DA lawyers request State Capture Commission confirm 12 ANC witnesses

Our lawyers have written to Secretary of the Commission into State Capture, Dr Khotso De Wee, requesting confirmation that Gwede Mantashe, Jessie Duarte, Jacob Zuma, Cyril Ramaphosa, Mosebenzi Zwane, Malusi Gigaba, Des van Rooyen, Lynne Brown, Tom Moyane, Arthur Fraser, David Mahlobo, and David Mabuza will be called to give testimony before the Zondo Commission of Inquiry into State Capture.

The DA’s complaints against all 12 of these ANC members are a matter of public record and need to be thoroughly investigated. Considering information in the public domain and testimony already heard before the Commission, their testimony is material in allowing the Commission to fulfil its mandate.

Testimonies before the Commission have made it clear that the ANC knew full well that state capture was underway and did absolutely nothing to stop it from happening.

As recently as Tuesday, Mantashe and Duarte were implicated by the testimony given on behalf of Standard Bank at the hearing. While fellow ANC top 6 member and Deputy President, David Mabuza, is three years overdue coming clean about his 2015 trip to Moscow on a Gupta owned aircraft when Premier of Mpumalanga.

Former President Jacob Zuma has been directly implicated in allegations by testimony before the Commission, but while the Commission has requested he submit an affidavit to the Commission, it is not clear whether he will be called to testify in person.

The Gupta’s siphoning of hundreds of millions intended for farmers in the Estina Dairy Farm project has not yet led to any real accountability. Former Mineral Resources Minister, Mosebenzi Zwane, needs to attest to his involvement in this large-scale looting when Free State Agriculture MEC. It is also critical that former SSA Director General, Arthur Fraser, reveal whether he used the SSA as a bulwark against threats to state capture.

For eight years, the ANC’s Parliamentary majority have shielded the guilty from any real accountability, while state capture continued at Luthuli House, the Union Buildings, Mineral Resources, Home Affairs, Finance, SOEs, SARS, and the SSA. Because ANC capture is the protagonist of state capture.

The ANC must face the music for their leading role in state capture and its senior leadership must testify before the Commission.

An agenda for change to build One South Africa For All rests on South Africans knowing the truth. These 12 ANC members know the truth behind the state capture project and South Africa deserves a Commission that will call them as witnesses to shine light on the proceedings.

 

DA will pose key questions to Gigaba and Apleni on Gupta naturalisation tomorrow

The DA welcomes that the long overdue inquiry by Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs into the naturalisation of Gupta family members has finally started today.

Tomorrow, Minister of Home Affairs, Malusi Gigaba, and former Director-General, Mkuseli Apleni, will finally answer for their role in allegedly fast-tracking and possibly illegally granting naturalisation to members of the Gupta family.

For far too long Gigaba and Apleni have enjoyed political protection and dodged accountability for their role in this saga.

Tomorrow the DA will be posing the following questions to both Gigaba and Apleni:

  • Were they, at any point, given instructions to facilitate extra-ordinary Home Affairs services in favour of the Gupta family and associates;
  • If these instructions were given, by whom;
  • The leaked Gupta emails suggest that visas were expedited for the Guptas. Was either Gigaba or Apleni aware of the facilitation role that Mr Christians played in expediting visas for the Gupta family? Does he believe that such facilitation of the visas was proper; if so, please explain;
  • Did either have any relationship with the Guptas before granting them early naturalisation; and
  • Had either met the Guptas at their home in Saxonwold or elsewhere?

Both Gigaba and Apleni have shown that they have no regard for the law and have been complicit in allegedly selling our country to the highest bidder, for their own personal gain.

The Department of Home Affairs has lurched from one crisis to another under the mismanagement and abuse of Gigaba. The result has been the total disregard of the laws meant to govern and safeguard our country. This has also significantly undermined efforts to deal with the illegal immigration crisis in the country.

It is time that Gigaba and Apleni answer fully for their role in the State Capture project and the DA will continue to ensure that all those involved in putting their own interests above that of the country are held to account and made to pay for their actions.

Beitbridge border inspection confirms DHA inefficiency contributes to illegal immigration

This statement follows our oversight inspection of the Beitbridge Border post in Musina by DA Shadow Minister of Home Affairs, Haniff Hoosen MP, DA Limpopo Provincial Leader, Jacques Smalle MPL, and DA Limpopo Spokesperson on Safety and Security, Katlego Suzan Phala MPL.

