Hon Speaker, His Excellency the President, Deputy President and hon members, in his state of the nation address, the President said that we need to write a new story about South Africa. To succeed in this, the President will need to jettison much of what did not work or obstructed our growth. A new story will require extraordinary measures and a new vision so that it bears no resemblance to the old, except to the extent that what worked well is retained and interwoven into the new story.
An important chapter of the new, successful South African story should be about the creation of a national identity and common nationhood. As people who live in South Africa, we can no longer afford to look askance at one another because of the racial politics of the past. In paraphrasing a statement by Pixley ka Isaka Seme that encapsulates the concept of nationhood for indigenous South Africans at the time, the demon of racialism and ethnicity has to be buried and forgotten, as we are one people. As former president, His Excellency Nelson Mandela stated:
A common allegiance is what helps to define a nation; you either have divided loyalties on fundamental questions or an overwhelming sense of pride and belonging. A nation-state without this attribute exists only in name. It survives by coercion and subterfuge. It is a time bomb waiting to implode upon itself.
Achieving a common national identity is certainly not merely a peripheral issue. It is central to our very existence. It will commit our entrepreneurs, university graduates and others to stay here, invest here and build a future here. The uncertainty of a future here, for many people, is crippling our economy and impeding job growth. Half of the doctors trained in South Africa are working abroad.
Another important chapter of the new story should focus on the new economy that is for all. In the old story, a large segment of South Africans had disengaged itself to the point of being totally indifferent. Another large segment was co-opted, and parasitically fed off the state, and a third, large segment manifested unabashed self-interest and greed. The new story must show an engaged citizenry of free-minded people working for their own good, as well as for the common good.
The very soul of our nation needs to be cleansed. We are warned in the Dinokeng Scenarios Project:
The seeds of our future already exist in our present, but our future is not preordained. We can nurture the "generative seeds" - our assets - and reap the rewards. Conversely, if we allow the "degenerative seeds" - our liabilities - to grow, they will destroy our future.
By "generative seeds", I mean that we need to use our human and physical assets in the most productive manner possible. Manufacturing is the holy grail in job creation. The new story should therefore profile manufacturing. The South African economy is too resource intensive at the moment and, as the National Planning Commission pointed out, this is a major problem which must be overcome.
South Africa in the new story must vigorously expand its production of tradable goods. In the new story, manufacturing enterprises employing fewer than 50 people should explode, creating millions of jobs for South Africans. The R10 billion set aside for job creation should stimulate the rise of new small enterprises as much as increasing the skills base of the work force and the unemployed.
On small business, the new story should introduce a new, flexible labour regime mutually beneficial to employer and employee without the present legal complexity. Small businesses which already create 60% of the country's gross domestic product, GDP, should be supported to double this quantum. This is the real engine of growth in the economy. The financing of small businesses has to be done in an integrated and co-ordinated manner. In this regard, the role of the provincial development agencies should be clarified so that there is no blurring of lines and functions.
The key issues that the new story must innovatively address are poverty, joblessness, inequality and lack of social cohesion. We agree with you on this. In this regard, sharp focus should be brought to bear on the employability of the four million people desperately but fruitlessly seeking employment. The issue of employability should be a significant theme in the new story.
The question as to who is speaking for the poor and the unemployed needs to be resoundingly answered. The Dinokeng Scenarios Project gives three possibilities: the jobless and the poor can walk behind and ask others to solve the severe problems they face; those within our society who are economically strong can choose to walk apart from them and ignore their plight as has been the case so far; or we can walk side by side with them and help reverse their situation.
In the last scenario, a mutuality prevails which will allow for individuals to better themselves, as they are being supported by fellow citizens and the government. Disengagement with the poor and the unemployed has to be remedied in the new story. Their voice has to be magnified so that they are clearly heard and their message is understood. This is a central platform for Cope.
The new story should reflect decisively on resolving deepseated tension arising from historic land seizures that has led to the exodus of skilled and seasoned agriculturalists to other parts of the world. This has contributed to food security challenges. The prevailing uncertainty must be cleared responsibly and urgently.
The imposition of the Land Act of 1913 and 1939, which dehumanised and left many people languishing in hunger, is a fact of life. Soaring food prices is a matter of great concern to us and must receive the immediate attention of the government in order to alleviate hunger and poverty.
In the new story, the relationship between government and the party has to be clearly demarcated. The blurring of lines has exacerbated corruption, compromised discipline and intensified inefficiencies. Professionalism has been sacrificed on the altar of party politics. This wrong culture has to be done away with, especially in provinces like KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, the Eastern Cape, the Free State and Mpumalanga. I commend the President for being forthright on stating which projects were in the pipeline so that the monitoring of the implementation can begin immediately.
In order for our economy to grow at above 8%, our country will need to invest R300 billion, or 10% of our GDP, in infrastructure this year. This pattern will have to be maintained for several years thereafter. Only then will a reversal of joblessness occur. The thing that alarms us most is that over the last three years government borrowing has been increasing substantially. The national debt therefore stands at R1 trillion and the budget deficits regularly exceed 5%. Any deficit beyond 2,5% is exceeding the safety range. According to the SA Institute of Race Relations, the inward movement of foreign direct investment dropped from R45 billion in 2009 to R11 billion in 2010. Here is a problem of great magnitude that this government needs to fix.
The GDP is expected to grow at about 2,5% to 2,8% this year, shrinking tax revenue and mounting public debt. Could it be that South Africa is going to be plunged into a debt trap? The Municipal Finance Management Act, MFMA, and the Public Finance Management Act, PFMA, must be complied with, without any deviation from or relaxation of their requirements. At the same time, public pronouncements by the President regarding whatever review of the Constitutional Court and the judiciary are detrimental to the consolidation of our democracy, as these may be viewed as direct interference in how the judiciary should be run. This flies in the face of section 165(3) of our Constitution, which states that, "No person or organ of state may interfere with the functioning of the courts."
The new story should seek to nurture the generative seeds of economic growth, manufacturing, small business, human resource development, land, agriculture and food security, defence of the Constitution and the creation of nationhood or a common national identity. The new story should be an inclusive story owned by all South Africans.
Cope is committed to contributing to the new story. We genuinely believe that South Africa belongs to all who live in it, both black and white. That is why we will continue to raise these truths within the precincts of Parliament.
Masibambe isifungo, Mhlekazi, ukuze sibheke phambili. Enkosi. [Kwaqhwatywa.] [Let us be faithful to the oath, sir, in order for us to go forward. [Applause.]]