Hon members, before we continue with the Votes, I want to continue with what the Speaker started - giving rulings.
During Parliament's Budget Vote on 11 June, the hon Chief Whip of the Opposition rose on a point of order about a statement that he attributed to hon Jeffery. According to hon Watson, the hon Jeffery cast aspersions on the personality of the Leader of the Opposition. I undertook to study Hansard and return with a ruling. Now having studied the Hansard, I wish to rule as follows.
During his speech, hon Jeffery made the following remarks:
It also brings me to the issue that is in our Constitution. The Leader of the Opposition is meant to be the leader of the party; is meant to be a person of some stature. The hon Mazibuko may be a person of some weight, but is she a person of some stature? The part of the statement that relates to the hon Mazibuko's weight appears, on the face of it, to be a reference to her physical appearance. [Interjections.]
Members will remember that, in the past, many rulings were made on remarks regarding members' physical appearance. This has always been found to be insensitive, offensive and a violation of a member's dignity. I have no intention of departing from this precedence. Accordingly, I find that remark not only insensitive, but also unparliamentary.
It is indeed the responsibility of each and every one of us to ensure that we exercise the right to freedom of speech in a considerate and responsible manner. I now wish to call upon hon Jeffery to withdraw his statement.
Madam Deputy Speaker, I withdraw and I also would like to take this opportunity to apologise. The statement was not intended to be sexist. [Applause.]
Thank you very much, hon Jefferey.
Vote No 1 - The Presidency - put.
Declarations of vote:
Hon Deputy Speaker, when I rose to address this House on the Presidency Budget Vote at this time last year, neither South Africa nor I could have imagined how much further the decline in our country's leadership would be under the hon President Jacob Zuma. [Interjections.]
We have the tragedy at Marikana; two successive credit downgrades; the scandal surrounding the upgrade of the President's private home at Nkandla; and the disastrous military intervention in the Central African Republic. All of these and many others took place in the 12 months since we last debated the budget of this Presidency.
When I moved the motion of no confidence in the hon President in November 2012, with a mandate from nine opposition parties, it was because we could see the writing on the wall. We knew that South Africa could not afford one more day of failed leadership, but the ANC blocked the motion and the decline in leadership has continued.
Today, our wonderful country is in a worse position than it was this time last year. The ANC has sunk to unimaginable levels to defend this failed presidency. The DA will continue to fight for Parliament to fulfil its mandate and hold the President accountable for his record in government. Today, we will not support the Presidency Budget Vote. I thank you. [Applause.]
Madam Deputy Speaker, with our prayers, may Nelson Mandela continue to make his way towards a full recovery. We owe it to him, more than ever, to make this the most moral Parliament in the world in his time.
By the Mandela gold and platinum yardstick, unsavoury remarks made in this House last week against leaders of the opposition violate Mandela's legacy. By the same gold and platinum yardstick, Nkandlagate is an affront to moral principles. The Protection of State Information Bill, in the wake of the United States, US, National Security Agency spying scandal, highlights why the Protection of State Information Bill, the so-called Secrecy Bill, violates everything Mandela ever stood for; never ever would he have put his signature to this anathema to transparency.
We will not support Vote No 1 because, first of all, gross national debt will be over one and half trillion in 2014; effective leadership is lacking; quality skills training is wanting; employment opportunities are unavailable; the youth subsidy remains unimplemented; accountability and transparency are diminishing; the bucket system and bad sanitation linger; the Ministerial Handbook remains unrevised; the rule of law is being devalued; and secrecy is being chosen over transparency.
The President and the government he leads stand indicted on all of the above serial failures. We cannot in good conscience support Vote No 1. We will vote against it. Thank you.
Hon Deputy Speaker, hon members of this House will remember, from the debate on Vote No 1, the great respect and salutations by hon Buthelezi to former President Mandela. That having taken away some of his time, he did not have an opportunity to say that, as the IFP, we will support Budget Vote No 1 - The Presidency.
