Hon James will introduce the report. Hon member, you better run. Minister, you are blocking traffic there. Hon James, next time you must be sited here. Yes, next time, okay? Go ahead.
Hon Deputy Speaker, it is noted, it won't happen again. Hon Deputy Speaker, Parliament is obliged in terms of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa and the Public Service Act, to recommend the candidate for appointment by the President to serve as a commissioner for the National Public Service Commission.
Section 196 of the Constitution empowers Parliament through its committee to appoint five commissioners for the National Public Service Commission. Each commissioner should serve for the period of five years which is renewable. The committee received a request through the Speaker's office to expedite filling of the vacancy for the commissioner's post in the National Public Service Commission.
On 22 September 2019, the committee placed an advert in various newspapers calling on members of the public who are fit and proper persons to apply for the vacancy in the Public Service Commission. The portfolio committee appointed among its members, a subcommittee to run with the recruitment processes and report to the Principal once the recruitment processes are complete, and about 172 applicants responded to the advert.
Most of the candidates who responded had requisite skills and experience to contest for the position. Candidates were shortlisted based on their previous background, knowledge and their experience in various institutions. Hon Deputy Speaker, the Portfolio Committee on Public
Service and Administration, resolved to recommend that the House approve the recommended candidate which is Ms Zanele Isabella Hlatshwayo for the appointment by the President to serve as the commissioner for the National Public Service Commission.
Hon Deputy Speaker, I therefore move for the adoption of this report. Shukran. Merci beaucoup. [Thank you very much.]
There was no debate.
Question put: That the House approves the nomination of Ms Zanele Isabella Hlatshwayo as commissioner for the Public Service Commission.
Declaration(s) of vote:
Hon Deputy Speaker, as the hon member mentioned, the Constitution requires the Public Service Commissioners, PSCs, to be fit and proper persons who will ensure that the Public Service Commission, execute its duties in ways about independence and impartial. The Public Service Commission Act further stipulates that
Commissioners shall not hold office in any political party or political organisation.
A legal interpretation submitted to the subcommittee tasked with making this recommendation, further defined a fit and proper person as someone who demonstrates integrity, reliability and honesty. Based on these criteria, it is hardly possible to come up with a worse and more inappropriate person to appoint to the PSC than Zanele Hlatshwayo whom the ANC nominated to fill this crucial position.
She exemplifies everything that the Public Service Commissioner should not be. Hlatshwayo is unfit; Hlatshwayo is improper; Hlatshwayo is a biased ANC cadre; Hlatshwayo has a demonstrated track record of lack in integrity, reliability and honesty. She was Mayor of Msunduzi from 2007 to 2010, where she allegedly spent millions of rands in taxpayer's funds on her pit projects, including an extravagant trip to attend Barack Obama's inauguration as President of the United States.
After only three years, even the ANC have had enough and fired her. The Kwazulu-Natal Provincial Government was also forced to place Msunduzi under administration. Under beloved comrade Mayor, the financial status of the municipality rapidly deteriorated. There was pervasive noncompliance with statutory obligations, as well as a lack of oversight by the council.
Hon Deputy Speaker, does the person who destroyed Pietermaritzburg sound like a fit and proper person who has demonstrated integrity, reliability and honesty? No, and it is not ethically defensible. But it gets worse, Deputy Speaker, Hlatshwayo was reportedly number 33 on the ANC's Kwazulu- Natal list to become a Member of Parliament. In a CV she boasts about being an active national working committee member of the ANC alliance, SA National Civic Organisation, SANCO.
During the interview process to fill the PSC vacancy, ANC members of the committee made a big show of asking the candidates, how do we build a merit- based public service? When I asked Hlatshwayo whether her appointment wouldn't undermine any talk about building a merit-based and a
political public service, she arrogantly responded, I quote: "I will never stop being political."
