Thank you, Chairperson, hon Minister, Members of Parliament ...
... nam mandizibulisele ngokuhlwa nje. [... let me greet you all this evening.]
I rise here on behalf of the Eastern Cape government to support the Bill. The Joint Portfolio Committee on Safety and Security and Economic Affairs, Environment and Tourism conducted a series of public hearings all over the province from 14 to 17 July 2008. All these public hearings were a success.
During the meeting on the negotiating mandate, the Eastern Cape raised issues that came out of the public hearings. Some of those issues were contained or captured in the Bill and we are happy with that. There is one issue, however, Minister, which we thought had been captured, but we are saying as the province that it was not captured in the way we wanted.
With regard to the issue that deals with the specialised unit within the SAPS, in our view as the province, we still feel very strongly that with the capacity problems of the SAPS, we need to have a unit which is going to specialise in and deal with this Second-Hand Goods Bill. It would be the same as we have with the stock theft units and other units that deal with firearms and their control. If you don't have that you will have problems with compliancy.
We hear what the response of the department is. It is saying that one can't have all these issues in the Bill, as they are operational matters. But we are saying, Minister, that those operational matters must find expression in the local and provincial police stations for SAPS members to do the enforcement part of it. It is clear that proper enforcement of this legal framework will curtail the selling of stolen goods by criminals through this industry. The obvious expectation in our province is that once the Bill is passed into legislation it will have a significant impact on reducing crime, especially organised crime. The successful fight against crime requires an integrated involvement of a wide cross-section of role-players; thus we think the Bill will do exactly that.
The Eastern Cape is the second largest province in the country. It is mainly comprised of vast rural areas and the following features of the social and economic context are directly relevant to the problems of crime and safety in this province. There is widespread and deep-rooted poverty, with some 67% of the provincial population living below the poverty line.
There is a glaring disparity in the provincial economy between the rich and poor. Rural unemployment and poverty remains high, with government services and welfare grants being the mainstay of rural local economies. There is a high and rising rate of HIV/Aids prevalent in the province and health care challenges are also a problem.
Besides combating dealings in stolen goods, the Bill will also have a socioeconomic impact on society, which includes economic growth and broadening of the tax base through the increased number of registered and tax-abiding businesses. The Bill has direct licensing costs, which entail administrative costs, equipment, database maintenance and vetting of applicants.
Failure to adequately enforce and monitor this legislation may result in unlicensed traders operating, thus negating the objectives of the Bill. Through the Bill's stringent controls for dealing with second-hand goods, the Bill will contribute to tackling the trade in stolen goods and organised crime by removing and minimising the commercial benefits of trading in stolen goods. This entails stolen vehicles, cell phones and copper cables.
Most important is the seven days waiting period, applicable to the automotive industry, or any other industry for that matter, before cars or goods that are acquired can be disposed of. Second-hand goods dealers or pawnbrokers are required to maintain and retain transaction records and proper registers.
This information is to be made available to police and authorised officers, when required. This will enable the police to identify stolen goods. This Bill also requires an identity document to be produced when selling goods to shops or scrap metal dealers to prevent the buying of stolen goods.
In the Eastern Cape we have witnessed a spate of thefts of municipal property in recent weeks, such as water taps and drainage lids to be sold to scrap metal dealers. These incidents deprive the people of the services, like water, and pose a serious danger to them. With the requirement that an identity document has to be produced, it will be difficult for people to sell stolen items.
Through the provision of a regulatory environment that protects legitimate business and promotes competition, the Bill will instil confidence and create conditions conducive to business growth. The licensing of special goods categories will provide consumers with an assurance that a potential supplier has been examined and possesses a sound record and skills covered by the licence. In terms of penalties, we are saying it will also help the culprits.
Chairperson, we therefore support the Bill and welcome the fact that this committee has called us to come and have a bite at these deliberations. I thank you.