Deputy Chairperson, I said that co-operation is of paramount importance if this is to be achieved. The question to ask is, however, whether the three spheres of government are working together efficiently, if at all.
Listening to the people this week and, in fact, on previous visits across the length and breadth of the country, it is obvious that government has failed dismally in this regard. From my own activities, along with my colleagues in the Select Committee on Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs, conducting intervention oversight visits to numerous municipalities, mostly dysfunctional and placed under administration, I can relate many instances of unbelievable mismanagement usually going hand in hand with massive corruption, Mr President, which could probably have been avoided or solved more speedily if co-operative governance had been practised properly.
Owing to the very limited time allocated to the opposition parties in this three-hour debate, I will have to limit my input to one or two examples.
Ba mphile metsotso e tsheletseng feela. [I was given six minutes only.]
I hate to tell the opposition members in Parliament this week, hon President, that the solution to their problems is to join your party. Now would it not be nice and profitable for all the cadres and comrades if the opposition disappeared completely? Would that not be a nice day for all of you?
Nee, meneer, dit is geheel en al nie 'n opsie nie. Net hier aan die agterkant van die berg is die majestuese setel van die distriks- munisipaliteit Thabo Mofutsanyana wat ook onder administrasie geplaas is. Luister bietjie hierna: Die burgermeester onder wie se beheer die munisipaliteit in chaos verval het, is nou die verantwoordelike LUR vir samewerkende regering in die Vrystaat en in beheer van plaaslike regering.
Ek vra u, meneer die President, of dit nou is hoe samewerking tussen die sfere van regering bevorder moet word. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraphs follows.)
[No, Sir, this is not an option at all. Just on the other side of this mountain one will find the majestic headquarters of the Thabo Mofutsanyana District Municipality that has also been placed under administration. Listen to this: The mayor under whose control the municipality fell into a state of chaos is now the MEC for co-operative governance in the Free State and is in charge of local government.
Now I'm asking you, Mr President, if this is how co-operation between spheres of government should be promoted.]
Deputy Chairperson, let me also tell the President about the municipality undoubtedly very close to his heart, which we visited last week. I am referring to Msunduzi, the so-called city of choice, where services virtually came to a standstill earlier this year because of the very evils of incompetence and corruption.
Fortunately, your MEC intervened in terms of the provisions of section 139 of the Constitution and appointed an administrator after the removal of the incompetent and reportedly corrupt mayor, together with a number of senior officers.
This administration secured the services of a very efficient task team, who not only uncovered maladministration and corruption of untold dimensions but also laid serious charges against a number of downright crooked officials in that administration. Our task was to investigate the continuation of the intervention, and I must say that I have seldom seen the community represented by a packed hall of citizens from all walks of life, so united in their condemnation of the situation and absolutely unanimous in their quest for the continuation of intervention and also for the indictment of the culprits.
The continuation of the good work done by them, until at least after the local government elections next year, was therefore a given but whilst the MEC eagerly agreed, she also ruled in favour of the immediate disbandment and removal of the task team, thereby negating the good work that had been done thus far and virtually guaranteeing the alleged perpetrators a free pass.
Ndiyabuza, Bawo uMongameli, ukuba bafihla ntoni? Ingathi bayalwamkela urhwaphilizo. Ndiyakuxelela ukuba ngale ndlela, lo mtshini wakho awungekhe usebenze. [Kwahlekwa.] (Translation of isiXhosa paragraph follows.)
[I am asking, hon President, what are they hiding? It seems as if they condone corruption. I am telling you, if this continues then your machine gun will stop functioning. [Laughter.]]
It seems to me ...