Madam Deputy Speaker, the Deputy President of the country, Ministers, Deputy Ministers, ladies and gentlemen, I want to say upfront that the ANC supports the Bill. [Interjections.] [Applause.] As to the second matter that I want to raise, I will also speak a little bit of my language so that I take the message home.
Sihlalo, namhlanje sixoxa ngokuqulunqa nokuphumeza lo Mthetho osaYilwayo ojonge ukuphucula oohola beendlela bokuhamba izithuthi nokubagcina bekwimo ephucukileyo ngalo lonke ixesha. Ngokomthetho, iinkonzo ekubonelelwa ngazo kufuneka zihlawulelwe. Masiyithethe nale yokuba, ngalo Mthetho osaYilwayo sijonge ukuba kuhlawulelwe iindlela ezisetyenziswa ngumntu wonke njengoko kusenziwa kuwo onke amacandelo olawulo. Umzekelo, phaya emakhaya koomasipala, iinkonzo ziyahlawulelwa ngabantu xa bathe babonelelwa ngazo ngurhulumente wasekhaya. Ngoko ke, nakweli isebe makube njalo, kungakhethwa.
Kule Ndlu yoWiso-mthetho andiyikhumbuli eminye yale mibutho ivumelana norhulumente olawulayo kwimiba edla umzi. Asiyiyo yonke imibutho edla ngokuxhasa kuba kaloku imeko kunye nobume bayo kukuphikisana nenkqubela. Loo nto ndiyazela phaya kwezopolitiko. Ikhona intetho emfutshane enempembelelo ethi ... (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[Chairperson, today we are debating this Bill that provides for the upgrading of our freeways and keeping them in a good condition. In terms of the law, services rendered have to be paid for.
Furthermore, with this Bill we aim to make sure that everybody pays for using our public roads in all tiers of government. For example, at municipal level people pay for the services when these have been provided by the local government. Therefore, the same should happen with this department for the sake of being consistent.
I do not recall some of these parties agreeing with the governing party on important matters in this House. Not all parties support the governing party because it is in their nature to oppose progress; that is my political experience. There is a slogan that goes ...]
... forward ever, backward never. Yet ...
... nalapha ke ngokunjalo ... [... even here ...]
... some of our political parties will never transform and be progressive because of their nature of design. Eli lilinge lokuba amasango odlula kuwo uwahlawulele - umzekelo, kweliya laseRhawutini, eGoli, kwabo hola beendlela, abafana nezitalato zegolide, ekuthiwa ukubizwa kwabo zii-e-toll, xa uhamba kubo uye uphumele kwii- tollgate. Okubalulekileyo kukuba, asinguye wonke ubani oza kuhlawula. Mandiyicacise le ndawo. Izithuthi zikawonke-wonke aziyi kuhlawula xa zihamba kwaba hola beendlela.
Iibhasi, iiteksi nazo zonke ezinye izithuthi ezifana nezi zichazwe ngasentla aziyi kuhlawula kuba zikhethiwe zabekwa bucala. Abantu abahlawulayo ngabantu abanezithuthi ezizezabo, hayi ezikawonke-wonke. Lilonke ke, kukhuthazwa abantu ukuba basebenzise noololiwe. Ngoko ke, le nto yokuhlawula mayingaqabi wonke umntu; kuhlawula kuphela abantu abathile nezithuthi ezithile. Iiteksi zigqitha nje simahla ngalo lonke ixesha. [Kwaqhwatywa.]
Njengoko besenditshilo, abantu abaza kuhlawula ngabo banezithuthi ezizezabo kuba bona noko banazo iintsiba zokuthenga izithuthi nokuba zikweyiphi na imeko. Yiyo loo nto kusithiwa mabahlawule.
