Hon Chairperson, hon Minister of Finance, Mr Pravin Gordhan, hon Deputy Minister of Finance, Mr Nene, hon Ministers, Cabinet members that are present today, hon members ...
... kuyekwaba khona isikhathi lapho ngidideka khona ukuthi ... [... there was a time when I was a bit confused as to ...]
... which debate am I in, whether I am supposed to speak in the Fiscal Framework debate or in Budget Vote No 10.
Kukhona ukudideka, mhlonishwa uGordhan ... [There is a bit of confusion, hon Gordhan ...]
... you need to teach members. There is a difference between 10 programmes that you have and the debate that we are having today and the other debate that involves the Fiscal Framework. This is with the exception of the hon Singh - at least he tried. [Laughter.]
The Budget Vote of the Treasury is a living example of the manner in which the ANC-led government is applying the constitutional principles of co- operative governance and intergovernmental relations amongst the three spheres of government. This Budget Vote practically assists Treasury in providing support to all three spheres of government so as to ensure the building of effective and efficient public finance and budget management.
The constitutional principles of interrelated governance between the spheres mean that there is a duty on each sphere to co-operate with the others for the greater good of the country as a whole. Whilst respecting the distinctiveness of each sphere, the relationship is one of relative equity within the spirit and the duty of the corporate government.
Our intergovernmental fiscal system is based on a revenue-sharing model, with provinces largely dependent on transfers from the national government, while local government partially depends on such transfers. The national government's main role is policy making while the provinces and local government perform the major roles of provision of social and basic services. The question then remains: What is the National Treasury doing? It provides public finance and budget management. I am sure the DA now understands. That is the main the role of the Treasury in this budget.
Ngimzwile uBaba uGordhan ethi ... [I heard Mr Gordhan saying ...]
... he is requesting all the parties to support this Budget Vote No 10.
Baba uGordhan, ngekhe bayixhase. [Mr Gordhan, they are not going to support it.]
I have witnessed almost all the Budget Votes, and there is none that the DA supported. [Interjections.] Now the question remains, is it true? It is very true. If you are complaining about poor service, if you are complaining about fraud - corrupt practices that are happening within, it could be in any sphere of government - those things need to be corrected and you need resources to do that. You need capacity to tame the people.
We are sitting with the people who have been voted into this House by their electorates to make sure that the services are being delivered, but they do not support anything. So, Minister, even if we like or pray, they do not support the budget. They do not support anything. They cannot support anything because they do not have policies to support. [Interjections.]
The ANC-led government ... [Interjections.] I think we need to listen to what this government has done. This ANC-led government has established what we call in-year management ...