Chairperson, I would like to thank the hon members for what was a very constructive discussion.
The Budget Vote we presented today was an industrialisation and transformation budget. What we sought to demonstrate was that the state- owned companies continue to invest aggressively against a global and domestic economic slump. What we also sought to demonstrate was that our department is enhancing its capability to co-ordinate state-owned companies for collaborative effort to support this industrialisation and transformation agenda, as well as to co-ordinate the partnerships between the state-owned companies and the private sector to support the development of critical industrial sectors in our economy.
The state-owned companies are driving an aggressive transformation agenda and the racists will be angry at that. [Interjections.] The racists will explode in anger because they cannot tolerate the reconfiguration of property relations through the interventions that our state-owned companies are doing. [Applause.] [Interjections.] [Laughter.] They will not contain their anger and we cannot help it. So, we will continue with implementing our transformative policies regardless of what the racists hope for or expect us to do, because our agendas are not the same. [Interjections.] Regarding the governance of state-owned companies, we reject the insinuation being made about our boards. Our boards are composed of extremely competent, suitable and qualified individuals ... [Applause.] ... who have massive credibility and integrity in their own fields of work. They didn't need to do this. They didn't ask for it and they didn't apply - we approached them to come and do this. [Applause.] [Interjections.]
Hon Michael, you have quoted my statements on cadre deployment selectively and you are misleading the House. [Interjections.] You are misleading the House! You are also selectively quoting the National Development Plan in the same regard. Cadre deployment is like affirmative action. We have always maintained that there is nothing that says that affirmative action must of necessity be devoid of merit. So, the insinuation that cadre deployment is of necessity devoid of merit is in itself a false assertion ... [Interjections.] ... because there are many cadres who possess sufficient merit to occupy any position in South Africa. [Applause.]
In the past, we were told that affirmative action was devoid of merit and that merit was white. [Interjections.] But when the hon Premier Zille does the same thing in the Western Cape, then it is not cadre deployment, or it is cadre deployment that is "acceptable". [Interjections.] It is okay when you generalise, but it is wrong when somebody else does it. You apply this selective morality to everything and that is the problem. [Interjections.]