Speech of the Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces Ms Thandi Modise MP on the Occasion of the Debate on the Budget of Parliament (Vote 2)
Hon. Deputy Chairperson
Permanent and Special Delegates
Ladies and Gentlemen
“Well, the Freedom Charter is not formulated on the basis of any ideological positions. The Freedom Charter simply looks at our situation in which there is great wealth - immense wealth - concentrated in the hands of a few while the vast majority of people are living in desperate poverty, and we say how do we adjust this position? How can this wealth be put at the service of the people as a whole? What are the mechanisms? And we start by accepting that it cannot go on, we cannot have a system which maintains this juxtaposition of immense wealth and immense poverty.” – That was Oliver Reginald Tambo addressing the Foreign Affairs committee of the House of Commons in 1985.
That Freedom Charter that Tambo was talking about is a collection of aspirations of the ordinary masses who envisioned a South Africa in which all the people were entitled to take part in the administration of the country and where the national wealth of the country was restored to the people.
It is not a coincidence, therefore that our Parliament’s vision is that of an activist and responsive Parliament that advocates and monitors society for the improvement of the quality of life of South Africans and enduring equality in our society.
We are supposed to celebrate (but I suspect we are actually more “observing”), the 20 years of our Constitution and the 20 years of the NCOP. We are supposed to be observing, studying, applying, criticizing the functioning of the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) and we should be making recommendations on capacity of the NCOP makes contribution to our democracy.
These studies would indicate whether our democracy was still heading on the right track, whether sections of both Constitution should be adjusted/revised. If we did do this – do we think Parliament enjoys enough trust from the people to do this job on their behalf? Does Parliament have to resolve and capacity to self-review and correct? If not why not?
Parliament is there to ensure that government is by the people. The interest of the people must reflect in our work and speeches.
I wish to thank you honourable Members for the hard work you have put in, in the last financial year. I am grateful to some of you who took time to make recommendations for improvements including the closing of capacity gaps in the work of committees. We are committed to addressing the needs of all our members to improve quality of work through research and other means.
This budget vote provides for the support services required by Parliament to fulfill its constitutional functions, assist political parties represented in Parliament to secure administrative support and service constituencies.
We have developed a framework for aligning the work of Parliament to the global, continental, regional and National Development agenda’s. South Africa is one of the 193 UN Member states that adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in 2015. This framework provides for a shared and collective responsibility to ensure the future of the planet and of peoples.
The framework is intended to assist us in monitoring the implementation of the NDP, amongst other things. The NDP is founded on six pillars that represent the broad objectives to eliminate poverty and reduce inequality to be achieved by 2030, which include:
- Uniting South Africans of all races and classes around a common programme to eliminate poverty and reduce inequality
- Encouraging citizens to be active in their own development, in strengthening democracy and in holding their government accountable.
In the reporting period, the NCOP undertook many activities in pursuit of the policy priorities for the Fifth Parliament. These include strengthening oversight and accountability, enhancing public involvement, strengthening legislative capacity and co-operative government.
We held the first Report-Back Session in the Eden District in the Western Cape in April 2016 following the 2015 Taking Parliament to the People programme in the same district. A total of fifteen national and provincial departments plus the Eden District Municipality made undertakings to respond to service delivery issues raised by community members.
Eleven of the fifteen departments provided positive responses to the NCOP on how they have implemented their undertakings, which translates to 73% response rate.
This excluded the Eden District Municipality which had responded to all service delivery issues raised in the public hearings on Local Government during the main activity in Oudtshoorn. Outstanding issues are being followed up by NCOP Committees.
In November 2016 the first joint Taking Parliament and Legislature to the People Programme was held in the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality in the Eastern Cape Province. The programme, which focused on education, was preceded by the Pre-visit Programme which was successfully held in the Alfred Nzo District Municipality in October of the same year.