Please find attached an English soundbite by Mr Hoosen, Afrikaans by Mr Smalle and in Sepedi by Ms Phala. Pictures can be found here, here, and here.

Today, the DA conducted an oversight inspection of the Beitbridge Border post in Musina following reports of extremely long queues and increasing incidences of vehicle, explosives and cigarette smuggling.

From our inspection it was clear that the level of service by staff is severely compromised due to a lack of resources, the complete breakdown of technology and the outdated computer software systems. For example, there are supposed to be 16 computers available and functioning to process people entering or leaving the border. However, only two computers are currently working.

The fact that there are only two computers available to process the high number of people who cross the border everyday confirms that Home Affairs Minister, Malusi Gigaba, is completely out of touch. Minister Gigaba’s “war on queues” is clearly a farce.

The DA also heard complaints from people at the border who must pay bribes of R200 if they want to skip the long lines, caused by a severe lack of working equipment and staff and in the absence of an effective queue management system

Limpopo residents living in Musina have complained that people from Zimbabwe are able to simply walk across the border undetected. This is an indictment on the both DHA and the ANC government whose inefficiencies in allocating adequate resources to our secure the borders.

The officials at Beitbridge cannot win this fight alone, despite their genuine dedication to their work. They need the support of the DHA and border control management to effectively control the flow of people at the border post and to and secure the border from illegal immigration. However, the fact remains that inefficiencies and corruption at the DHA is responsible for the rise in illegal immigration.

There are many problems currently facing the control of illegal immigration. That the why the DA have repeatedly called for the DHA to prioritise the following:

  • secure our borders and fix our fences, making it impossible for people to enter South Africa illegally;
  • make legal entry as easy as possible, with an emphasis on skilled workers; and
  • take stronger action against those who employ immigrants illegally.

A DA government would allocate proper resources to ensure the efficient processing of all people and goods entering the country, as well as the effective policing of trafficking and smuggling across our borders. This would go a long way to keep South Africa safe and to cutting down on illegal immigration, trafficking and smuggling.

Maseru Bridge Border Post under-resourced to deal with 3.5 million pedestrian crossings annually

Today, on our oversight inspection of the Maseru Bridge Border Post in the Free State. We had an opportunity to speak with officials representing the South African Police Service, the Department of Home Affairs and the South African Revenue Service. We were left deeply concerned about the lack of resources which continue to compromise the security of the border.

These deficits in our system contribute to the expansion of organised crime syndicates and stock theft because the Border Control Operational Coordinating Committee has been an abysmal failure from its conception to its execution.

The most shocking failure has been the failure of Border Control authorities to effectively use technology to facilitate better border management. From a comprehensive Parliamentary briefing by the now-retired Free State Provincial Police Commissioner, the DA understands that not all equipment at the Border Post has been used including drug testing equipment primarily because it was provided without training.

Moreover, there were no truck scanners and only seven vehicles of which two vehicles are in a poor condition.

The Department has consistently faced with computers which were overloaded and regularly offline. Although they have 30 workstations, they were not fully staffed with only 15 staff members per shift.

We were informed today that the border post facilitates the movement of up to 12 000 people per day. In what world can we expect an 18 member per shift to deal with 12 000 people per year in addition to cars, trucks and goods trains?

The ANC government has failed to ensure that our landward borders are properly protected so that we are not vulnerable to organised crime syndicates, illegal immigrants, stock thieves and the drugs that have ravaged so many of our communities already.

It is vital that the government take a more proactive role in securing our porous borders. The new Border Management Authority is itself a clear indication that the ANC government is out of touch and out of ideas. The ANC has shown itself ill-equipped for the task of keeping South Africans safe.

The DA has a plan to create a sleek, effective coordinating entity as opposed to the ANC’s cumbersome, bureaucratic body designed to feed the machinery of State Capture under the control of the Gupta-linked Malusi Gigaba.

The DA stands ready to create a safer, dignified and equal society for all.

