Presidency fails to meet lifestyle audits deadline yet again

The Deputy Minister in the Presidency, Thembi Siweya, confirmed in today’s oral questions session that the Ramaphosa administration will fail to meet the extended deadline to finalise lifestyle audits for Cabinet.

The President announced the introduction of lifestyle audits for the Executive as far back as 2018, so it is fair to expect that work on them began 3 years ago. At the time, the President was upbeat that these would herald a new era of transparency, accountability and good governance by the executive.

In the last governance oral questions session in 2020, the late Minister Jackson Mthembu committed the Ramaphosa administration to finalise the introduction of lifestyle audits by the end of March 2021, after failing to meet its initial deadline October 2018.

In contrast, it took approximately 9 months for Premier Alan Winde to deliver on his electoral commitment to introduce lifestyle audits for the DA-led Western Cape Cabinet.

It is completely unacceptable that once again when the deadline for the implementation of the lifestyle audits looms, the Ramaphosa administration finds yet another excuse for the delay.

The latest justification for the Ramaphosa administration’s failure to meet one of its core promises, is conveniently Covid-19.

It is becoming increasingly clear that the consistent determination to push back the deadline is an indication of the political resistance to the introduction of the lifestyle audits by some elements in Cabinet and a faction in Luthuli House.

The DA will continue to use all the parliamentary channels to apply inescapable pressure on the government to deliver these.

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DA calls on students to refrain from violent and criminal tactics

In light of reports of the arrest of two students who were allegedly part of the student protests in Johannesburg for possession of an illegal rifle, the DA calls on students to keep level heads during this time and to refrain from any forms of violence.

While the concerns of students are legitimate, the use of violent and possibly criminal tactics must be condemned.

The DA calls on student representatives to go back to the negotiation table with NSFAS, the Department of Higher Education and tertiary institutions to find a solution before more lives are lost.

Furthermore, we call on politicians to stop using the plight of students to push their narrow political agendas. What is required now is fruitful engagements in order to prevent any national shutdowns and to ensure a smooth start to the 2021 tertiary academic year.

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Mabuza must withdraw his statement on EWC

Deputy President David Mabuza must withdraw the statement that he made in Parliament yesterday where he appeared to insinuate that landowners whose land has been identified for land restitution could potentially lose it through expropriation without compensation.

While answering oral questions in the National Assembly yesterday afternoon, Mabuza made the shocking claim that “the land that is in question for expropriation is restituted land because that land has been claimed by a particular claimant”.

If Mabuza’s announcement is now official government policy, it is an unbridled attack on the constitutional right of the current landowner to have their land expropriated with just and equitable compensation.

For landowners who are currently facing uncertainty about their future as a result of the ANC’s ill-advised pursuit of the Expropriation Bill and amendment to Section 25 of the Constitution, this announcement revealed the true intentions of a government that has declared war on property rights. The DA will not allow this subversion of the Constitution to stand.

In its blind pursuit to force through these disastrous Bills, the ANC has become a wrecking ball against the very foundations against which our constitutional democracy is founded. For a Deputy President to stand on the Parliament podium and make proclamations on Bills that are yet to be passed, is not only dangerous but shows how out of touch the ANC is on the direct implications of these Bills on the economy.

Mabuza must withdraw his statement. He is constitutionally obliged to do so.

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How much diesel will Eskom’s burn to suspend loadshedding for King’s memorial?

The Democratic Alliance (DA) calls on Eskom to come clean on how much money it has spent to burn through diesel during the hours it suspended loadshedding in order to “allow the nation to mourn” the passing of King Goodwill Zwelithini.

The power utility announced it will suspend loadshedding between 10:00 this morning and 14:00 this afternoon.

By doing this, Eskom is essentially saying that loadshedding can be switched on and off at a whim, like a game. This undermines Eskom’s own premise of loadshedding and makes the concept wholly irrational.

Surely if Eskom can find 4 hours to keep the lights on for the memorial service today, the entity can find the same reprieve for ordinary South Africans who are fighting for their lives in hospitals, and businesses battling to stay afloat because of the dual blow of Covid-19 and loadshedding.

While we share in the pain of the nation in mourning the passing of the King, the memorial of His Majesty should not be used as an excuse to treat citizens unequally.

This is an indefensible and ludicrous decision by Eskom. It is also no coincidence that the suspension of loadshedding coincides with President Cyril Ramaphosa’s eulogy at the memorial.

Lighting a candle is something humans have done for centuries in honour of the dead. In South Africa, we turn the electricity on.

