Thank you, hon Chair. This year marks the seventh year of the Provincial Week visit programme since its inception in August 2002. Since then, our ANC-led government has achieved milestones in terms of delivering on the mandate of the people. It has indeed never failed on its promises, despite the challenges that we have had to go through.
One of the biggest challenges of our time remains the unwillingness of the so-called "minority parties" to work together with the party of the people, the ANC, to achieve more. Instead, we find the emergence of SMS parties, founded on the principles of self-enrichment, disguised as alternatives to the ANC.
True to its founding principles, the ANC, and its government, remains the champion of the people and the continent, and indeed the world admires it for that. As a true champion of the liberation of the people from the bondage of apartheid and its evil deeds, the ANC continues to win the battles for the poor and the less privileged. It continues to help others to achieve their goals and realise their dreams. It is the only party so passionate about the success of the whole nation.
We continue to fight and win not only our battles but also the battles of others, including those who refuse to be led and those who stay in palaces, because we know that not all of those who live in palaces are free. Some of them are still subjected to eating the remnants from the table of their master.
The ANC, even under the current economic hardships, remains a true advocate, defender and leader for the poor and voiceless, the father of the fatherless and mother of the motherless. This we have demonstrated through our unwavering support for the creation of sustainable quality jobs and the building of decent houses. This we have done by prioritising health issues and rural development, by making clean water available to the masses of our people, by combating crime to make South Africa a safe country, by stepping up our efforts to root out corruption and by building a nonracial, nonsexist and democratic nation.
Despite the many challenges that seek to be an impediment to our noble cause, the ANC continues to fight for the rights and honour of our people and not for personal aggrandisement, like other parties and leaders are doing. We continue to be passionate about the welfare, success and prosperity of less privileged South Africans.
Allow me to set the record straight and leave our opposition friends and colleagues with a few words of wisdom. The current challenges in the local sphere of government are not anything new. The ANC, as the chosen and trusted party to lead the nation as a whole, has realised all these challenges and investigated their cause. True to itself and to the people it represents, it was the ANC that first reported all these challenges and, not only that, came up with clear programmes that are aimed at addressing such particular problems.
Instead of giving support to the ANC, the opportunistic opposition parties in this country run around with these problems as if they are good watchdogs, when their real action is no more than ...