Thank you very much, Speaker. The DA does not support the small and insufficient budget allocated to the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform. The DA views this department as a crucial vehicle to bring development to the rural areas. Millions of people in the rural areas have been neglected for many years. They do not have the infrastructure to provide basic services such as running water, electricity, roads or sanitation.
In Limpopo, Mpumalanga and the Eastern Cape, rural communities were attacked by the waterborne cholera disease because of drinking dirty water from rivers and streams. The President put rural development and land reform on a high-priority list of development.
Millions of poor people from rural areas expect parliamentarians and public representatives to change the bad situation to better their lives. They believe their lives will be improved as promised by the President in his state of the nation address. Incapacity, shortage of staff and lack of financial support will hinder rural development and land reform.
About 4 891 rural claims under land restitution are still outstanding. To achieve the target of 30% by 2014, 20,5 million hectares of land still need to be redistributed. A lack of post-settlement support poses a serious threat to land reform programmes.
We cannot raise high expectations in rural communities and fail to implement development programmes due to inadequate funding. This budget will reduce this Ministry to a spectator, while poor and unemployed people suffer. The DA therefore opposes Budget Vote No 27 due to an insufficient budget. Thank you. [Applause.]