E rile ka ngwaga wa 2004 ... [During 2004 ...] ... while travelling in a taxi from Zeerust to Rustenburg, people were talking about the political parties before the elections. Amongst them was a man from Botswana, a mineworker. He reminded the people he was conversing with in the taxi that South Africans were very lucky to have a government like ours, a government that was determined to have a budget that could improve the lives of the poor. He said that many countries did not prioritise the poor to ensure that they could have a better life in the budgets they appropriated.
I am proud that yesterday the Portfolio Committee on Finance and the Joint Budget Committee finalised the Bill on amending the money Bills, the Bill that is going to ensure, as the Budget is presented to us, that as Parliament we will then have better oversight and more teeth to ensure that monies allocated to various departments, monies allocated to provincial and local governments, will be used to fulfil the will of our people.
I also want to state that I believe Comrade Baleka, the Deputy President, wherever she is, is proud that this Bill has finally been concluded and that we are now going to use our teeth to ensure that there is effective and efficient service delivery and spending.
Also, when it comes to money made available in the Budget, we must ensure as government departments, as Parliament, that those monies, as appropriated, are used effectively and efficiently. This is one of the weaknesses that exist - that monies are allocated, but come midyear, the monies are not utilised when our people need services. So we must ensure that we monitor fully these budget allocations as outlined in the Appropriation Bill.
When Parliament does its work, does its function of budget oversight, it should not be misunderstood - seen as an enemy of the executive. It is within our right to ensure that on a frequent basis, we look at the budget, for example: what a department has done, what a department has not achieved, what the reasons are there for not implementing the budget. To cite an example, as the budget committee we have, on several occasions, raised the problem of high vacancy rates. And the question is: How can we ensure that this budget is fully utilised if the vacancy rates are high in departments because there are no people who will ensure that service delivery reaches our people? We must ensure, as budgeted, that those vacancies are filled, that there are people who can use the money to ensure that our people can have a better life.
We are very happy as the ANC that when the Budget was presented, it talked about education, which is central to whatever development we want to make as a developmental state. This Budget must ensure that our people can get a better education. But it is also our responsibility as Members of Parliament to ensure that children, as the President said, go to school; to ensure that parents support their children; to ensure that teachers teach; to ensure that Tshwane University of Technology students go to class, go and learn, because they have been away from class for quite a long time and it is time they went back to class, went back to the university and studied, because we will need their services in the future.
Therefore, the allocation that goes to that institution must be monitored to ensure that it definitely achieves what it is supposed to achieve.
We are also happy that the Budget addresses health services so that the poor can access health care, so that those who are infected with HIV/Aids not only get treatment, but better treatment. As the ANC, we are very happy that the Budget addresses the issue of crime and that the criminal justice cluster will get sufficient resources to ensure that we can sleep peacefully in our houses and travel peacefully in the streets because criminals are dealt with. There are sufficient resources to deal with criminals.
Those of us who come from the rural areas are saying "hallelujah" because this Budget addresses the fact that people must farm.
Ba tsamaye ba ye go lema; batho ba rona ba tshwanetse go lema ka gonne bontsi jwa bone ba phutile diatla ga ba sa kgona go lema, ke ka moo ke reng re a itumela jaaka re le mokgatlho wa ANC ... [Let them go and farm as most of our people should, because most of them are doing nothing at the moment and are unable to farm. That is why I say we as the ANC are pleased ...]
... that our people will be assisted to farm.
It is our responsibility as Parliament that when money is allocated for housing, we monitor the houses being built to ensure that they are decent houses - and not the houses that we have seen, that collapse and are not safe for our people. The money is there, and when this money is made available, let us monitor it because it is our responsibility to ensure as Parliament, as the community, that this money will be spent in the best way.
It is important that efficiency, value for money and effectiveness in government spending is achieved. As I always say, the money is available but we can achieve more in the way we use the money. And I am prepared to state that it's the determination of the ANC that this money be used effectively and efficiently. I am positive that post the elections, the pace will be increased to ensure that services can reach the beneficiaries.
I want to close by thanking the National Treasury for having worked closely with us - that every time we call them they do appear before us and give us information as requested. I also want to thank various departments that have been working very hard with us, the departments that have been responding to our calls and have been responding to the queries that we raise with them.
Finally, I want to thank members of the Joint Budget Committee for having worked hard during this term of Parliament, and I want to thank all the portfolio committees that have been assisting us to ensure, as we deal with the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement, that they are with us, they enrich our deliberations and even enrich our recommendations to Parliament.
Lastly, if I happen not to come back, I want to say thank you to the ANC for having given me the opportunity to represent the people of this country and that I won't join any other party except the ANC. Thank you. [Applause.]