Deputy Speaker, I understand the Minister's answer that intervention is foremost a provincial competence but if a provincial intervention fails or does not happen obviously the Minister must step in or at least engage with the matter.
The Eastern Cape provincial government has accused the council of the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality of being dysfunctional and of failing to meet its obligations. It has assisted the council by offering to appoint an administrator but this offer has been rejected by the
mayor and the acting municipal manager has called it premature.
Considering the political chaos in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality and the fact that they are forfeiting R3 billion in national government's funding which they still have to pay back and could bankrupt that municipality, would the Minister support the DA's call for the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality council to be dissolved? Thank you. [Applause.]
The MINISTER OF CO-OPERATIVE GOVERNANCE AND TRADITIONAL
AFFAIRS: Section 139(c) of the Constitution allows for the dissolution but there are processes that are followed. A political party does not come to the Minister and say, "can we dissolve?" and we dissolve. There are processes that are followed that start from the province.
I would advise the DA to follow the processes and not say whether or not I will support or not; I will only exercise my mind when I have got a request for concurrence. Thank you.
Question 298:
The MINISTER OF COOPERATIVE GOVERNANCE AND TRADITIONAL
AFFAIRS: Deputy Speaker, the implementation of the Integrated Urban Development Framework, IUDF, and the National Skill Development Fund, NSDF, will not require major changes to the current government functioning, however it will require better co-ordination and the provision of coherence and various government programmes. This would be enhanced through the district development model and other complimentary interventions. The district development model seeks to ensure co-operation, collaboration and co-ordination across the three spheres of government, to enhance local planning, spatial development amongst other objectives. The model is a practical intergovernmental relations mechanism for all three spheres of government, to plan, budget, implement, monitor jointly and act in unison.
In terms of functioning areas, there are no additional capacity requirements in order to mainstream the NSDF and IUDF across government, however there is requirement for supporting and deepening existing capabilities. For instance in the areas of planning, spatial planning,
financial management, infrastructure management, development planning, project management, economic planning, information and information technologies and ICT, if those capabilities are weak they will need to be strengthened. Additionally, to implement the two policies, they will be a further requirement for alignment and co-ordination of the Offices of the Premier as well as Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation and Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs.
At local government level, the department will establish district or metro hubs and these districts and metro hubs will be established in phases, across the various districts and metros in consultation with the provinces and the municipalities. The hubs will ensure that there is integrated planning and implementation, sharing of resources and services, that there also transparency and accountability and impact monitoring within all districts and metro spaces.
The districts hubs can also be complimented and by co- ordinating the learning networks amongst municipalities,
as a platform to learn together, share ideas and jointly seek solutions to the challenges faced by the urban agenda. Currently the department through the IUDF programme has established a peer learning network that consists of six municipalities, namely; the City of Mbombela, City of uMhlathuze, Kwadukuza, Steve Tshwete, Polokwane Municipality and Stellenbosch Local Municipality. The peer learning network brings together officials from planning, infrastructure delivery and budgeting offices of the participating municipalities, in order to promote collaboration, planning and integrated service delivery, in support of the IUDF as oppose to current silos. So, this is really a sharing and learning and networking of municipalities. That's the platform they have for the IUDF. Thank you.
Thank you, hon Arries.
Thank you, hon Deputy Speaker...
...ha, ha! Sorry, sorry I think I should have called hon Mpunza, eskies [sorry].
Thanks Deputy Chair...
THE DEPUTY SPEAKER: ...Deputy Speaker you mean, heh?
...oh Deputy Speaker.
Yes, thank you.
Deputy Speaker, Minister is the alignment co-ordination through district planning, implementation and monitoring model, paying off to the desired outcomes in the pilot municipalities where we have implemented the district model?
