Hon Chairperson, if we analyse what has transpired at Mothlagong, Bloemhof and the hundreds of other service delivery protests across the length and breadth of our country that erupt almost on a daily basis, we are actually looking at a microcosm of reality. We see the inability of all spheres of government, whether provincial, national or local government, to deliver and provide the most basic of services - the provision of water and sanitation.
The reality is that government is failing our people. The NDP clearly states that many small and rural municipalities lack the financial and technical capacity to manage water services adequately. One factor is the corrupt practice of cadre deployment and the corrupt manner in which affirmative action is implemented.
Let me make it clear: Deploying to positions of responsibility so-called cadres who do not have the requisite skills, experience or qualifications is a corrupt practice. It is common cause that in many instances persons appointed to government positions in all spheres of government are more often than not appointed on the grounds of political affiliation, regardless of skill, capacity and experience. An audit by the SA Institute of Civil Engineers found that the majority of municipalities had no civil engineers, technologists or technicians.
Last year the SA Human Rights Council reported that it had received 144 complaints over two years about irregular supply and the poor quality of water. In President Zuma's address, promises were once again made to eradicate the remnants of the bucket system, but 20 years later nothing has happened. Cope places the highest premium on government properly securing our water resources and on achieving the delivery of an effective water supply and of sanitation. [Time expired.]