Having said that, Deputy Speaker, with regard to the National Youth Development Agency, NYDA, which consumes almost R400 million of Presidency's budget, the IFP must register that we finally see some hope. The new board has good intentions and we hope to see performance increase. Nevertheless, we remain committed to an IFP resolution that government must establish a dedicated youth Ministry, a call that has been endorsed even by the ANC Youth League.
The board's former executive chairperson complained that under-resourcing of the agency by the National Treasury was one of the main challenges facing the NYDA. Interestingly, the 2013 estimates of national expenditure state, quite without artiface, that the purpose of the NYDA programme is to facilitate the transfer of funds to the NYDA. Securing funds is the programme's main purpose. These funds are supposedly used for interventions aimed at reducing youth unemployment and promoting social cohesion.
The question must therefore be asked: How many jobs have been created through the NYDA? In the 2011-12 financial year, 12 579 employment opportunities were provided. Against the figure of more than nine million unemployed youth, that is a drop in the ocean. Clearly, this is not a viable way of creating jobs. We want to see real job growth amongst the youth, and we wait with bated breath for good intentions to be translated into tangible outcomes. Thank you. [Time expired.]
Adjunkspeaker, as jy die President van 'n land is, is jy veronderstel om 'n sterk leier te wees. Sterk leierskap word deur optredes gedemonstreer. Die VF Plus verwag dus van die President van Suid- Afrika om sterk leiding te gee.
Dit is egter nie sterk leierskap wat geopenbaar word as die SA Nasionale Weermag troepe in 'n skermutseling verloor het en 'n debat in hierdie Parlement in die afwesigheid van die opperbevelhebber van die weermag plaasvind nie. Dit is nie sterk leiding dat as daar 'n Gupta-krisis ontstaan en die President net eenvoudig swyg nie. Dit is swak leierskap om dan vir 'n Minister te s om aan te kondig dat 'n bepaalde ondersoek gedoen gaan word. Sterk leierskap sou wees as die President self na vore getree het, dadelik opgetree het en ges het dat daar behoorlik ondersoek ingestel moet word. Adjunkspeaker, dieselfde geld ten opsigte van die Nkandla-aangeleentheid. Hoekom het die President nie self dadelik en vinnig opgetree nie? Hy moes daar die sterk leiding gegee het. Hy het te lank gewag, en dit skep geleentheid vir spekulasie deur die belastingbetaler wat R205 miljoen moes opdok.
Die agb President moet sterk leierskap openbaar en leiding gee ten opsigte van ons ekonomie, maar daar kom twee boodskappe uit die Kabinet. Aan die een kant is dit basies die kommuniste en sosialiste, en aan die ander kant wil hy die kapitalisme omarm. Alvorens die President nie sterk leierskap gee nie, kan die VF Plus nie hierdie begrotingspos ondersteun nie. Ek dank u. (Translation of Afrikaans speech follows.)
[Mr P J GROENEWALD: Deputy Speaker, if you are the president of a country, you are supposed to be a strong leader. Strong leadership is demonstrated through actions. The FF Plus therefore expects of the President of South Africa to provide strong leadership.
However, it is not a sign of strong leadership when the SA National Defence Force has lost troops in a skirmish and a debate has taken place in this Parliament in the absence of the commander-in-chief of the Defence Force. It is not a sign of strong leadership when the President simply remains silent when a Gupta crisis arises. It is weak leadership to then tell a Minister to announce that a certain investigation will be conducted. It would have been a display of strong leadership if the President came forward personally, acted immediately and said that a proper investigation would have to be conducted.
Deputy Speaker, the same applies in respect of the Nkandla issue. Why did the President not act immediately and swiftly? He should have provided strong leadership in this regard. He has waited too long, and it has given the taxpayer, who had to pay up R205 million, the opportunity to speculate.
