreement. In addition, South Africa has signed a memorandum of understanding with all our neighbouring countries. For each of our neighbouring countries we have a Joint Permanent Commission on Defence and Security. These ensure maximum co-operation from state to state and at the levels of affected departments, such as Home Affairs, State Security, the SA Revenue Service, Justice and Correctional Services. The commissions meet annually to review co-operation and conduct joint operations to combat crime and exchange information.
There are quarterly border forums with all our neighbouring countries, and from time to time they deal with matters that may affect our common border security.
Even though this level of co-operation has not been in existence for long, it has yielded very good results. The World Cup was not only protected by South Africa, but all our neighbouring countries stepped up security on their own borders to ensure a secure Fifa World Cup. Thank you. [Applause.]
Thank you, Speaker. Hon Deputy President, does this joint commission take into consideration the financial implications of the work done on the borders; for example, the fencing that is usually cut by illegal immigrants? Thank you.
Yes it does, hon Speaker and hon members. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr Speaker. Mr Deputy President, we have taken note of the actions that are being taken by SADC and many departments in respect of border control, but the facts are that millions of people are streaming into South Africa from the north. That makes a mockery of the words "border control", and it also brings into doubt the Department of Home Affairs, because people just come here without any authorisation to enter South Africa.
Why do people from elsewhere have to apply for visas and get permission to enter South Africa? My question is: Has border control not become obsolete, and the Department of Home Affairs impotent to attend to this question, because millions are just streaming into our country?
Thank you very much, hon Speaker. Hon Van der Merwe, I can assure you that there are not millions of undocumented people entering our borders. Our borders are not as porous as you suggest. As I stated, the joint permanent commissions on both sides of the borders also meet to review this kind of work.
We are aware that there are a number of economic refugees from other countries. Put very bluntly, these are job seekers who find their way into South Africa. However, these are people with the requisite travel documents. The number of those who are without such documents is very small. That is why the only transit camp of note that we have is the one out in Roodepoort in the Gauteng province. For the rest, we are really dealing with pockets of refugees, mainly economic refugees. I am quite convinced that if our borders were not tightly monitored we would be having very serious problems, for instance, of drug abuse and all of that.
Every other day you read about our guards and law enforcement officers at our ports of entry impounding contraband of all manner, and that happens throughout. Also, some of our own people who hijack cars and try to export them to the neighbouring countries get arrested. I can assure you that the next time these Ministers are here, you should put the question to them. They can even give you figures with regards to the number of people who are convicted of these offences. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr Speaker. Mr Deputy President, my follow-up question is: To what extent does this co-operation that we have with our neighbours guarantee in particular the combating of human and drug trafficking, as well as car and stock theft? What kind of commitment have we received from these neighbours in this regard, and can we trust them to commit seriously to this co-operation?
Thank you very much, hon Speaker. Yes, we do trust our neighbours, and we do trust that they will continue to work in a co- operative fashion. That is why, as I said in response to Mr van der Merwe, our experience and our information is that indeed hustlers, rustlers, car hijackers and all of those kinds of people who engage in trafficking of contraband do get arrested and convicted in our courts of law. If you need the figures, Home Affairs can give them to you, because Home Affairs keeps the entry figures into the country. That is why we are able to say that most of the people who enter the country have documents - one kind of document or the other.
Cabinet has taken a decision to do away with the special dispensation, for instance for Zimbabweans. As you know, during the special period in Zimbabwe when everything was collapsing, there was a special dispensation for Zimbabweans to be in the country for nine months and so on. That has now been done away with, because the situation in Zimbabwe is a little bit more stable, and that will reduce the number of people who come from our neighbouring countries.
President Museveni once said to me that if we really want to make progress in South Africa, we must consider finding a way of ensuring that there would be free movement of people and goods from Windhoek to Maputo. Perhaps that is food for thought - that perhaps one day we will be one country; one big happy South Africa right from Windhoek to South Africa. It is just a thought. Thank you.
Thank you, hon Speaker. Hon Deputy President, an article in The Zimbabwe Times was very critical of the South African government and accused it of failing to protect women and young girls who were terrorised by armed gangs operating on the South African side of the Zimbabwe-South Africa border. The reporter further alleged that the Zimbabwean women were raped, stripped and tied up at the side of the road, and that, at the time of writing, about 142 women had sought medical help following the rapes.
What I want to know, hon Deputy President, is whether or not this matter has been raised in the quarterly border forums that you referred to, and what has been done to stop these alleged atrocities. Thank you.
Thank you, hon Meshoe. I am not aware whether or not this matter was ever raised in the joint committee meetings. What I can say is that the veracity of the allegations, as reflected in The Zimbabwe Times, is something that may have to be checked. In the run-up to the Fifa World Cup, one British newspaper warned the British national team that was going to be based in Rustenburg that there are pythons in Rustenburg that ate five human beings every day. [Laughter.] It happens that some journalists write about these things. It is very difficult to verify the correctness of these articles.
What I do know, however, is that the police along the Zimbabwean border have been able to pick up young children who were left in the bush there by their parents in case they got arrested and so on. Those children were then reunited with their families. Thank you.
Position regarding proposal to devolve management of Commission for the Promotion and Protection of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities
11. Dr A Lotriet (DA) asked the Deputy President:
Whether he has considered a proposal to devolve the management of the Commission for the Promotion and Protection of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities from the Department of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs to the Department of Arts and Culture; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details regarding the timeframes envisaged for the implementation of the proposal? NO2872E
Speaker and hon Lotriet, I assume that the question you have asked refers to the proposal of the Ad Hoc Committee on the Review of Chapter 9 and sssociated institutions that was made to the National Assembly on 31 July 2007.
