House Chair, it is my great pleasure to speak in favour of this Bill, and this is why no nation is perfect, and we certainly are no exception. As long as our founding President Nelson Mandela's dream of elevating what someone once called the "better angels of our nature" proves to be elusive, we will remain an imperfect nation.
We must always invoke the principles of the first democratic administration to rebuke the inequalities, poverty, joblessness and hypocrisy of pervasive corruption that plague the administration of President Zuma, whose values simply bear no resemblance to that of Mr Mandela.
One of the few bright sparks in the darkness that defines this administration is the Department of Trade and Industry's, DTI's, replacement of the lacklustre industrial development zones with the more promising SEZs. The DA supports the SEZs because they can become engines of innovation that solve the following: problems of joblessness and slow economic growth. They can also become places of experimentation where trade unions partner with businesses to put sustainability above profits; disputes are efficiently and effectively resolved in ways that are just and fair; bureaucratic red tape is minimised; necessary infrastructure gets laid down by government on time and to scale; corruption is punished to the full extent of the law; and practical solutions to practical problems of doing business are found.
The SEZs could be places where the positive qualities - the better angels of our nature - rise to the challenge. We have come this far as a nation because, as a people, South Africans are resourceful. We have a can-do- attitude; possess an entrepreneurial spirit; embrace risk-taking ethos; are problem-solvers; and once were - and certainly must be again - future- oriented nation-builders. How this contrasts with President Zuma, who constantly looks in his rear- view mirror and is fearful of what is coming; trapping us in the past, keeping us prisoners of apartheid, bringing out the worst qualities of greed and self-serving opportunism, and stripping government bare of its resources at every turn. We now have an opportunity with the SEZs, but Minister Davies has to solve some problems for them to succeed.
It appears as though the SEZs will take much too long - some say close to two years - to get off the ground. Then there are some constitutional issues that require clarity. Firstly, is it constitutional for SEZs to have different protection and benefit regimes? Secondly, is it constitutional for Minister Davies to exercise power and perform functions beyond that conferred upon him by law?
The Special Economic Zones Bill does not specify what laws and which regulations Minister Davies may suspend or derogate or which type of incentive he may or may not implement. This leaves considerable uncertainty and a measure of personal licence which even he may find to be unwarranted, and a step of unrestrained personal power taken too far.
Finally, chapter six leaves openings for corruption and the possibility that operator licences will be given to politically connected entities. Parliament needs to satisfy itself that these and other issues are addressed to ensure that the SEZs reach their full potential.
The DA supports the Special Economic Zones Bill. I thank you. [Applause.]