The hon President has to display strong leadership and provide leadership with regard to our economy, but the Cabinet is sending out two messages. On the one hand, it is basically the communists and socialists, and, on the other hand, he wants to embrace capitalism. The FF Plus cannot support this Budget Vote until the President provides strong leadership. I thank you.]
Deputy Speaker, the ACDP wishes to reiterate its objection to Budget Vote No 1 - The Presidency for the reasons articulated during the Budget Vote debate and for the reasons articulated by other speakers today.
What is possibly most significant is Reserve Bank Governor Gill Marcus's call for decisive leadership to tackle the country's domestic challenges which, in her view, are of crisis proportions. This, of course, implies that there is a lack of decisive leadership, and it is for this reason that the ACDP will not support this Vote. I thank you.
Deputy Speaker, this Budget Vote is being debated at a time when our people are experiencing immense hardship. The National Development Plan expects us to address poverty and inequality. The President, instead, has the public foot the bill for his R28 million in legal fees since assuming this office.
There is a silence on the Ministerial Handbook; the Presidential Handbook; the lack of an oversight committee; and also some Ministers who blatantly abuse state funds.
The core function of this Parliament is oversight. It is not about sexist members who come here and look around to see what the members in the opposition benches are wearing.
Almost R25 billion has been lost in unauthorised, irregular and fruitless expenditure from both provincial and national governments. This was because of weak leadership and also the disregard for provincial rules.
The Presidency is like a soap opera. You could miss five episodes, but still be able to catch up with the storyline. I thank you.
Deputy Speaker, I rise on a point of order. Is it parliamentary for the hon member to say that members come to the House to look at what other members are wearing instead of doing their jobs? This is casting aspersions on the integrity of members who are working and who are serving as Members of Parliament. I would like you to make a ruling because what he has said is unparliamentary. [Interjections.]
I will study the Hansard and come back to you.
Hon Deputy Speaker and hon President, I thought that by this time hon Mazibuko and hon Lekota, in particular, would know that this House is meant for the consideration of national issues.
From their declarations, if I were their class teacher, they would have scored zero because what they have said before this House is irrelevant to Vote No 1. So, they have said nothing, and yet they also want to anticipate processes in government. There is a commission on Marikana. It has not yet reported, and they have already passed judgment on that.
They are also trying to use this Parliament for party-political contestation. [Interjections.] So, they do not understand the role of this. The Protection of Information Bill is not a secrecy Bill. It has been passed by this House and the President has not yet acted on it. Why do you blame him for something that he has not even dealt with? I also think that Cope is not a competent organisation to tell us what the legacy of hon Nelson Mandela is. Thank you very much.
