Madam Chairperson, an activist and inclusive state and Parliament is what Cope offers to South Africa as the second big advance on our path to democratisation and transformation of our country. Progressivism is linked directly to activism. This is what Cope advocates as its ideological direction.
Any government that concentrates too much attention on itself and about itself will naturally not be able to concentrate on the people it is supposed to serve. That much is clear. We in Cope would want a government and Parliament we constitute to send people out into the field, not concentrate them in their silos in Pretoria and Cape Town.
The Westminster style of centralised bureaucracy has to be adapted to our needs and our circumstances. In our country, integrated teams of officials, drawn from a cluster of Ministries, should go out into the field to convert policy into immediate programmes and projects.
Our people should not be subjected to bureaucracy; rather bureaucracy should be subjected to our people for their common good. The bureaucracy that has been the cause of every delay should now be cascaded into a bureaucracy of small integrated field units. This fieldworker-type bureaucracy must make delivery happen by facilitating all processes, removing all obstacles and resolving all legalities on their own.
Members of Parliament should frequently visit communities and listen to the people. We are very clear about the need for South Africa to become an activist state. For us, an activist state is not a protectionist state. In our understanding, political and economic activism require active endeavours by the state to go the extra mile.
An activist state creates optimal synergy. Therefore, an activist state is one where activists, such as you and I once were, remain committed activists in spite of coming into government, assuming high office and serving as Members of Parliament.
Today, very sadly, activists are found outside of government. Many of yesterday's activists have become today's careerists in government. The resulting dichotomy of us and them is not good for our country. In our manifesto, we undertook to develop a new agenda of hope. We wanted to see acceleration in delivery. We also wanted to see the people of our country acting as a cohesive nation.
In our manifesto, we also undertook to ensure that all employees of the state would be professional in their conduct. As such, they will be protected from intimidation and victimisation by the executive. Our vision is of an activist state where leaders will pull together with the "span" [team] and be humble and down to earth, where the will of the people prevails, society coheres, and people power can achieve the things that will, otherwise, remain out of reach. People power is available in our country. Millions of patriots want to serve our country. They do not want to be passive receivers of programmes. They need proper channels to volunteer their services. We would provide them with such channels.
In the activist state, we envisage that each village will become a fully viable village. We see the village doctor, government planners and traditional leaders interacting with one another, to create modern green developments. The planners will be resident planners, thus the villages will make a country.
The role of traditional leaders in our rural areas also has to be given serious consideration. A centralised parliament has to be seen as being at the apex of numerous local parliaments and izimbizo and not an entity in itself. We must harness indigenous consultative and planning processes with the right to determine local solutions.
In the activist state that we envisage, no local institutions abrogate another and no institution arrogates to itself sole authority. The state can never know it all and must never presume to do so. It is common cause that the gulf between those who govern and those who are governed is widening.
Municipalities are not in touch with the people and their affairs as local government is in grave disorder. There is rapidly declining service delivery. To add to the problem, the number of civil servants involved in serious conflicts of interest is escalating. Patronage is endemic. A government that governs strictly by mandate governs evenly, democratically, constitutionally and accountably. Such a government builds national consensus. It fosters a common national identity through common symbols and a shared heritage.
In the activist state we envisage, government will be the government of the people, by the people, and for the people in advancement of all the people. Nobody but nobody will be marginalised in spite of their diversity. The government we seek to establish would be a government of fieldworkers demanding nothing of anybody and offering every service to everybody as a duty on their part.
Let the activist state arise. Let the chains of poverty be broken. Let us go into the future as a united people sharing a common destiny, safeguarded collectively by all of us. For all our children, let our common identity prevail and let a universal activism make our activist state a model for Africa and for the world. I thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. [Applause.]