Hon Deputy Speaker, does this sound like someone who will be perceived by the public as independent and impartial? No, and it is not ethically defensible. Just as scandalous though, is the way in which the ANC actively undermine Kevin Malunga, the current Deputy Public Protector of the Republic who also applied for the PSC position. Malunga submitted a distinguished CV to the subcommittee, and he had by far the best interview.
Malunga is in fact fit and proper; Malunga is independent and impartial; Malunga has a demonstrated track record of integrity, reliability and honesty, which is precisely why the ANC, guided by its cadre deployment policy undermine Malunga at every turn. First, they tried to disqualify him on the basis that he was born in Zimbabwe, even though that he included a naturalisation certificate in his application, which showed that he became a South African citizen in 2010.
Next, the ANC said there was, I quote: "unwritten policy that Malunga's gender disqualified him from the post." When the DA objected to this flagrant xenophobia and sexism, the ANC tried to use a report from the State Security Agency, SSA, which supposedly implied that our current Deputy Public Protector may have a criminal record.
This was despite the fact that the SSA never even checked his finger prints. This entire process was a sham from the very start, in line with ANC's policy of cadre deployment ... [Interjections.]
Hon member, I am sorry, just one moment, please take your seat. Yes hon member?
Hon Chair, the hon member is speaking about the ANC all the time. He's forgetting that they've got a Mayor in Tshwane.
No, that's not a point of order. Proceed, hon member.
I repeat, hon Deputy Speaker, this entire appointment process was a sham from the very start, in line with cadre deployment, it was designed to ensure that incompetent Zanele got the post, and the R1,5 million annual salary, and that a professional public servant, Malunga, was eliminated.
In the end, the DA's unrelenting battle against this effort to capture the PSC ensured that Malunga was at least formally listed as an alternate candidate to become PSC commissioner. We have thereby kept an open door for President Cyril Ramaphosa to do the right thing. We call on him to reject the nomination of cadre Zanele, and to instead appoint Kevin Malunga to safeguard the independence and functionality of the Public Service Commission. Thank you [Applause.]
Deputy Speaker, Chairperson the Public Service Commission has a critical role to play in the efficient management of the ...
THE DEPUTY SPEAKER: ... sorry hon member. Hon members please respect members on the podium. If you don't
respect all of us here, wena [you] madam Khawula, hon member you are extremely out order. Go ahead hon member.
Chairperson the Public Service Commission has a critical role to play in the efficient management of the function of government. The commission has a constitutional duty to guard and promote the principle of the public administration, as set out in the section 195 of the Constitution. This includes a high standard of professional ethics in the public service and to ensure that public administration is development oriented amongst other things.
It is therefore important that the men and women who get appointed to the Public Service Commission are of a sound mind and are wired in, correctly; in terms of appreciating the role of the commission and can play a role in advancing our developmental interest. Ordinarily we would support the name of a capable woman to be appointed to the Public Service Commission, so despite the fact that the qualities of the position - her character is not what the Public Service Commission need at the moment. She left the job as a mayor of Msunduzi
Local Municipality under a cloud of corruption and the municipality was put under administration under her watch.
We would therefore not support people with a tainted past to come and oversee the work of the public service. The public service is littered with incidences of corruption, of abuse of power by senior managers, of harassment of those who oppose rogue leadership elements. The commission has been silent on this issue for a very long time. We would therefore want a commission that has teeth to bite; we do not support the recommendation. Thank you.
Hon Deputy Speaker...
IsiZulu:
... angisho nje ngizidlulela ukuthi kuyamangalisa kuyadumaza lokhu okushiwo umhlonishwa udade oqeda ukusuka la ngoba ekomidini uvumelene nathi kodwa asikho lapho. [Ubuwelewele.]
English:
The advancement of the developmental state model requires amongst other things: Strengthening the public service, this means professionalising the public service for service delivery, build ethical public leadership and fight corruption. It must be independent and impartial and exercise its powers and perform its functions without fear, favour and prejudice, in the interest of the maintenance of effective efficient public service and high standard of ethics in the public service, as the Constitution provides.