Kananjalo ke, asinakho ukubonda abantu abangathathi ntweni sibadibanise naba bantu bakhankanywe ngentla apha. Umzekelo, umntu ohamba kumlimandlela emakhaya okanye kwindledlana, okwiphondo leMpuma Koloni, akuthiwa makahlawulele le e-toll. Abantu abakumaphondo akude neGauteng ababandakanyeki kule ntlawulo. Ngoko ke, masiwucacise lo mahluko ukuze umakhulu wam oseBhayi angakhalazi ngelithi uhlawulela indlela angayisebenzisiyo eseGauteng. Akunjalo, ndifuna ke siyiqonde loo nto.
Kwakhona, lo mcimbi wovavanyo-zimvo, awunakho ukwenzelwa iqaqobana labantu abakwikona ethile ukuze kuthiwe wenzelwa uMzantsi Afrika xa uwonke. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[In terms of this e-toll system, for instance in Johannesburg with its freeways like the "streets of gold," you go through a tollgate. What is important to note is that not everyone is going to pay the toll; let me emphasise this point. Public transport, namely buses, taxis and related transport will be exempted from paying the toll. People who will be paying the toll are people who will be travelling in their own vehicles. All in all, people are encouraged to also use trains. Therefore, the issue of paying the toll does not apply to everyone; only certain people and certain categories of vehicles will pay the toll. Taxis go through without paying. [Applause.]
As I said, people who will be paying the toll are those who will be driving their own vehicles because they can afford to buy their own vehicles whatever condition they might be in. It is for that reason they are made to pay.
Furthermore, we cannot paint indigents and the people mentioned above with the same brush. For instance, the idea is not to make a person who uses a footpath in the Eastern Cape pay for the e-toll in Gauteng. People who are in provinces that are far away from Gauteng are not involved in paying the toll. So let us emphasise this point so that my grandmother in Port Elizabeth is not concerned about paying for the maintenance of a road in Gauteng that she does not use. Not so, I want us to understand that.
In addition, with regard to the issue of the public survey, it cannot be organised only for people in a certain corner of South Africa and be touted to be for all South Africans.]
You can't hold a referendum for Gauteng and yet the results will have serious implications for the entire country. It is not on. [Applause.] It is very costly, because we are not a federal state.
Ngokokwam, iinjongo zokuhlawulwa azikho zininzi, zimbalwa. Umzekelo, ndiyeva ukuba le mali ingathi ayicaci apho iza kuya khona; kanti icacisiwe loo ndawo. Ndicinga ukuba uMphathiswa wezoThutho nosihlalo wale komiti uyicacisile injongo yayo yokuqala, ekukuphucula le ndlela uhamba kuyo. [Kwaqhwatywa.]
Okwesibini, kaloku masikhumbule ukuba, ukuba ndiboleke imali kuwe ingakumbi enesolotya lenzala, kufuneka ndiyibuyise. Akakho umntu obolekwa imali emva koko angafuni ukuyibuyisa kuba xa esenza njalo wandisa amanqina. Le mali ibolekwe ukuze kwakhiwe aba hola beendlela kuza kufuneka ibuyiswe kwaye urhulumente ophetheyo, ingakumbi eli Sebe loMphathiswa wezeziMali, uzamile ukuba asihlangabeze kulo mba ngesabelo asikhuphe kuhlalo-lwabiwo-mali lonyaka ophelileyo. Nithi ke ngoku, xa zingahlawulelwayo ezi nkonzo okanye le mali ingabuyiswa, nifuna ... [Uwelewele.] (Translation of isiXhosa paragraph follows.)
[In my view, the objectives of the e-toll fees are not many but few. I gather that for some people it is not clear what the e-toll fees are going to be used for, yet this has been explained. I think the Minister of Transport and the chairperson of the portfolio committee have explained the first objective; to maintain the road you are using. [Applause.]
Secondly, indeed we should remember that, if I get a loan from you with interest, I have to pay it back. If you get a loan and fail to pay it back in time, you are liable for more interest. A loan was obtained so that freeways could be built and the loan has to be paid back. The current government, especially the Department of Finance, tried to meet us halfway in this regard by providing a budgetary allocation in the past financial year. So, when these services are not paid for and the loan is not paid back, do you want ... [Interjections.]]