We cannot allow the ANC government’s blatant attempt to save face to go unchallenged. The DA wants to know what criteria was used to allow the suspension of loadshedding and how much money Eskom has used to burn through diesel to keep the lights on.

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Government shirks responsibility – tells parents of SA students in Cuba to send aid

The Democratic Alliance (DA) has written to the Minister of Health, Zweli Mkhize, to address the continued plights of South African medical students living in Cuba. This follows a revelation that his Department will request that parents of students living in Cuba fill a 23kg bag of necessities which would be transported via a military flight to Cuba.

The Nelson-Mandela Fidel Castro Medical Collaboration Program was established to give students from poor and disadvantaged backgrounds an opportunity to study in Cuba on full scholarships.

Earlier this year, I made direct contact with these students who expressed their concerns around the chronic problems faced year on year. The issues communicated with us include the following:

  • Increased cost of living due to Cuba’s dire economic circumstances;
  • Difficulty accessing transport;
  • Poor quality of food;
  • Doubling of food prices due to Covid-19;
  • Terrible living conditions;
  • Little to no access of key toiletries such as sanitary items; and
  • Stipend remaining the same over the last 10 years, which cannot cover all living costs.

On the 4th of March the DA addressed these students’ concerns to the Minister during a question session in Parliament, and on the 10th of March, in light of the issues raised by the DA at a mini plenary sitting regarding Cuban doctors, the Department of Health (DoH) finally made contact with these students to address their concerns.

Their solution after months of these students seeking assistance, is to request that their parents fill a 23kg bag of toiletries, groceries or anything the students might need, and this bag would then be transported via a military flight to Cuba.

The issue with this is that these students largely come from unprivileged and poor backgrounds. Many come from poor families who would not have the necessary funds to fill a 23kg back for their child, who so desperately needs these crucial items.

This request is therefore unfair and seemingly an attempt by government to shift the responsibility away from itself.

The DA suggests that government review this programme as it can clearly not care adequately for the participating students who are left to face a dire situation on foreign soil. Instead of spending more money on a programme that does not adequately prepare medical students for South African realities, maybe government should use this money to invest into more and better medical institutions at home.

It is for this reason that the DA has written to the Minister to ensure that these concerns are addressed.

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Police vehicle fleet crisis – 4000 vehicles out of service and over 1000 made redundant in 5 Provinces

Parliamentary replies to written Democratic Alliance (DA) questions to the Minister of Police, Bheki Cele, have revealed that SAPS is facing a disproportionately high rate of vehicles that are either out of service or have been made redundant. This high vehicle attrition rate has an immediate impact on service delivery and the fight against crime, especially on critical functions such as visible policing, rural safety and detective work.

With rising crime levels and an increasing loss of confidence in SAPS among ordinary South Africans, it is imperative that Cele provides a clear national plan of how his Department intends to replenish the police’s rapidly depleting police fleet and speed up the repair of vehicles that have been put out of service. Anything less will only serve to weaken the police service, increase the prevalence of crime and further compromise the safety of crime weary South Africans.

Data on the current status of the police vehicle fleet, received from 5 Provinces, is as follows:

Province  Police vehicles out of service  Redundant/Boarded Vehicles 
KwaZulu Natal 2574 133
Northern Cape 352 352
North West 181 64
Western Cape 1291 334
Gauteng 266
TOTAL  4398  1149 

Information from Statistics South Africa’s (StatsSA) Victims of Crime Survey (VOCS) has shown that people are always complaining about SAPS’s slow response time to emergency calls. At the extreme end, residents in Northern Cape, Free State, KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga complained that it took police an average of two hours to respond to an emergency call. A declining police vehicle fleet will only worsen this dire situation and put many lives at risk.

The DA holds the view that budget cuts to SAPS proposed by the Minister of Finance in his budget speech, should not be used as an excuse to compromise the effectiveness of the police service to respond to crime and keep people safe. The priority must always be to ensure that SAPS resources are spent on police services that serve communities directly.

We will use our presence on the Police Portfolio Committee in Parliament to ensure that the police budget is spent on critical functions such as visible policing and rural safety. Part of that focus is to fight for a mobile police service that is well capacitated through a well-resourced vehicle fleet.

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Minister Pandor succumbs to DA pressure to suspend DIRCO CFO

The Democratic Alliance (DA) welcomes the suspension of the CFO of the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO), Caiphus Ramashau. This follows sustained pressure from the DA for his suspension after Minister Naledi Pandor’s surprising suspension of the DIRCO Director General, Kgabo Mohoai, last month.

At the centre of this debacle is the highly controversial R118 million irregular expenditure on the New York Pilot Project.