Both programmes provided a platform for communities to raise service delivery issues regarding education and related matters. Both the NCOP and the Eastern Cape Provincial Legislature are committed to monitor and follow up on the commitments and undertakings made during the programme and to report back on progress to the communities involved during November 2017.
I must at this point state that our approach to the programme has enabled us to extend our reach, visiting at least two districts in a province compared to one previously, and doing so at a reduced cost.
The functioning of the NCOP is inextricably intertwined with the operations of the National Assembly (NA), provincial legislatures and the South African Local Government Association (Salga) on matters affecting provinces and local government. It is for this reason that in February this year we convened the representatives of these institutions for a joint planning exercise.
The general thrust of the discussions at the planning session centred around the development of mechanisms and guiding tools for the synchronisation of institutional programmes, approach to interventions in terms of section 139 of the Constitution and the role of the provincial legislatures; and implications of the Land Access Movement of South Africa (LAMOSA) constitutional court judgment on public participation and law-making processes.
There was consensus towards looking at coordinated oversight. The central objective was to establish a common understanding and protocols for the type and kind of oversight the legislative sector wants to conduct and implement.
The meeting agreed to have the Legislatures joining the NCOP and NA delegations and particularly the relevant committee/s of the Legislature in conducting Provincial and Oversight Week. We also agreed that the initiator pays.
On sectoral parliaments (e.g. youth, women, elderly, workers’ parliaments etc.), the meeting reaffirmed the correctness and relevance of these flagship sectoral programmes but further emphasised the need for a thorough and systematic build-up programme in the provinces leading up to the main national event.
You will recall that the legislative sector organised the National Youth and Women’s Parliaments. As this House we supported two Round Tables on Youth and on Women, which focused on the implementation of objectives of the NDP relating to youth and women.
Their primary objectives were to ensure the objectives of the NDP relating to youth and women were placed on the agenda of parliamentary debate and that relevant committees oversee their implementation.
As part of holding the Executive account, the NCOP adopted a total of fifty-one resolutions emanating from reports of Select Committees and outreach initiatives. The resolutions were communicated to the relevant government departments with a significant increase in receipt of responses.
The Resolutions Tracking Application is currently in its final testing phase, with input being received from the table staff of both Houses.
In respect of legislative work, the NCOP debated and passed eighteen Bills. The list includes four section 76 Bills (i.e. Division of Revenue Bill, Division of Revenue Amendment, Children’s Second Amendment Bill and the Expropriation Bill which has since been returned by the President).
A total of seventeen draft Bills were received from the Executive. These were all transmitted to the Speakers of the provincial legislatures and the Chairperson of Salga to enable the provincial legislatures to acquaint themselves with the content before the introduction of the Bills as required by Joint Rule 159(2). While no Members’ Legislative Proposals were received, we continue to hope that as Members gain more experience in their areas of operation we will see improvement in this regard.
A total of one hundred and thirteen procedural advice was provided, ranging from advice relating to the business of the House, matters raised by parties and provinces and matters received from the public in the form of petitions. Rulings and advice assisted in the interpretation of Rules and in bringing certainty in their application. This in turn contributes positively to the effective functioning of the NCOP.
Questions to the Executive constitute an important tool for strengthening oversight accountability. In the reporting period a total of four hundred and sixty questions were put to members of the Executive. Of these, two hundred and forty eight were for written reply and two hundred and twelve for oral reply.
Out of the two hundred and twelve questions, six were to the President, eighteen to the Deputy President, thirty five to the Peace and Security Cluster, forty three to the Social Services Cluster, twenty one to the Governance Cluster and eighty nine to the Economics Cluster. A total of three hundred responses were received by the end of the financial year.
A total of thirteen Notices of interventions in terms of section 139 were received and referred to the Committee on Co-operative Government and Traditional Affairs for consideration and report during the financial year.
Three notices of interventions were approved during the financial year, namely: Umzinyathi District Municipality, Nquthu Local Municipality 139(1)(b) and Nquthu Local Municipality 139(1)(c). All were approved within the timeframes as required by the Constitution. The Committee continues to regularly monitor the interventions.
