Deputy Chairperson, Members of Parliament, and all parties who supported the fight against crime, to support this legislation is to support the fight against crime. If you don't support it, it means you are comfortable with the level of crime that is taking place.
I would like to apologise on behalf of my Ministry for raising the blood pressure of some members in the House with these pieces of legislation.
As I have said, my time is very limited. I just want to thank hon Beyleveldt from the DA, who is concerned about the independence of the two structures. I have taken note of your concerns, and we are going to make sure that they indeed remain independent.
Hon Mokgobi, thank you very much for the political induction that you gave the House. Chairperson of the portfolio committee, and members of the ANC, thank you very much for giving your guidance with regard to these two pieces of legislation. To the Western Cape MEC, and the chairperson of the committee in the Western Cape, unfortunately, when we legislate, we legislate for the country and not for a certain province. We legislate for everyone, as government.
This Bill is about fighting crime effectively and not about giving powers to provinces to do whatever they want to do. It is about fighting crime in this country. Secondly, I would like to say let's concern ourselves with fighting crime and not with fighting one another to keep our power. It is not about that, but it is about fighting crime. That is the purpose of these two pieces of legislation.
This piece of legislation deals with the police. It does not deal with defence. Defence and the police are two different structures with two different mandates. So, there is no way they can be the same. They can't be the same and they won't be the same.
To my friend over there, I told you that you are my friend and, indeed, you did attest to that. Hon Makhubela from Cope, I would like to thank Cope for supporting that.
...abazi bona ukuthi mina nawe sivelaphi na? [... they do not know where we are coming from.]
I have listened to two or three people who mentioned the issue of "shoot to kill". To shoot to kill was never a policy of the ANC, but we are saying that if the police find themselves confronted by such a situation and an accident happened in such a way that someone dies, that person shouldn't be the police member. That is what we are saying. Thank you very much, Deputy Chair, and thanks for the support. [Applause.]
Debate concluded.
Question put: That the Independent Police Investigative Directorate Bill be agreed to.