Minister Pandor dodged answering a question posed to her during a previous Q&A session stating that it wasn’t her responsibility, but during a meeting of the Portfolio Committee on International Relations and Cooperation yesterday, and after much reluctance by officials, it was confirmed that the CFO, Mr Ramashau, is under precautionary suspension.

In welcoming the suspension, the DA must also hasten to add our serious concerns that other senior officials implicated with this project, have not been suspended. It has now emerged that the Department has engaged to sublease office space for our missions in New York, and the very role players implicated in the R118 million schenanigans, are also at the centre of this new deal. This is a recipe for disaster, and we brought this to the Minister’s attention.

These actions, or lack thereof by the Minister as the political head of DIRCO, further vindicates the DA’s calls that Director-General Mohaoi’s suspension was a smokescreen to protect other senior officials closely linked to senior politicians.

Minister Pandor must come clean on the shenanigans that are taking place in her department, to prevent any further embarrassment for South Africa on the international platform.

We have already written to the President requesting the suspension of both, Minister Maite Nkoane-Mashabane, under whose watch this New York Pilot Project and its shenanigans were initiated and for failing to exercise her executive oversight and Ambassador Jerry Matjila, who was the Director-General during that period.

If Minister Pandor fails to address and execute her executive duties, we will not hesitate to request the President, for her suspension as well.

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R2 billion in land dispute claims – AG report reveals a Department in chaos and at war with farmers 

Chickens have finally come home to roost for the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD) after the 2019/2020 Auditor-General (AG) report confirmed claims of more than R2 billion instituted against the Department. The shambolic handling of the land reform and land administration processes has opened it up to land dispute claims. These claims have mostly been instituted by farmers and communities who feel that they have been unfairly targeted by the Department.

At the heart of the AG’s findings is a revelation of the crippling amount of land dispute cases that have either been investigated by the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) or the Department itself. The SIU is noted for having investigated 32 community/group claims for land restitution at the request of the Minister, but these reports are yet to be made public. As of 31 March 2020, the Department’s Forensic Investigations Directorate had concluded 45 investigations. The Directorate is currently investigating a further 42 cases.

It is worth noting that some of these land dispute claims stem from the chaotic land administration system that the Department currently presides over. Farmers who have lodged claims over disputed farmland have often found that the Department is often acting on disparate information.

A case in point is Mr Vuyani Zigana who was evicted from the Nooitgedacht farm in Kokstad. Minister Didiza was informed of Mr Zigana’s case in June 2020, after which she ordered the DALRRD to launch an investigation into the eviction.

Despite the outcome of a DALRRD-sponsored report implicating Departmental officials in the unfair treatment of Mr Zigana in the allocation of the Nooitgedacht farm, the harassment of the farmer has continued. The report’s recommendations continue to be blatantly ignored and the priority, it seems, is to drive Mr Zigana off his land at all costs.

Instead of harassing Mr Zigana, the Department should instead be implementing the recommendations of the investigation it sponsored by taking disciplinary action against DALRRD officials who were implicated in inappropriate action in the allocation of the Nooitgedacht farm. Mr Zigana cannot be victimised for the department’s own incompetence and failure to adhere to its own administrative processes.

Minister Didiza has not released the investigation report into the eviction order that was served on Mr Ivan Cloete, a farmer in Darling, Western Cape. By its own admission, the Department may have violated a lease agreement it had with Mr Cloete under the land reform programme. The question that arises is why the Department proceeded to invite fresh new applications on a farm in which it already had an active lease agreement in place. By violating the terms of the lease agreement it had with Mr Cloete, the process that the Department pursued to allocate the farm to new occupants became procedurally and administratively flawed, rendering it unenforceable.

In Mpumalanga, despite making representations to the Minister on their behalf, a group of successful Black farmers are still facing eviction orders from officials in the DALRRD’s Mpumalanga offices. The DA has been working alongside these farmers and we have evidence of the relentless tug-of-war they have been subjected to by corrupt officials.

The Department should stop fighting against farmers and should instead focus on its core function of capacitating the sector and ensuring job security for the thousands of citizens who rely on it for their livelihood.

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DA calls for special Parliamentary meeting on funding crisis in disability care sector

The Democratic Alliance (DA) will request the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, Nonhlahla Ndaba, to call a joint meeting with the Portfolio Committee on Social Development to discuss funding for non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in the disability care sector.

