Hon Chairperson, Ministers and hon members, arts and culture are integral to the project of nation-building. Arts and culture play a significant role in reminding us who we are, as hon Msweli has said, where we come from and what we have achieved as a nation. It is therefore important for government to play an enabling role to ensure that South African arts and culture flourish.
We admit that significant strides have been made over the past 18 years in promoting and preserving our cultural diversity. However, our cultures, languages and heritage do not get the attention they deserve. We have said many times that enough is not being done to preserve our indigenous languages in particular and they are under increasing threat of extinction.
In addition, the public broadcaster, which should play a vital role in supporting and promoting indigenous languages, has, through its preference for slang and informal expressions over formal ones in its programmes, only contributed to the bastardisation of indigenous languages.
This bastardisation occurs against the backdrop of high levels of dysfunction, maladministration and poor leadership at critical arts and culture institutions that have an important role to play in this regard, such as the Pan South African Language Board, PanSALB.
PanSALB is regrettably not alone in this mess. As my other colleagues have said, a lot of changes have been effected by entities under the Department of Arts and Culture. However, there are entities that fall under the Department of Arts and Culture that are characterised by weak leadership and maladministration. The poor audit reports that some of these institutions have been getting over the past few years bear testimony to this.
We urge Mr Xaba, the Director-General of the department, to ensure that the department deals decisively with this problem. We were happy to read in the media that some of the entities that fall under the Department of Arts and Culture and the Department of Tourism worked together as a team to entertain the more than 9 million international tourists who visited South Africa last year. This collaboration, which we have been advocating, will without a doubt help us retain our status as one of the top tourist destinations in the world.
Let me take this opportunity, hon Minister, to also tell you that your dedication to your job and the respect you give the committee are not going unnoticed. Comrade Mashatile, the UDM supports this Budget Vote. [Applause.]