Sihlalo wale Ndlu yoWiso-mthetho, uMphathiswa nooSekela Baphathiswa abakhoyo kule Ndlu namhlanje, amalungu ahloniphekileyo ale Ndlu yoWiso-mthetho, intloko yesebe nabayingqongileyo, iindwendwe zethu nomzi ngokubanzi, siyanibulisa phantsi korhulumente ophetheyo we-ANC.
Kule veki equkunjelwayo yenyanga ebalulekileyo kubasebenzi nendicinga ukuba ngayo bakhumbula amaqhawe awayekhokela imbumba ye-Cosatu, oomongameli abafana noBawo u-Elijah Barayi, amaqhawe afana no-John Gomomo kunye noovuk'ayibambe abafana noMbuyiselo Ngwenda, bonke bayakhankanywa kule nyanga. Sithi ngxatsho ke, maqhawe eli lizwe! Abaphelelanga apho, kodwa andizikutyatyadula ngabo kuba ixesha liza kundiminya.
Indima endiyithunywe ngumbutho wesizwe kukugxininisa kwiingongoma ezimbalwa, kodwa ezibalulekileyo. Ndiza kuzathuza ndidalance kwezi ndawo zibalulekileyo nditsho kuvokotheke. Siza kuqwalasela ukuba eli sebe lizuze malini, liza kuyaba liyisebenzise njani na kwaye ungakanani umgama elisele liwuhambile.
Kulo nyaka uphelileyo wama-2012-13, eli sebe labelwa imali ezizigidi-gidi ezingama-35 zeerandi. Yasetyenziswa ke loo mali, kodwa sinazo izinto esazibangulayo. Ngoku sithi kufuneka banyawuke ukwenzela ukuba sigxothe inxele likakhetsekile, silwe nentswela-ngqesho.
Kulo nyaka-mali, eli Sebe lezoThutho, phantsi koMphathiswa, uBen Martins, neSekela lakhe uMama uSindisiwe Chikunga, kuza kufuneka libhinqele phezulu kuba kaloku le mali ezizigidi-gidi ezingama-R42 yalo nyaka asiyomadlana nje encinane, kuloko yimali eninzi, ekuza kufuneka ukuba kubonakale iinguqu. Isebe liyinikwe le mali nguNondyebo weSizwe okanye nguMphathiswa wezeziMali.
Siyikomiti sithi kuza kufuneka sicinge ngokutsha xa sisabela amacandelo kunye namanye amanqanaba karhulumente imali. Ndisitsho nje, imali engangeepesenti ezingama-98 yoHlahlo-lwabiwo-mali iya phaya koosiputsu, le nto esithi xa siyibiza ngesilungu zii-entities okanye amashishini karhulumente. Loo nto ithetha ukuba urhulumente okanye isebe lishiyeka neepesenti ezimbini kuphela. Ngamanye amazwi, isebe lishiyeka linezigidi ezingama-R921 kuphela. Ngelo xesha, inkuntyula yale mali iya kula mashishini. Kuza kufuneka noko siyihlaziye le ndlela siyaba ngayo imali, ukwenzela ukuba uMphathiswa kunye nesebe lakhe abe nawo amandla okuyilawula le mali.
Sihlalo, ndivumele ndiguquke kancinci, ndicaphule kumazwi kakumkani waseBritani, xa ndiza kuthetha ngolu hlahlo-lwabiwo-mali. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[Mr L SUKA: Speaker of the National Assembly, Minister and Deputy Ministers who are present in this august House today, hon members of the National Assembly, Director-General of the Department and those who work closely with him, our visitors and the public at large, we greet you all in the name of our ANC-led government.
In this final week of the important month of the workers in which I think they are remembering the heroes who were in the forefront of Cosatu, presidents like Elijah Barayi, heroes like John Gomomo and brave heroes like Mbuyiselo Ngwenda, we mention all of them this month. We say thank you, heroes of this country! These are not the only ones, but I cannot mention all of them because I do not have enough time.
The mandate which I have been given by the ANC is to focus on few and yet very important points. I will deliberate in detail on the key areas for all to understand. We shall look intently on how much this department receives, and how they are going to allocate and use it and how much has been done.
In the previous financial year, 2012-13, this department was allocated the amount of R35 million. That money was used, but there are things which we have managed to identify. Today we say they must work harder in order to alleviate poverty, and address unemployment.
In this financial year, the Department of Transport, under the leadership of Minister Ben Martins and his Deputy Minister Sindisiwe Chikunga, must do more because this R42 million which it was allocated this year is not small change; it is a huge amount of money that must bring about huge change. The department has been allocated this money by the Treasury or the Minister of Finance.
As the committee members, we must think wisely when we allocate money to sections and other government sectors. As I am saying this, 98% of the budget goes to the entities or state-owned entities.
That means the government or the department is left with 2% only. In other words, the department is left with R921 million only. In the meantime, the large amount of this money is allocated to these entities. I think we must revisit the system we are using when allocating the money, so that the Minister and his department could have powers of monitoring this money.