 

Dysfunctional Refugee Reception Offices fuel illegal immigration

This statement follows our oversight inspection at the Durban Refugee Reception Office by DA Shadow Minister of Home Affairs, Haniff Hoosen MP. Please find attached a soundbite in English by DA Shadow Minister of Home Affairs, Haniff Hoosen MP, as well pictures here, here, here and here.

Today, the DA conducted an oversight inspection at the Durban Refugee Reception Office (RRO), which is one of the offices worst affected by the Illegal closure of the Cape Town and Port Elizabeth Reception Offices.

The DA received reports that the Durban RRO is currently fully booked and therefore unable to schedule appointments for new applications until August.

This means that any new asylum seekers needing and wanting to declare their presence and regularise their stay in South Africa, by reporting to this office will remain undocumented if they cannot afford to travel to Musina or Pretoria.

Their undocumented presence in the country is often a direct result of the incapacity of the Department of Home Affairs, which has been made worse by the Cape Town and Port Elizabeth closures. The Department’s ineffectiveness at processing asylum applications could contribute to an increase in illegal immigration.

The DA also received concerning reports of bribes being openly and routinely demanded from applicants to be issued their documentation.

The DA has written to Minister Malusi Gigaba to ask him about the steps his department is taking to re-open both offices. In September 2017, the Supreme Court of Appeal found that the decision to close the Cape Town Refugee Reception Office was irrational and therefore ought to be reviewed and set aside. The Department’s appeal to the Constitutional Court was dismissed in December 2017 and was ordered to re-open the Cape Town Office by 31 March 2018.

Not only has the Department failed to comply with this order but it has also failed to comply with another 2015 order to re-open the Port Elizabeth Refugee Reception Office

The DA has submitted parliamentary questions and brought the matter to the attention of the Portfolio Committee. If Minister Gigaba fails to respond to comply with the court orders, President Cyril Ramaphosa must ensure Minister Gigaba is held to account for being in contempt of court. account for the lawlessness of his Executive.

The DA is determined to ensure that the many and varied issues plaguing currently plaguing the system are resolved so that the department fully functional, well-resourced and able to process all applications efficiently.

The DA will pursue this issue tirelessly for the sake of all the people within in our borders, citizens as well as foreign nationals, consistent with our goal of a better and safer South Africa for all.

The DA will champion the kind of change that ensures that the Department of Home Affairs fully executes its constitutional duties, which includes playing a vital role in curbing illegal immigration by running clean and transparent immigration processes and systems.

Minister Gigaba must be summoned to account to Parliament for ignoring court order to reopen Refugee Centres

The below statement follows our oversight to the Cape Town Refugee Reception Office by the DA Shadow Minister of Home Affairs, Haniff Hoosen MP.

Please see video here. 

Today, the DA conducted an oversight visit to the Department of Home Affairs Cape Town office in the Foreshore. This office only processes asylum seeker permit renewals and does not take new applications as the Cape Town Refugee Reception office was closed, illegally, in 2012.

The DA spoke with some asylum seekers who shared their frustrations with the process as well as the conditions at the current premises which pose a health hazard to both asylum-seekers and staff. In such close quarters tensions often run high, in some instances, resulting in instances where female staffers said they felt threatened.Security has been a serious issue at the facility as the previous contract with the security company came to an end. This has forced staff to act as security guards to manage access control which puts their safety at risk.

Refugee reception Offices are meant to receive and process new applications from people who are seeking asylum in South Africa. They also renew asylum seeker permits while these applicants await decisions on their permanent applications.

In September 2017, the Supreme Court of Appeal found that the decision to close the Cape Town Refugee Reception Office was irrational and therefore ought to be reviewed and set aside.

The Department’s appeal to the Constitutional Court was dismissed in December 2017. And the Department of Home Affairs was ordered to re-open the Cape Town Office by 31 March 2018.

Not only has the Department failed to comply with this order but it has also failed to comply with another 2015 order to re-open the Port Elizabeth Refugee Reception Office.

Currently, there is a backlog of 140 000 appeal cases currently with the Department of Home Affairs which need to be finalised.

The DA will now write to the Chairperson of the Home Affairs Portfolio Committee, Lemias Mashile, to request that Home Affairs Minister, Malusi Gigaba, be summoned to account for why these reception centres have not been reopened and for his continued non-compliance with court orders.

Clearly, the failure by Minister Gigaba to obey the courts is compromising the ability of the Department ensure asylum applications are processed and finalised efficiently.