Six notices of interventions were terminated by operation of the law after the August 2016 Local Government elections.
We note that KwaZulu-Natal tops the list in the number of notices of intervention we continue to receive.
Eight public submissions were received and one of those was classified as a petition and was referred to the Select Committee on Petitions and Executive Undertakings. The petition was on the alleged failure by the South African Police Service to investigate reported complaints, and alleged violation of intellectual property right by the South African Broadcasting Corporation.
The committee had not yet tabled a report on this petition at the end of the financial year. With regard to the other seven submissions, the complainants were advised to seek other available avenues thanks to improvements in the manner in which we process petitions.
A total of thirty-five undertakings emanating from budget policy debates and question sessions were identified. Twenty-eight of these were referred to the Select Committee on Petitions and Executive Undertakings. All of the above undertakings were communicated to the relevant government departments.
Twenty-six responses were received from the government departments and were communicated to the Select Committees. Seven undertakings were not required to be referred as responses to them were forwarded to affected delegates. In this way we were able to hold the Executive to account for commitments made to the public.
We had matters that were refereed for the disciplinary hearing. We have two that is before the disciplinary committee. The matter of Hon. Mathys fell away when ceased being a member of this House. The matter of Hon. Mateme is still with the committee.
We appeal to Members to attend the sittings of the House and do what is required by them.
As we said when we presented Parliament’s budget in 2016, that when celebrating twenty years of life under our Constitution this year, we should take a moment to reflect on how life would have been without it, how this House would have been shaped without 1994, and how this country would be like without the full participation by all citizens in its national life.
Twenty years of implementing the Constitution must certainly provide us an opportunity to reflect on how we are leading the project of transforming our country. It must assist us to assess what we have achieved along the way, as well as the weaknesses, in building a South Africa for all. Hence our launch of this project in March this year.
Part of this exercise, as we announced on the occasion of Parliament’s budget last year, was the appointment of the High-Level Panel on the Assessment of Key Legislation and the Acceleration of Fundamental Change. They have been conducting its work focusing on the assessment of the impact of legislation enacted since 1994 and investigating the following thematic areas:
- The triple challenges of poverty, unemployment and inequality;
- The creation and equitable distribution of Wealth;
- Land reform, restitution, redistribution and security of tenure;
- Nation Building and Social Cohesion.
The preliminary report has been finalised and the final report will be released in August 2017. Deliberations by the Panel are expected to draw more nuanced recommendations for the consideration of the Speakers’ Forum.
Parliament’s proposed budget for 2017/2018 financial year is R2, 268 billion rand.
This budget is divided into five programmes and there are follows:
- Programme 1- Strategic Leadership and Governance is R71.2 million
- Programme 2- Administration is R116.2 million
- Programme 3 – Core Business is R549.2 million
- Programme 4- Support Services is R305.9 million
- Programme 5 – Associated Services is R669.5 million
The National Revenue Fund, as a provision for member’s remuneration is R556.3 million.
Our budget request for this financial year in terms of the Annual Performance Plan was R3, 3526 billion. However only an amount of R2, 2686 billion was allocated to Parliament, resulting in a shortfall of R1, 0846 billion. Parliament’s budget was also reduced by R129, 3 million (R88 million reduced on compensation of employees and R41, 3 Million on goods and services).
The Parliamentary Budget Office, the Treasury Advice Office and the office of the Institutions Supporting Democracy none in the past funded from Parliament’s own revenue which is not sustainable because they were not included in parliaments appropriated funds. This insufficient allocation adversely affects Parliament’s ability to execute its full mandate.
We are not panicking - we are engaging the head of state and treasury. We are reprioritising our work as Parliament.
If we are to continue to improve the support we provide to Members in the service of our people, we need to review the current funding model for Parliament. If Parliament is to really assert itself, its budget cannot be decided in the same way as that of government departments.
