Order, order! Just two announcements quickly. Order, hon member! Any speaker who addresses the House, can you please do so through the Chair. That's procedural in any House.
To the people in the gallery, remember you are not allowed to participate in what we are doing; just watch and be quiet up there.
Mr T W MCHUNU (KwaZulu-Natal): Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson of the NCOP, His Excellency the President of the Republic, premiers, representatives from Salga, honourable visitors from Nigeria, as well as all members of the NCOP, good afternoon.
I stand here before this august House with a sense of pride in being part of this country, with its strong institutions of democracy, with the NCOP being a very good example of that.
I am even more grateful that, despite years of oppression, the ruling party, which has been at the forefront of political liberation, produced leaders who are committed to working collectively with leaders from all political parties for the common good of South Africa. Our President is a shining example of this quality of leadership.
The theme of today, "Together finding solutions to achieving the goal of a better quality of life for all", articulates our quest to place this country on a path to sustainable socioeconomic development.
I am emphasising the need for collaboration. I especially wish to reflect on a matter which I consider extremely important in finding solutions to our problems. I am referring here to the culture of dialogue.
Dialogue and constructive engagement have become the defining characteristics of our politics in the KwaZulu-Natal provincial legislature. Since his inauguration as premier, Dr Zweli Mkhize has made it his priority to always promote peaceful co-operation and coexistence among the different parties within the legislature and government.
This, in particular, was clearly evident in the atmosphere and the general spirit under which the Budget Votes were presented and debated. They were characterised by mutual respect and friendship. Differences in party- political preferences were clearly articulated, without any form of pettiness, hatred or bitterness.
As members of the ANC, which is the majority party, we have resolved to debate issues using an approach that advances the interests of the electorate, rather than those of individuals. We have realised that personal bitterness and grudges are all destructive forces that should be eliminated. They will only distract us from discussing the implementation of future plans that should benefit our electorate.
Because we know that a lot is expected from this term of government, we believe we cannot afford to waste time and energy on unproductive activities. Therefore, in my view, today's sitting provides a good opportunity for members to reflect on issues of coexistence and a collective approach to finding solutions to our challenges, as opposed to the confrontation and conflict that we have just seen in this House. Legislators have the responsibility to protect the rights of citizens. They have the responsibility to protect the most vulnerable members of our society, using the Constitution, obviously, as their guide.
The Constitution is the foundation of our laws and policies in this country. It sets out very clear principles, including those of fairness and human dignity, upon which our country is run. It also protects the fundamental rights of all South Africans.
The Constitution, however, will have no meaning to ordinary members of our communities if there is not peaceful coexistence among the leaders of political parties of our country. Likewise, our programmes as government must be informed by our Constitution at all times. For instance, with regard to people's health, the Constitution guarantees many rights: everyone has the right to an environment that is not harmful to their health or wellbeing; everyone has the right to have access to health care services; and every child has the right to basic nutrition, shelter, basic health care services and social services.
Hon members, it is for these reasons that on 9 October we convened a conference of leaders of KwaZulu-Natal to discuss solutions and to form a partnership to fight the scourge of TB, HIV and Aids. This combination is responsible for the high mortality rates in our province as they coexist in about 70% of instances. We invited leaders from all the political parties - provincial as well as local government - traditional leaders, religious leaders and other leaders of civil society to plan and agree on the way forward to turn this around. Such a day arose from the realisation that the fight against HIV and Aids cannot be won by government alone, or on behalf of the society. This realisation led us to believe that we have to mobilise a broad front, in order to defeat the pandemic.
In his address that day, and in his capacity as chairperson of the provincial Aids council, Dr Zweli Mkhize emphasised that the challenge of HIV and Aids is the fact that the pandemic is embedded deeply in the conditions of poverty in which most of our people live. Similarly, its transmission is fuelled by psychosocial and economic dynamics that define our daily lives.
It is the ignorance, the negative attitudes and the prejudices of our people on which the pandemic thrives. It is also evident that a successful fight depends on a very strong and focused leadership to champion the cause of positive living.
It is incumbent upon the contemporary generation of South Africans to act, and act decisively, to turn the tide against this pandemic. This means that the challenge is for you and me to stand up and be counted. The number of people dying in this pandemic is very high. The quiet, slow and lonely death of those who succumb must not distract us from the reality that the course of the pandemic can only be turned by united action from us.
Hon members, we effectively declared war against this pandemic on 9 October. We declared war against poverty, tuberculosis, HIV and Aids. We said for this war to succeed, it has to be a people's war.
In conclusion, we are also fully aware that the goal of a better life for all cannot be achieved if our communities are still being terrorised by criminals. The programme for the fight against crime requires a collective approach, similar to the approach we have adopted in the fight against HIV and TB.
The provincial government has formulated a holistic package of strategies and programmes which are all aimed at dealing with this scourge. These include the following: a closer monitoring of the SAPS; the monitoring and evaluation of attacks on SAPS members themselves; focusing on access to police stations by members of the community; facilitating dialogue for the resolution of disputes and promoting good relations between farmers and farmworkers; capacitating traditional leadership in the fight against crime; and continuous engagement with communities to reward deserving members of the SA Police Service for service excellence and recognition in order to promote confidence. I thank you. [Applause.]