The continued failure of the Department essentially means that it is contributing to the issue of illegal immigration.

To address this, a DA government would immediately address the criteria for the appointment of Refugee Status Determination Officers, who process and make decisions on asylum applications, as well as increase support to these critical front-line decision-makers to ease the backlog.

Most importantly, a DA government would ensure that the Department is run efficiently, by suitably qualified officials and that resources are allocated to ensure that we solve the issue of illegal immigration rather than contributing to it.

 

 

DA’s proposal for a moratorium on official spousal travel is being considered by the Presidency

President Cyril Ramaphosa has confirmed [see here] that the review of the size and shape of the national executive has begun, but that it will only be implemented after Election 2019.

The reshaping of the national executive will take time but is a lost opportunity to send the right “fiscal signals” when it comes to wasteful expenditure by the national executive.

There are a number of “quick wins” that could be implemented immediately that would send the right “fiscal signals” and would compliment the review of the size and shape of the national executive.

That is why I wrote to President Cyril Ramaphosa, on 04 May 2018, proposing that he consider:

  • placing a moratorium on members of the executive being accompanied on international official journeys by spouses and/or adult family members; and
  • ordering a review of the sections dealing with international official journeys for spouses and adult family members in the Ministerial Handbook: Handbook for Members of the Executive and Presiding Officers.

This followed revelations that R873 366.68 was blown on international travel for the former Minister of Finance, Malusi Gigaba’, wife who accompanied him on investor roadshows to the financial capitals of the world inter alia in China, the United Kingdom and the United States.

It’s staggering that the minister who increased Value Added Tax blew nearly R870 000+ on what were in reality a series of intercontinental shopping trips for his wife in the financial capitals of the world.

We, therefore, welcome the letter [see here], dated 17 May 2015, from Dr Cassius Lubisi, the Director General and Cabinet Secretary, which confirms that the “matter is receiving attention”.

We hope that President Cyril Ramaphosa will not wait for the implementation of the review of the size and shape of the national executive to take decisive action to clamp doewn on wasteful expenditure by the national executive by inter alia:

  • placing a moratorium on international official journeys of executive members  spouses and/or adult family members; and
  • ordering a review of the relevant sections of the Ministerial Handbook: Handbook for Members of the Executive and Presiding Officers.

Home Affairs is losing the battle against illegal immigration

Replies to DA parliamentary questions has revealed  a year on year increase of  16,83% and 11.55% respectively since 2015 in the number of foreign nationals failing to depart from South Africa after the expiration of their visas.

In 2015,  approximately 295 000 people stayed in South Africa once their visas have expired, this number increased to roughly 345 000 in 2016 and increased again to 384 000 in 2017. Notably, this number accounts for the total number of persons from only the top 5 countries whose citizens remain in South Africa illegally.

Not only is the ANC government failing in its responsibility to curb illegal immigration but it also continuously fails illegal immigrants who want to be processed but can’t because of the continued failings of the Department of Home Affairs to efficiently process applications.

It is gravely concerning that there’s no clear plan or capacity to prevent the growth of the illegal immigrant population in South Africa.

This is an indictment on the Home Affairs Minister, Malusi Gigaba, and as such, he must held accountable for his utter contempt for his job as a public servant. The Minister needs to change tack and treat his department with the seriousness it deserves. After all he’s here to serve South Africans and the DA expects nothing less.

It is totally unacceptable that we have a government that is knowingly compounding the challenges facing the control of illegal immigration in the country.

The DA has previously urged the Department of Home Affairs to prioritise the following:

  • secure our borders and fix our fences, making it almost impossible for people to enter the country illegally;
  • make it as easy as possible for those who wish to enter legally, with an emphasis on attracting skilled workers;
  • take stronger action against those who employ illegal immigrants; and
  • address corruption, inefficiency, capacity constraints in the administration process for refugee or asylum seekers.

By implementing the above, a DA government would streamline the current broken, corrupt and overburdened immigration system.

An agenda for reform

The following speech was delivered today by the Leader of the Democratic Alliance, Mmusi Maimane, during the Budget Vote on the Presidency.

Madam Speaker

Honourable Members

Fellow South Africans

Bagaetsho

Dumelang

This week the President will celebrate his first 100 days in office, and we offer our own congratulations to him on the achievements of these past three months.

