Chairperson, Ministers and Deputy Ministers present here, premiers, hon Members of the NCOP, ladies and gentlemen, allow me to express my profound delight at the North West province being given an opportunity to address this august House. It is said that the world has become a global village and my understanding of that is that the world has become inextricably interwoven to the point that, when a far away country sneezes, other countries catch a cold.
It is further said that no man is an island. Allow me to make another inference: No province, no department, no sphere is an island. History has constantly taught us that co-operation, and not competition, is the way forward. What intergovernmental relations underscore is that indispensable link that is present between government entities, spheres or departments. And that link enables those entities or spheres to pursue those common but different objectives of social, economic and political development to accomplish the national democratic revolution.
It is significant to understand the underlying assumption about the legislative process and its impact on society. When we talk about unlocking the synergy for collective effort, we mean having that fundamental appreciation of the law-making process, a discourse that is all-inclusive and takes into consideration the overwhelming interests of the public.
The law is not by definition a product independent from society, but a product of society. So, in order to unlock the synergy, or that key, it is imperative to define what role each player will assume and consequently what the expected outcomes are. It is therefore reasonable to expect that co-ordination and co-operation should be our modus operandi. To put it simply, we have seen anecdotal evidence that suggests that if we work together we can succeed, because working together we can do more.
Hon Chairperson, ladies and gentlemen, it is not beyond us to chart a different course by utilising our institutional mechanisms and our engineering ability to promote transparent and accountable governance. Our Constitution in Chapter 3 provides for how that institutional framework ought to function. Co-operative governance is essential as a way to foster institutional capacity and sustainability.
The framers of the Constitution intended our system of government not to be federal, but unitary in its objective - a quasi-federal system in implementation to speed up service delivery. Understanding local needs in policy formulation, whether it is by statute or just by policy, is paramount. That is precisely what intergovernmental relations seek to accomplish. For example, if you read section 41(1)(g) and (h)(i), (ii) and (iii), it says that:
all spheres of government and all organs of state within each sphere must exercise their powers and perform their functions in a manner that does not encroach on the geographical, functional or institutional integrity of government in another sphere; and co-operate with one another in mutual trust and good faith by fostering friendly relations; assisting and supporting one another; and informing one another of, and consulting one another on, matters of common interest.
The ingenious nature of this arrangement is that it opens up space for a government that works, taking into consideration local needs while advancing the common agenda of building sustainable economic development that will benefit all.
The delegation model of the NCOP as enshrined in the Constitution guarantees the effective and efficient running of government by ensuring that the legislative arm in the national government remains in touch with the needs of the people across all the provinces. It seeks to promote diversity and preserve cultural differences via a national platform. It captures the essence of a nation seen through a rainbow.
We are a nation of people who migrated southwards looking for a better future and when we reached that southern point we stopped and settled. We were met by other forces which attempted to obliterate us, but because of that spirit of love we remained steadfast in our belief in the fundamental nature of humans. We indeed remain committed to that principle embodied by the former statesman Nelson Mandela who when he came out of prison, explicitly implied that "you must do unto others as you would have them do unto you." Today we are living out that principle, albeit with some imperfections. The manifestation of that can be witnessed in the sporadic conflicts that have their root cause in our distant past.
Chairperson, as I conclude, our model of governance has defied observers, because I believe that the genius of our model is in our history. It captures the aspirations of a nation determined never to go back to the dark past when humanity was unaware of that greatest common denominator that binds us and implores us to remember that we have more in common than we are different. [Applause.]