Chairperson, Deputy Minister and hon members, the directives of the Constitutional Court having been complied with I now rise on behalf of the Eastern Cape to support the passing of the Bills that are the subject of debate today.
It will be recalled that Matatiele is in no way a stranger to the Eastern Cape, it being a well-known fact that historically and before the ultimate balkanisation of our country into ethnic states and a white South Africa, Matatiele had formed part of the Cape Province and especially the eastern part of the Cape.
The objection then to Matatiele remaining in the so-called independent Transkei had more to do with the racial connotations and implications of the apartheid system on the rights of the citizens of that area as South Africans as the granting of a pseudo-independence resulted in the loss of South African citizenship and attendant rights.
In fact, only the town of Matatiele and some white farms were incorporated into what was known as the Natal Province but the surrounding rural areas, including Maluti, were to remain in the former Transkei. Indeed, in the long term, this was to have far- reaching adverse results for the latter areas in terms of resources and socioeconomic development, precisely because the policy of separate development was geared to distribute the wealth and economy of South Africa along racial lines and in terms of the designation of your area as either part of an independent nation state or part of what was generally referred to as greater South Africa.
The imbalances and backlogs that are a cause for concern and a bone of contention for a section of the Matatiele community are, by and large, a consequence of that policy of separate development. Having said that, let me directly come to the Bills under consideration in this House. The Deputy Minister and the Chairperson have already dealt with the objects of the Bill.
As mentioned earlier, it is common cause that the Constitutional Court decision invalidated certain provisions of the Constitution Twelfth Amendment and the Cross-Boundary Laws Repeal Acts on the grounds of defects in the procedure followed in the processing and passing of the Acts. To wit, conducting and facilitating public participation has become necessary to introduce and pass, as we now hereby do, the Constitution Thirteenth Amendment Bill and the Cross-Boundary Municipality Laws Repeal and Related Matters Amendment Bill in order to cure the defect pointed out by the court.
Of paramount importance here is to address the two major, glaring issues and concerns that are actually the bone of contention. The issues may sound irrelevant but they are paramount and important to the citizens of that area. The first matter is the legal issue that the two Bills sought to address, that is compliance with the constitutional requirement of allowing and enabling public involvement in the process of reincorporation and redefining the boundaries, a matter that has now been complied with to the letter.
The second matter is social and economic in nature and pertains to the social and economic links between the people of Matatiele and the two provinces in question, especially with regard to real perceived differentials in the levels of service delivery in the two provinces, it being a major argument that service delivery in the Eastern Cape may not be up to scratch. The irony that attaches to these socioeconomic concerns is that the most vociferous traders, who would like to remain in KwaZulu- Natal, bought their stock and goods from KwaZulu-Natal, indeed, but sold them to the customers of the Eastern Cape. However, to achieve objectivity and confront the challenges that come with the changes and implications of the two Bills it needs to be explained that Matatiele had a population of 20 000 with an equitable share of R12 million before incorporation.
It initially had five councillors and two wards and has now grown in size after the inclusion of Maluti and surrounding villages. The number of councillors is now 48 with 24 wards. By implication the boundaries have changed and the numbers of the population have dramatically increased by the inclusion.
It goes without saying that Matatiele has inherited backlogs in terms of roads, electricity, water and sanitation and as a newly-created municipality it has numerous requirements including office space, furniture and equipment. This is largely due to the fact that Matatiele is now inheriting an area deliberately neglected by the previous system. But what is being done to cushion these problems?
What is to be done to meet these challenges? Our interaction with the role- players in the province reveals that apart from Matatiele Local Municipality having ... [Time expired.] Thank you, the Eastern Cape therefore supports this Bill. [Applause.]