In particular, the President and his party have made two announcements in recent days which we wholeheartedly welcome:

Firstly, the President has said that he will not oppose our court application to scrap the deal by which the State would cover all of former President Jacob Zuma’s legal defense fees.

The President’s announcement that he will abide by the Court’s decision in this matter is an important step towards finally seeing justice for Mr Zuma. His trial has been so long delayed only because he could always rely on the public to pay for his constant delay tactics.

Once this strategy is no longer available to him, we know that justice for his crimes will follow swiftly. His retirement must be as uncomfortable for him as his Presidency was for South Africa.

Secondly, the governing party has, in the last few days, performed a complete about-turn on amending the Constitution to enable land expropriation without compensation.

The ANC has said that it now plans to do so within the confines of the current Constitutional framework. This is a very significant departure from the language the President has used over the last months.

The current wording of the Constitution safeguards against arbitrary expropriation and requires “just and equitable” compensation. It is a far cry from the broad-ranging permission to expropriate whatever, whenever, with no compensation, that the government has spoken of.

I welcome this shift from the EFF’s position, whereby expropriated land is owned by the state, to the position the DA has consistently held on this issue, which is that property rights must be protected. This is progress.

Now let us not stop there, Mr President.

Let’s also take the thousands of hectares of state-owned farmland and hand this back to the people.

Let’s accelerate the transfer of title deeds.

In metros and towns with DA-led governments we have already made 100,000 South Africans home owners by handing them title deeds. Let’s double or triple this number.

Mr President, you said we must work together to achieve fundamental social and economic transformation.

And so I’d like to invite you to come with me to the rural community of Gwatyu in the Eastern Cape, where the people have been waiting decades to own their land. Come and show them your commitment to returning land to the people.

Honourable Members, these two matters are substantive, and go to the heart of what the Ramaphosa Presidency needs to achieve.

Namely, it must show real commitment to building a capable state that is corruption-free, and it must prove that it will return us to meaningful economic growth that creates jobs.

However, as we take stock of these first 100 days, the early morning mists of the New Dawn are starting to lift and burn away under the glare of the country and the world.

Given how we suffered under the Presidency of Jacob Zuma, it is understandable that for some time the country gave the new President ample benefit of the doubt.

But now in the harsh light of day, the conferences, talk shops and PR launches will not cut it.

For unemployed South Africans, and the millions more who are in jobs that are insecure and inconsistent, what is needed is real change. Meaningful change. And immediate change.

If we want to rebuild our country, it will require a new agenda for deep, abiding reform.

Firstly, it will require deep political reform.

We must break free from the politics of identity as practiced by liberation movements across the continent. Our people need a political system in which their choices express their ideals and not their race.

This lies at the heart of the DA’s project – ours is a mission to build one South Africa for all.

The political scientist and journalist, Yascha Mounk, describes this challenge in his book, “The People vs Democracy”, when he says:

“The noble experiment of multi-ethnic democracy can only succeed if all of its adherents start to emphasize what unites rather than what divides them.

In the last eight years, a righteous impatience with the continuing reality of racial injustice has increasingly pushed some people to denounce the principles of liberal democracy as hypocritical, or even to make group rights the building block of society. This is a moral as well as a strategic mistake: The only society that can treat all of its members with respect is one in which every individual enjoys rights on the basis of being a citizen, not on the basis of belonging to a particular group.”

This was written for an American context, but it is as relevant here as we try to build a truly multi-ethnic democracy. This demands a government and a President that is committed to all its citizens.

Fellow South Africans,

An important part of this political reform is building a capable state.

So many of our country’s problems can be traced back to the ANC’s policy of cadre deployment.

When you appoint people purely for their allegiance, you are putting the interests of a faction ahead of the interests of your country.

Mr President, you will have to summon all of your political skills to deal with the factions in your party that harass you from every side with even more intensity than before.

We see this playing out in the North West and the decision to place the province under administration. If this were truly about governance and not factions, then provinces like KZN and Mpumalanga would have also been subjected to administration.

We see it playing out in the negotiated settlements in cabinet, where people like Minister Nomvula Mokonyane and Minister Malusi Gigaba have been retained despite their track records.

