Motlatsa Mmusakgotla, Motlatsa semesegole wa Kokoano Boset?haba, Maloko a Palamente, ke a lo dumedisa. [Deputy Speaker, Deputy Chief Whip of the Majority Party, Members of Parliament, I greet you all.]
Deputy Speaker, in 1995 our former President and icon, Nelson Mandela, during his opening speech at the Business Initiative Against Corruption and Crime in Kempton Park emphasised the following, and I quote:
We need a collective sense of mission to change mindsets and to steer the nation away from a dangerous course. We need to take decisive measures to strengthen the moral fibre of our nation.
Again the national executive committee of the ANC in its January statement of 2009 stated clearly that we need to defend the gains of the national democratic revolution. Therefore, having said the above, as the ruling party, we will do everything in our power to protect the interests of this country. It is our mandate; it is our responsibility from Polokwane.
Again the President, who is also the president of the ANC, said yesterday, and I quote: "We won't tolerate or condone any wrongdoing; rules are rules". I really agree with him 100%.
Se ke bokao jo bo totobetseng jo bo bontshang gore puso e e eteletsweng pele ke mokgatlho wa ANC e tsaya tshenyego ka tshisibalo, e bile ke rona re tlileng ka ntlha ya tshenyego mo pusong. Ga go ope yo o tlileng go re etelela pele mabapi le yona. Re tla nna re e setse morago. (Translation of Setswana paragraph follows.)
[This is evidence that the ANC-led government takes corruption seriously; it is also us who came forward to expose corruption in government. No one is going to lead us on this issue. We will keep on following it up.]
The hearings on 6 July 2009 before Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts have provided us with disturbing accounts of activities by senior public servants which need a coherent and united response as we begin the fouth democratic Parliament. This unethical conduct by some public officials - of course, it is not all of them - destroys the trust of citizens in public institutions and governance processes. It is beyond reproach and despicable. When dealing with this matter, both the corrupt and the corrupted must be dealt with accordingly.
It is from this premise that we condemn all the acts of greed by some senior officials for not declaring their interests when doing business with government, as well as giving business to their families, friends and relatives. Of course, the law allows them to perform remunerative work, but there must be an approval in this regard. And in this case that the Auditor- General referred to, there was no approval.
We also note that the critics say that several investigations by the Public Service Commission and Auditor-General over the past years have identified the same problems with no noticeable improvement. This clearly shows that somebody somewhere is not doing his or her job in terms of the monitoring and implementation of decisions taken by this highest institution.
The fact of the matter is that as government and as South Africa we have good systems. Is the current framework tight enough and effective enough to deal with the challenges? If not, something needs to be done to add spice on this issue.
In conclusion, one recognises oneself as a member of the ANC and a member of this House. My duties, amongst other things, are to represent the people and ensure government by the people and, importantly for this debate today, to scrutinise and oversee executive action.
The Polokwane conference resolved that the ANC must provide leadership to society as a whole, including the opposition, in the fight against corruption. In my view, this will ensure that we steer the nation away from dangerous courses and we are charged with the spirit of faster and better change, hoping all shall join us in the change of mindset, including opposition parties.
Re rata go leboga kantoro ya Moruni Kakaretso wa Aforika Borwa mo tirong e ntle e a e dirileng go fitlha fa. Ke a leboga. [We would like to thank the office of the Auditor-General of South Africa for the good work that they have done so far. Thank you.]