The MINISTER OF COOPERATIVE GOVERNANCE AND TRADITIONAL
AFFAIRS: Thank you very much, I think it will pay off but as you know, we only launched the last pilot yesterday, actually. So we can't say it has paid off but what we can see up to now is that there is increasing change of culture of working in silos. The three spheres of government are beginning to work together but it's not something that is just going to happen over night. It's something that is going to be a change of culture but
also when we launched, we launched midstream, the plans were already there, so we were not able to plan together. What we have been able to do, is to take all the plans that are there for a particular district. We have taken what national, all the departments that have anything to do with operational requirement, OR.
We have looked at their plans, at their budget; we have done the same with the province and done the same with municipalities. So that we get a full picture of what government is doing at OR. We have also developed very extensive profiles of each district, so that we can also see whether what government is doing in those districts is speaking to the challenges of the district, but also to the opportunities, because there are lots of opportunities in those districts, that have really not been tapped. So we can't say now that it is paying off, but we are positive that what is happening now is positive. Thank you.
Deputy Speaker, Minister obviously the national spatial development framework depends for its implementation on different spheres of government
reaching crucial agreements. One of the ways, municipalities can redress the injustices of the past is to bring people closer to work and social amenities. The City of Cape Town has identified a number of land passes for affordable housing development, including Upper Darling Street, Wingfield, Youngfield, Ysterplaat and Colenberg. The problem is that, they are struggling to have these passes of land released by the Department of Public Works. This is impending the City's redress programme. Is the Minister willing to meet with the Minister of the Department of Public Works to unblock whatever is keeping this agreement and the transfer of that land from being fulfilled? Thanks very much.
THE DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon Minister, my apologies hon Arries, your time will be next.
The MINISTER OF COOPERATIVE GOVERNANCE AND TRADITIONAL
AFFAIRS: I think what would help is, if we get something from you. We will take it; there is Interministerial Committee which is chaired by the Deputy President on land. Where the Minister of the Department of Public Works, where Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development,
CoGTA and many others sit. So this matter can then be discussed there and accelerated there but, I think let's have something from you, we will put on the agenda of that Interministerial Committee.
We can meet with the Minister of Public Works, but I think it would be good to have everybody around the table on this matter, so that's accelerated. Thank you.
Thank you Minister, spatial planning was used to separate people on the basis of colour and today it is being done on basis of class. Is there a commitment within government to dismantle colonial and apartheid spatial planning to ensure integrated human settlement and development. The reality of today was in the past the Voortrekkers used to call a put up their voort, that is where then say, today they just call it under very nice name, they call it private security complexes. What will you do to ensure that you enforce on these municipalities to transform the apartheid spatial development. The realities hon Minister are, while we speaking about integration, there is still approve these private
security complexes and our people can not afford it. Thank you Deputy Speaker.
The MINISTER OF COOPERATIVE GOVERNANCE AND TRADITIONAL
AFFAIRS: Thank you very much hon member, it is true that spatial development was engineered for both racial and class discrimination and I must admit, honestly that we have not been able to change that up to now. There is willingness to do it, but it's not something that can be done by one department. It has to be a collective and we hope that as we begin to plan together in the district in the future, we will be able to take that into account. So that's all I can say for now, it can be even the municipalities alone, it will be have to be all spheres, because if there is human settlement then we must see where the economic activities are, where the sustainable development zone, SDZ are and all the other things. So it really needs an integrated approach. Thank you.
Deputy Speaker, I have a supplementary question. Hon Minister, what is the risk of evoking section 139 in all affected municipalities without diagnosing the underline challenges and specifically, how
long does it take the Provincial Executive Council, PEC, to determine whether to intervene and apply section 139? I thank you.
The MINISTER OF COOPERATIVE GOVERNANCE AND TRADITIONAL
AFFAIRS: I think section 139, is not a panacea for all ills in municipalities. You are correct, hon member that we need to do a proper diagnosis in each municipality and see, what are the problems, what is the mischief that needs to be fixed, before we just apply section 139. How long it takes for the PEC to decide, I don't know to be honest, some may take shorter and others may take long, I wouldn't hazard a guess on that. Thank you.
Question 299:
IsiZulu:
USEKELA SOMLOMO: Ngqongqoshe banawe namuhla.