Chairperson, allow me to talk about something else, and quote the words of the monarch of Britain, as I am going to talk about this budget.]
The Department of Transport is the heartbeat of economic growth and social development. Since the department is the heartbeat, it must have the necessary capacity to deliver on its mandate. In a human physiological context, if the heart stops beating due to reduced or the absence of capacity, that human being ceases to exist. The same can happen to the Department of Transport and, by extension, to our economy.
Today, we are debating and approving the budget of a very strategic and critical department in our economy. In this regard, we have to ask ourselves whether the department has the necessary capacity to deliver on its mandate. Does it have the capacity to play a monitoring and oversight role over its 12 agencies? In view of the active role Parliament is now expected to play in the executive budget process, what message should we send to the executive regarding this key department's budget? Should we just say that it is enough, we are happy with the money allocated to the department? We understand and acknowledge the challenges our government faces. It is, therefore, within the context of this challenge that we enjoin the department to be very wise in spending the money we are allocating to you.
Lilonke ke, sithi urhwaphilizo kwezezimali maluphele. Abantu abathatha imali karhulumente ngokungekho mthethweni mababanjwe ngokukhawuleza, kunjalo nje bagwetywe, ukwenzela ukuba ingabi yingxoxo ende. [Kwaqhwatywa.] Siyawacela ke nala magosa okanye la malungu esebe ukuba asincede kuba iimpula zikalujaca zilindile phaya ezantsi, zilinde iinkonzo ukuze kubonakale ukuba urhulumente we-ANC uyasebenza.
Musani ukusebenza ngokungathi nilinde omnye urhulumente, akasayi kubakho omnye urhulumente, khuthalani nje nina kwezo ndawo nikuzo. [Kwaqhwatywa.] (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[In all, we say the embezzlement of money must come to an end. People who are mismanaging government money must be arrested as soon as possible, and be sentenced, in order to avoid long court processes. [Applause.] We request the government officials or the employees of the department to assist us because the people out there who have nothing are waiting patiently; they are waiting for service delivery and to see that the ANC- led government is working.
They must stop working as if they are waiting for another government to come; there will never be another government. Instead they must work diligently in their current positions. [Applause.]]
The department has been allocated R360 million, of which approximately R24 million will be spent on human resource development.
Ndizama ke ukuphendula laa mibuzo bendiyibuza phaya ngentla. [I am trying to answer those questions that I asked in the beginning.]
This is how it has been allocated: R4 million for personal training; R1,3 million on bursaries; R1,2 million on internships; R2 million on the Praque scholarship programme and R10 million on the centres of development associated with universities. This means that the Department of Transport, ladies and gentlemen, has allocated 11% of its budget to developing skills and capacity for our country. This is laudable. We do have a plan. [Applause.]
Asinamsebenzi mninzi esisileleyo ukuwenza nje, asithethi nje, singabhibhidli namazinyo, kodwa icebo lona sinalo. [We do not have serious backlogs, we are not just all talk and nothing, and we are not just giving empty promises, but we have a clear plan.]
Our government has embarked on a major infrastructure development drive. This means that the next Medium-Term Expenditure Framework should be structured so as to reflect the critical role the Department of Transport plays in infrastructure development. This is where the critical role of human resources must be recognised.
Peter Drucker, the father of modern-day management, states that: "A company is really its people - their knowledge, capabilities and relationships". It is people who make up the Department of Transport. They are the coalface of service delivery; they are the interface between government and our citizens and they are the carriers of knowledge and institutional memory.
Given this dynamic, it is critical to constantly ask and re-ask the five Drucker questions, which I will not ask all, but just a few. Who are the right people to be employed at the Department of Transport? Does the Department of Transport provide its employees with the means to achieve their maximum effectiveness and contribute to the department's success? One historian said: "Give us the tools and we will finish the job". Now, we are giving you the budget, you must finish the job. You cannot fail us. [Applause.] Therefore, this is a critical role that human resources, which is the heartbeat of our economy, plays in this department.
Having deliberated on the theoretical aspects of human resources in general, I now turn to the Department of Transport. The National Development Plan, the plan adopted by the ruling party, which is the ANC, and approved by our government, enjoins us to reinvigorate the state's role in producing the specialist technical skills to fulfil its core functions and develop appropriate career paths for technical specialists. Therefore, going forward, our analysis and assessment of the Department of Transport must be guided by its capacity and ability to deliver on the goals and objectives of the National Development Plan.
It also reminds me that, as the ANC, as we were engaged in the struggle, we were fighting the national democratic revolution. These are parts of the elements of achieving that. For many years, we have been raising the issue of capacity and the structure of the Department of Transport. In the early years of our democracy, based on its wisdom then, the Department of Transport reduced its size. This led to the creation of agencies, which we have today.
Since 2011, the department has a new approved organisational structure which has a staff complement of 773 employees. To date, it has filled 567 posts. This means that the department has 74% of its workforce in place. This further translates into a vacancy rate of 26%. Vacancies are potential jobs for the unemployed or a new opportunity for those who wish to improve the quality of their lives.
The ANC, the ruling party, is a party that cares for its people.