Speaker, the distribution of funding from the National Revenue Fund to the state departments is both critical and central to the economic and social development of our country. It is therefore imperative that this distribution is properly planned and implemented strictly according to plan, as we are dealing with finite fiscal resources and cannot afford the luxury of second-guessing ourselves.
Central to the point of effective distribution is the concept of value for money. Many of our state departments still receive qualified audit reports from the Auditor-General's office indicating poor management of funding, which results in ineffective service delivery. It seems as if a culture of general unaccountability regarding fiscal funding is being allowed to develop in certain departments and this is most worrisome to the IFP.
Tender fraud and mismanagement must be identified within the departments and those responsible must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. It seems as if very few staff members in state departments are ever taken to task over fraudulent mismanagement of fiscal resources.
Lack of a necessary skills base in some departments is also a major contributing factor to poor service delivery, and this must be addressed as a matter of urgency. In addition, a culture of discipline, responsibility and accountability must be inculcated within the departments and staff members found in breach of their duties must be disciplined.
Transfers to state-owned entities should be strictly monitored as there does not seem to be much supervision over these funds. They seem to be dissipated with the greatest of ease with little or no accountability attached thereto, an example being the Commission for Gender Equality.
State-owned entities must take a long, hard look at their salary structures. The fat needs to be trimmed off CEO and senior management salaries so that there is more equitable distribution of funds for the average worker. This will result in fewer strikes, a more content workforce, effective service delivery and fewer service delivery demonstrations by the public.
Whilst the IFP respects the rights of workers to partake in legitimate strike action, we question the appropriateness of the timing 15 days before the World Cup.
The Money Bills Amendment Procedure and Related Matters Act provides us with a golden opportunity, which will allow the voices of our citizens to be heard through their respective public representatives in terms of the allocation of resources. Service delivery must be first and foremost on the agenda.
In the past, we have been hampered by issues of over- and underspending, which resulted ultimately in the needs of the people on the ground not being met. This Act will empower us as Members of Parliament to correct these imbalances.
Finally, we would like to task the Ministers and senior management of the various departments with taking full ownership and with being accountable to the people of this country for the funds that they receive from the fiscus.
They should ensure that those funds go where they are supposed to go and do what they are supposed to do. The IFP will support this Bill. I thank you. [Applause.]