With regard to the Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities, the ad hoc committee recommended, inter alia, the incorporation of the Pan South African Language Board, PanSALB, into the commission and the designation of the Minister of Arts and Culture as the member of the executive dealing with the commission.
The ad hoc committee further outlined a process which involved the appointment of a task team consisting of three members of the commission, three members of PanSALB and six members of the National Assembly to report to the National Assembly with a practical plan for implementing the proposal. I note that when the National Assembly dealt with the ad hoc committee's report in the last Parliament on 21 November 2008, whilst adopting the recommendation on the establishment of a parliamentary unit on constitutional institutions and other statutory bodies, it resolved that the rest of the report, including the provisions I have referred to, be held in abeyance with a view to allow the fourth Parliament - that is this Parliament - to consider the matter in a manner it deemed fit.
It is therefore up to this Fourth Parliament to debate and discuss these issues relating to the Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities, and determine whether there is a need to devolve its management to another department. Thank you.
Mr Deputy President, yes, we are quite aware of the proposals that were made by this ad hoc committee, but the question is that we should have some timeframes, otherwise we are going to perhaps wait another three years before this happens. This morning we even had a presentation by this commission, indicating the tremendous problems that they have and the fact that they cannot do their work effectively because of these overlapping mandates and functions. Therefore, my question to you is the following: Could you please give a timeframe and more specifics as to how this Parliament should then go about addressing this?
Thank you, hon Speaker. Hon members, the recommendations of the ad hoc committee were very clear that Parliament itself would have to appoint six members of this House to serve together with three from the Pan South African Language Board and three from the commission, in order to give effect to its recommendations.
The recommendations, among other things, were that the units that fell under the Pan South African Language Board would have to be integrated and migrated to the Department of Arts and Culture, as well as its portfolio committee, and that these two bodies may be merged without the need to amend the Constitution through legislation. That is why this task clearly rests with the House itself. I have brought the report - I think it is on page 144 that the recommendations spell out the steps that need to be taken, including the timeline.
The suggestion in the report was that within 12 months of Parliament considering this report such structures should be put in place. As to why Parliament is not doing that, I have no idea. I suppose this is a timely reminder of what ought to happen in order to give effect to these recommendations. Thank you.
Hon Speaker, the hon Lotriet has made a fundamental mistake in the question that she asked. The question refers to the Commission for the Promotion and Protection of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities. There is no such commission. Section 185 of the Constitution is the foundation for a different commission, namely the Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities. It is about rights and social cohesion. I can understand that she has made that mistake, because the party that she belongs to does not believe in the rights of communities.
Mr Speaker, on a point of order, sir: The item on the agenda is questions to the Deputy President. I was not aware of the fact that we were on statements here, and I believe that the hon member should put a question to the Deputy President, rather than stand up and talk nonsense. [Interjections.]
Speaker, I will ask a question to the Deputy President in a few seconds to enlighten the DA about what is in the Constitution. Hon Deputy President, the question that I would like to ask you is the following, and the fact of the matter is that ... [Interjections.]
Order! Order, hon members!
Vier-en-twintig stemme in Carletonville! [Twenty-four votes in Carltonville!]
Speaker, the fact of the matter is that there is no member of the executive that deals with the commission. This commission is a Chapter 9 institution that is independent and only subject to the Constitution and the law. The executive only gets involved in terms of the Budget.
What I would like to ask is the following: Is there a possibility that government will think about, once again, looking into the mandate of this commission - what it is supposed to do and not what it is doing at the moment - because this commission is not living up to what is expected of it in terms of the rights of communities or the question of social cohesion? Thank you. [Time expired.] [Interjections.]
Order, hon members!
Thank you very much, hon Mulder. The ad hoc committee report looked into all of these Chapter 9 institutions, including this one. It has made very clear recommendations, which need to be given effect to by this House. Therefore, it falls upon this House, really, to take that process forward, not so much the executive. The executive would be directed by the legislation which would come out of this House. Thank you.
Thank you, hon Speaker. Thank you, hon Deputy President, for pointing out that in the ad hoc committee there are three members from the Pan South African Language Board also serving there, because, in the first place, the linguistic communities' rights were misplaced in these communities when we already had the Pan South African Language Board.
My concern is, since there is an outcry in this country that the Pan South African Language Board is failing dismally in promoting and developing languages in this country, how will it help should this ad hoc committee decide that linguistic communities' interests should reside with the Pan South African Language Board? Thank you.
Thank you, hon Msimang. In fact, the recommendation of the ad hoc report is for the Pan South African Language Board to be matched with the commission. There were units, if you remember, under the board which dealt with lexicography. It was recommended in this report that those units should be located in the Department of Arts and Culture. That was the first recommendation of the ad hoc committee and, once again, I think that the next step is for this House to look at that report again - the House's decision was to keep it in abeyance - and perhaps dust it off and select the six members and set the process in motion. Thank you.
Hon Deputy President, whilst your replies have answered me in part, I think it may still be useful for me to ask my questions, and these are: Has the work done by the commission justified its existence? Is the work of the commission adding value to the lives of people living in South Africa, and how is this effectiveness measured? What are the challenges facing the commission with regard to fulfilling their mandate and playing a meaningful role in society? Thank you.
Hon Speaker, the work of evaluating the effectiveness and relevance of these Chapter 9 institutions was done by the ad hoc committee, and these recommendations that I've alluded to try to address their findings, even though there was a qualification in the report to the effect that this particular commission had been in existence for a much shorter period than the others. That is why the ad hoc committee felt that there hadn't been sufficient time to actually assess its effectiveness or lack thereof. Thank you.
Monitoring of increase in number of child-headed households
12. Mrs J D Kilian (Cope) asked the Deputy President:
Whether the Government is actively monitoring the increase in the number of child-headed households; if not, why not; if so, (a) how frequently is it done and (b) what are the relevant details?