The ANC, supports the recommendation of the Portfolio Committee of Public Service Commission, Public Service and Administration, that Ms Zanele Isabel Hlatshwayo in terms of section 196 (8a) of the Constitution be recommended for the hon President to be appointed to serve in the Public Service Commission. May I, just say the important processes that we followed, which all us by the way hon members, we agreed on and was fit and proper, which were before the short-listing, and the understanding of the public service, what does it mean and we agreed.
Secondly, the criteria of short-listing in terms of the Chapter 10 of the Constitution, what is required, we all agreed, which was before the short- listing. The nine candidates that were short-listed, all of us we agreed on that. That means all the candidates that were short- listed were fit and proper. Thirdly was the issue - we did receive preliminary vetting results, which we were waiting for the final one, which the President will receive in due course, after this process. I must say its quiet disturbing and alarming what hon members behaving as if we didn't look at those things, we didn't agree on that.
Parliament and the ANC as the ruling and leading party in government, we reaffirm here and today our commitment, work, support, empower and make sure that all the recommendations that are put before the committee and Parliament by the Public Service Commission, is strengthening our oversight role as the public representatives. Let us take this opportunity so that we don't waste time, because I have alluded on three major processes which are critical that we followed and also we are not dealing with a person, but I must say...
... kungaba yichilo kokuthi ... umangabe umuntu ... kuleya ndawo simthathe sengathi usebenza yedwana, sisebenza sisonke, nanikuphi nina? Mangisho-ke ... sibonge kubantu ebesibambisene nabo kuzo zonke izinhlangano
Awusibizanga thina! [Ubuwelewele.]
English:
Hon Deputy Speaker, let us take this opportunity ...
IsiZulu:
... kubo bonke ababekwe ... nababengenele ukuthi babe kule komishani. I- ANC iyaseka. Siyabonga. [Ihlombe.]
IsiZulu:
Sekela Somlomo, nginephuzu lokukhalima okuphambukayo. Uxolo, Sekela Somlomo.
English:
What's your point of order?
Cha, Sekela Somlomo, i-ANC ibanga umsindo manje asisezwa lutho lana kanti ...
English:
... we are coming to hear everything here.
THE DEPUTY SPEAKER: yah, hon member let's proceed. Hon members, in terms of section 196 of the Constitution, the persons nominated for appointment to serve on the Public Service Commission, must be approved by a majority of members of the Assembly, although a division has not been demanded, members are required to record their support for the recommendation. The bells will be rung for five minutes.
Hon members, we do wish to remind you that you may only vote from your allocated seat, when requested to do so, you must simply indicate your vote by pressing the appropriate button below yes, no or abstain sides. If you inadvertently press the wrong button, you may thereafter press the correct button. The last button pressed will be recorded as your vote, when the voting session is closed
by the Chair. Order, the question before the House, is that House approves the nomination of Ms Zanele Isabella Hlatshwayo for appointment to serve on the Public Service Commission, are all members... hon members just be in order, no, no be in order. We are in the middle of a decision here, so don't raise anything. Hon members, voting will now commence. Those in favour of the nomination, should press the "yes" button, those against will press the "no", those wishing to abstain, press the "abstain" button. Have you all voted?
Deputy Speaker, the member there, Mr Nxumalo can't vote he has a problem with a machine.
THE DEPUTY SPEAKER: Umshini wakhe [his device], you don't have say that, just raise your hands and point him. The people here will know that.
Yah, he is voting no.
THE DUPUTY SPEAKER: You don't have to tell us, it's done on the button and if you talk, you come here, if want to. The voting session is closed.
There was no debate.
Question put: That the House approves the nomination of Ms Zanele Isabella Hlatshwayo as commissioner for the Public Service Commission.
The majority required in terms of section 196(8)(a)(ii) of the Constitution, 1996 (Act No 108 of 1996) not being obtained, decision of question postponed.