We are extremely concerned with the government’s failure to provide adequate funding to NGOs that offer much needed assistance to persons with disabilities. During the DA’s national oversight tour, we discovered that NGOs in this sector are on their knees financially and are no longer able to properly serve the needs of persons with disabilities:

Free State:

We visited the Jean Weber House which is a boarding facility for persons with disabilities run by the Free State Association for Persons with Disabilities. This facility currently provides a shelter and essential services for 33 residents and only receives R101 750 from the Department of Social Development (DSD). This money is not nearly enough to cover the costs of basic necessities like electricity; water; medical supplies; and salaries for a driver, health care worker, two cleaners, four cooks, four security guards and twenty-four care workers. The facility currently has a monthly shortfall of R65 915 and will soon close down if it does not receive adequate funding from the DSD.

North West

The Emmanuel Care Centre relies on its residents’ SASSA grants and donations from the private sector to shelter, provide medical supplies and other essential services to over one hundred persons with disabilities. They do not receive funding from government and face imminent closure due to a lack of adequate funding to cover their operational costs.

KwaZulu-Natal

The Mzamo Child Guidance and Training Initiatives also face funding challenges, which has resulted in them terminating their skills training and development programme for children with disabilities.

While these are only a few examples that the DA encountered during our oversight tour, the truth is that there are countless NGOs in the disability care sector with the same financial constraints and facing the very real reality of closing down.

Without proper funding for these NGOs, vulnerable South Africans living with disabilities are at risk of homelessness and losing access to dignified care and education.

The DA trusts that Chairperson Ndaba will grant our request for a joint committee meeting in order to ensure that Parliament places the needs of persons with disabilities at the top of its agenda. We will also continue to put pressure on the Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities to assist struggling NGOs in the sector.

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DA verkla bestuur van Universiteit Stellenbosch by die Menseregtekommissie oor verbod op Afrikaans

Aangesien die bestuur van die Universiteit van Stellenbosch (US) steeds weier om daadwerklik ondersoek in te stel na klagtes dat Afrikaans by verskeie koshuise verbied is, het die Demokratiese Alliansie (DA) vandag ’n formele klag teen die universiteitsbestuur by die Menseregtekommissie (MRK) ingedien. Die DA se klagte word vergesel van vyf verskillende eedsverklarings van studente en studenteorganisasies wat die DA genader het vir hulp.

Die studente se getuienis maak dit duidelik dat die verbod op Afrikaans in beide openbare en private ruimtes nie ’n geïsoleerde geval is nie. Studente by ten minste vier verskillende koshuise en private studenteorganisasies is verbied om Afrikaans in hul koshuise, kamers en selfs op parkiebanke te praat.

Ten spyte daarvan dat studente by die Tygerbergkampus volgens berigte reeds in Augustus 2020 klagtes oor die diskriminasie teen Afrikaanssprekende studente aanhangig gemaak het, het die universiteit tot dusver niks gedoen om regstelling te bewerkstellig nie. Daar is steeds geen aanduiding dat die universiteit bereid is om ’n volledige en onafhanklike ondersoek van stapel te stuur nie. Hierdie pligsversuim vererger net die gevoel van vernedering onder die betrokke studente, en maak die universiteitsbestuur direk aandadig in die menseregtevergrype teen hierdie studente.

Die DA se klagte berus op die Handves van Menseregte soos uiteengesit in ons Grondwet. Die Handves van Menseregte maak, onder meer, in paragraaf 31 voorsiening daarvoor dat persone wat aan ’n taalgemeenskap behoort nie die reg ontsê mag word om saam met ander lede van daardie gemeenskap hul taal te gebruik nie. Paragraaf 30 stipuleer dat elkeen die reg het om die taal van eie keuse te gebruik en om aan die kulturele lewe van eie keuse deel te neem, terwyl paragraaf 29 aan elke persoon die reg gee om onderwys te ontvang in die taal van eie keuse waar dit rederlikerwys doenlik is.

Op grond van die getuienis in die verklarings en die gesprekke wat ons met studente gevoer het, is die DA oortuig dat die verbod op Afrikaans deur die US die menseregte van Afrikaanssprekende studente verbreek het. Ons versoek die MRK om – anders as die universiteit – hierdie saak dringend te ondersoek op ’n manier wat die betrokke studente beskerm teen enige verdere viktimisering.

Indien die MRK se ondersoek die vergrype bevestig, vra ons vir regstellende optrede, insluitend moontlike siviele en kriminele vervolging, teen partye wat betrokke is by die skending van menseregte. Ons versoek ook die MRK om die rol van die US se 2016-taalbeleid te oorweeg, en om vas te stel in hoe ’n mate die beleid ’n atmosfeer of omgewing geskep het wat die menseregtevergrype teen Afrikaanse studente aangemoedig het.

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