In fact, the NDP requires of a developmental state to have strong, capacitated and well-resourced institutions. We must therefore make the case for top slicing when it comes to the Budget of Parliament, which is a funding approach that takes into account the separation of powers based on the acceptance that all the arms of state should be equally strong and thus resourced accordingly.
It is our contention that our country will derive more value from a Parliament that has the necessary capacity to extract accountability and eliminate wastage of public resources.
The Constitution separates the powers of the State into three distinct, though complementary, arms: Parliament, the Executive and the Judiciary, each with specific roles and responsibilities. This separation of powers is designed to prevent the concentration of power in one institution or person and to provide checks and balances.
It is important to note, however, that the separation of powers is not fixed or rigid and constantly evolves through practice and jurisprudence.
After twenty years of implementing the Constitution it is evident that we need to bolster the work and stature of Parliament to be in line with its mandate of representing the people.
Honourable Members are alive to the extent to which the courts have been used to mediate disagreements among political players in Parliament. That is further eroding the place and role of our Parliament. In this regard, former Deputy Chief Justice Dikgang Moseneke made the following observation:
“A properly functioning democracy should eschew lumbering its courts with so much that properly belong at other democratic sites or the streets. We will over time over-politicise the courts and thereby tarnish their standing and effectiveness”
We continue to experience challenges regarding space, work facilities and accommodation for members and some staff. Ongoing engagement with Public Works and the Security Cluster, which we referred to in last year’s Budget Vote debate, are continuing but are not moving.
The security of the Members on the precinct of Parliament is to us a matter of urgency. We are also conducting a socio-economic impact study to prepare for our discussions if Parliament were to move from Cape Town.
Following our continued complains about the structural challenges of not only the NCOP but Parliament as a whole. We have asked for the organisational design of Parliament to be revisited.
There is a reasonable degree of stability in the institution, although it is far from the ideal state. The relationship between the Union and Management is strained.
Parties continue to engage in line with the provisions of the existing Recognition Agreement and we hope that the relationship improvement initiatives will yield positive results.
In order to create a conducive working environment, Parliament must among other things:
- Improve the labour relations climate;
- Improve the employee engagement levels to ensure employees are motivated well enough to ensure job satisfaction;
- Implement programmes that will enhance health and wellbeing of both Members and staff.
As Parliament’s Presiding Officers we agree that we must raise the bar with regard to using the international fora to influence the international agenda. We must ensure that we have the necessary capacity required to undertake this work, including in our diplomatic engagements.
As the Fifth Parliament we would like to see the establishment of the SADC Regional Parliament. We also want to see the finalisation of the hosting agreement for the Pan African Parliament and the resolution of the related security and resource challenges.
In respect of the wok of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, we appreciate the progress towards the transformation of this body. A committee of experts that was established to advise on this met in March this year and expressed the view that the association should become an international inter-parliamentary institution faced by the PAP.
As I draw this speech to a close, I take this opportunity to acknowledge the role played by Dr. Hunadi Mateme as a member and lead in this House. She has made an indelible contribution towards making ours a system that can rival similar systems from other parts of the world. Solutions are found especially when challenges present themselves.
In the same vein, we welcome the new Chief Whip. We shall draw from his experience as a former Member of the Executive Council and member of the Standing Committee on Finance.
The Chairpersons Office, shall continue to provide the requisite leadership to its House and all its appendages with profound sense of humility. It is this sense of humility that has endeared Cde. O.R to many across various parts of the world, making it easier for his views and standpoint to be respected without being seen to be overbearing on anyone.
We shall carry his lessons of service and translate further in our provisioning of quality services of our people.
We congratulate Members of Parliament who serve in these multilateral bodies and those who occupy positions of leadership.
In conclusion, allow me to thank fellow Presiding Officers, office bearers, Members of Parliament and staff for the support and commitment to the work of this institution.
I thank you.