Division demanded.
The House divided:
AYES - 224: Abram, S; Adams, P E; Bam-Mugwanya, V; Bhengu, F; Bhengu, N R; Bhengu, P; Bikani, F C; Bonhomme, T; Booi, M S; Borman, G M; Boshigo, D F; Botha, Y R; Bothman, S G; Burgess, C V; Cele, M A; Chiloane, T D; Chohan, F I; Coleman, E M; Cwele, S C; Dambuza, B N; Daniels, P N; Davies, R H; De Lange, J H; Diale, L N; Dikgacwi, M M; Dikobo, K J; Ditshetelo, I C; Dlakude, D E; Dlamini, B O; Dlodlo, A; Dlomo, B J; Dubazana, Z S; Dube, M C; Duma, N M; Ebrahim, E I; Fransman, M L; Frolick, C T; Fubbs, J L; Gasebonwe, T M A; Gaum, A H; Gcwabaza, N E; Gelderblom, J P; Gigaba, K M N; Gina, N; Gololo, C L; Goqwana, M B; Gumede, D M; Hajaig, F; Hlengwa, M; Huang, S - B; Jacobus, L; Jeffery, J H; Kekana, C D; Kenye, T E; Khoarai, L P; Kholwane, S E; Khumalo, F E; Khunou, N P; Koornhof, G W; Kubayi, M T; Landers, L T; Lekgetho, G; Lesoma, R M M; Line-Hendriks, H; Lishivha, T E; Luyenge, Z; Mabasa, X; Mabedla, N R; Mabuza, M C; Madlala, N M; Madlopha, C Q; Mafolo, M V; Magagula, V V; Magama, H T; Magubane, E; Magwanishe, G; Makasi, X C; Makhuba, H N; Makhubela-Mashele, L S; Makhubele, Z S; Makwetla, S P; Malgas, H H; Maluleka, H P; Maluleke, J M; Manamela, K B; Manana, N C; Manganye, J; Mangena, M S; Manuel, T A; Mapisa-Nqakula, N N; Mashatile, S P; Mashigo, R M; Mashishi, A C; Masilo, J M; Masutha, T M; Mathebe, D H; Mathibela, N F; Matlanyane, H F; Matshoba, J M; Mavunda, D W; Mayatula, S M; Maziya, A M; Mdakane, M R; Mgabadeli, H C; Mjobo, L N; Mkhize, H B; Mkhulusi, N N P; Mlambo, E M; Mmusi, S G; Mnisi, N A; Mocumi, P A; Mohai, S J; Mohale, M C; Mohorosi, M; Mokoena, A D; Molebatsi, M A; Molewa, B E E; Moloi-Moropa, J C; Moloto, K A; Moni, C M; Moss, L N; Motlanthe, K P; Motsepe, R M; Motshekga, M A; Motshekga, M S; Mpontshane, A M; Msimang, C T; Msweli, H S; Mthethwa, E N; Mthethwa, E M; Mufamadi, T A; Mushwana, F F; Muthambi, A F; N'wamitwa-Shilubana, T L P; Nchabeleng, M E; Ndabandaba, L B G; Ndebele, J S; Ndlazi, A Z; Ndlovu, V B; Nel, A C; Nelson, W J; Nene, N M; Newhoudt-Druchen, W S; Ngcengwane, N D; Ngcobo, E N N; Ngcobo, B T; Ngele, N J; Ngubeni-Maluleka, J P; Ngwenya, W; Ngwenya- Mabila, P C; Nhlengethwa, D G; Njikelana, S J; Nkoana-Mashabane, M E; Nkomo, S J; Nkwinti, G E; Nonkonyana, M; November, N T; Ntapane, S Z; Ntuli, Z C; Ntuli, B M; Nxesi, T W; Nxumalo, M D; Nyalungu, R E; Nyanda, S; Nyekemba, E; Oliphant, M N; Oosthuizen, G C; Pandor, G N M; Peters, E D; Petersen-Maduna, P; Phaahla, M J; Phaliso, M N; Pilane-Majake, M C C; Pilusa-Mosoane, M E; Pule, D D; Radebe, G S; Radebe, B A; Radebe, J T; Ramatlhodi, N A; Ramodibe, D M; Ramokgopa, G; Schneemann, G D; Segale- Diswai, M J; Selau, G J; September, C C; Sibanyoni, J B; Sibiya, D; Sindane, G S; Singh, N; Sisulu, L N; Sithole, K P; Sithole, S C N; Sizani, P S; Skosana, M B; Smith, V G; Snell, G T; Sogoni, E M; Sonto, M R; Sosibo, J E; Suka, L; Sulliman, E M; Sunduza, T B; Surty, M E; Thibedi, J D; Tobias, T V; Tsebe, S R; Tseke, G K; Tsenoli, S L; Tshabalala, J; Tsotetsi, D R; Turok, B; Twala, N M; Van der Merwe, S C; Van Der Merwe, L L; van Rooyen, D D; Van Schalkwyk, M C J; van Wyk, A; Wayile, Z G; Williams, A J; Williams-De Bruyn, S T; Xaba, P P; Ximbi, D L; Yengeni, L E; Zikalala, C N