Hon House Chairperson, after carefully studying and considering the annual performance plan of the Department of Mineral Resources and the report of the Portfolio Committee on Mineral Resources on the strategic plan and Budget Vote 32, the IFP supports this Budget Vote. [Applause.]
This Budget Vote takes place after the recent tragic loss of life at the Lonmin Marikana mines, where we witnessed unprecedented police brutality in a free and democratic South Africa. The IFP, once again, offers its most heartfelt and sincere condolences to the families and friends who lost their loved ones during that dark moment in our history as a country in general and the mining industry in particular.
On 16 August 2012, we were reminded that mining is an important feature of the economic and social fabric of our country. Whilst the issues emanating from Marikana relate to labour matters, the Department of Mineral Resources has a direct responsibility to ensure that all labour matters and the wellbeing of workers within its scope are better handled because mines are the backbone of our economic trajectory, with mining contributing 18,7% to