Chair, I would very much like to thank all those who participated in this Budget Vote. Let me start by apologising to our guests in the overflow who were not connected until I was about two-thirds into my speech. I am sure the hon Ellis is very happy that they could not listen to me, but I would like to apologise for that. I would also like to apologise for not recognising some of the MECs who are here.
Let me start by thanking the ANC for its well-articulated support of this budget. [Applause.] We take the point that the hon member made concerning the issue of the revitalisation of the academic profession. This was mentioned by hon Gina. The points the hon Radebe makes are always informed. By the way, one of the things that will attract students to FET colleges is if they are guaranteed that, upon finishing their theoretical study, they will get work placement, at the very least for 12 months. That will attract students to the FET colleges. [Applause.]
I would like to thank hon Ntsiki for articulating the NSDS 3. I would also like to thank Cope for their support. It shows that they are actually made of the ANC, in some instances. [Laughter.] [Applause.] We agree with you - we can't destroy our good universities. The challenge is to transform them towards developmental outcomes and to widen access. That is what we need while we build the capacity of our historically disadvantaged institutions, HDIs.
The hon member from Azapo, thank you very much for your support too. Obviously I cannot agree with you on the Setas because there is a problem that runs through some of the comments about the Setas. You blame us as government when there are problems with the Setas, but when we intervene in order to correct some of those problems, you say we must stay away. It can't be. You can't have it both ways. What I want to say is that the reality is that, although we appreciate your support, we differ on this.
Unfortunately the hon Van der Merwe is gone because I was going to say that one good thing about being a communist is that you are intelligent. The real reason hon Mpontshane is not here is because he is grieving since the IFP lost Pongola to the ANC. [Laughter.] Now, that's why I will never stop being a communist, because we are intelligent.
Now, the DA has a fundamental problem. The fundamental contradiction in your argument is that you say you support widened access, but when we do that you say we are making students dependant on us. You say students must have something to pay in order to be proud. Where are they going to get that from? Millions of South African children, while they are bright, come from families who have no income whatsoever.
Also, the problem with the DA is that they are very disingenuous and try to mislead people, particularly people who are not Members of Parliament. Firstly, we never operated for two years without a permanent director- general. That is not true. Secondly, the increase in the amount of money in the office is accounted for: When the two departments were created after the split, we originally did not get what was due to our department. That has now been corrected in the budget, with, of course, the welcome addition of a Deputy Minister. That is what accounts for the increase. But no, you want to present us as if we were this wasteful department that does not know what to do.
I'm also glad that you raised the issue of questions. I must admit that we do battle with questions to the Minister, for one reason: The DA has nothing else to do in Parliament other than to ask us questions! [Laughter.] And some of the questions are outrageous. For instance, they want to know how many Seta employees have left over the past three years, for what reason and by whom they were replaced. That's a PhD thesis to actually research that and do that! [Laughter.] That's the DA for you. [Interjections.] You're largely wasting our time. You must thank the Deputy President for at least saying that that is the role of the Opposition. All they have to do is actually to ... [Interjections.] ... Let me end by reminding you ...