You will need to turn your back on cadre deployment, Mr President, and you will need to rid your government of criminals and the corrupt.

It is unacceptable that you have given Mr Arthur Fraser the corner office at the Department of Correctional Services. He should be getting a corner cell.

The only reason he is treated differently to someone like Tom Moyane is because of his faction.

Equally so, those responsible for State Capture who remain in government, like Mr Ace Magashule, cannot go unpunished. There must be real accountability.

They must be cut out of government, thrown out of the party and run out of town.

If not, all these promises to seriously fight corruption will be shown to be hollow.

In Johannesburg, Mayor Mashaba has already uncovered corruption worth almost R15bn since taking office. We need to take this fight to every municipality, province and national department.

Secondly, we need sweeping economic reform.

We need a President that grasps the full scope of our challenge in this country and what it will take to overcome it. Because it is an enormous challenge.

The latest Labour Force Survey tells us that, today, a staggering 9.5 million South Africans are without work. That’s 264,000 more than the previous quarter.

When it comes to South Africans under the age of 24, the unemployment rate has now moved up to 66%. Two-thirds of our young people cannot find jobs.

And we are not preparing them for the world of work either. 78% of our Grade 4 children cannot read for meaning.

Barely ten years old, we have already failed these young citizens of our country.

Over the past decade our Foreign Direct Investment has plummeted and our national debt has skyrocketed.

These are the problems that define us as a nation today. This is what our President should focus on fixing.

President Ramaphosa has the advantage of following in the footsteps of the very worst the ANC had to offer to our country.

Simply reversing some of Mr Zuma’s worst mistakes, like appointing new boards at Eskom, Prasa and Transnet, has earned him applause.

Make no mistake, I welcome the new boards at our embattled SOE’s. But instead of changing boards, we should be bringing real reform by selling off some of these companies and breaking up their monopolies.

SAA is a serious fiscal risk, Mr President, and yet you continue to ask the public to underwrite it.

We need a President that is serious about living within our means – one that can look at our bloated cabinet and our expensive administration and say: half of this can go; it is wasteful.

We need to be honest about what does and doesn’t work in growing our economy and opening opportunities for people. Let’s recognise when national government must step aside and let our cities and towns drive economic development.

Let us explore every avenue in getting our young people into jobs, including the possibility of a civilian national service – a post-school year during which young people can gain valuable work experience.

Let us look to the establishment of a Jobs and Justice Fund to help new entrants get a foothold in the economy. This would demonstrate real redress, allowing the new miner and the new farmer entry into these sectors, and not the connected few.

Simply tinkering with existing policy will not turn this ship around. We need comprehensive economic reform.

Third, we need a President that can speak for all our people in language that brings us together.

We seem unable to have mature discussions about how to deal with the legacies of our past, in a way that does not still split us up by race and turn us against each other.

We have become a country so ruled by our past that we simply cannot envisage our future, never mind achieve it.

We are victims of a failing liberation movement that has no choice but to cling to the past, because it has no credible plan for the future.

Every big conversation we have today is about what brought us here, and not about where we’re going.

Every big solution offered is about re-dividing what’s already there, and not about creating more for all.

We are constantly told that there must be losers for others to win. We are told that the advancement of economic opportunity in South Africa is a zero sum game.

I don’t believe this for one second. I believe it is entirely possible for us to build an inclusive society and an inclusive economy without creating enemies. But we can only do this together.

For this we need a President obsessed with the future, who boldly makes the case for one South Africa for all.

Fourth, we need a President that can put the interests of young South Africans first.

There is no greater shame to every Member of this House than our country’s dismal public education disaster.

It should haunt our thoughts every day. It should be a standing item on the business of this House until it is sorted out.

We will never fix South Africa until we can deliver quality, world-class public education. And we certainly won’t achieve this by slashing R7.2bn from the education infrastructure budget, as this government has just done.

Mr President, you should bravely challenge SADTU – that organisation that so hobbles our education system that they now control six out of nine provincial education departments.

What they have done is state capture too, and I wonder frankly if it is not even more damaging to our country than the state capture President Zuma was responsible for.

And fifth, we need a President that can restore South Africa’s honour on the global stage.

We need a President that can re-establish our moral authority in the world and on the continent that we should be leading.

We should not side with dictators and pariahs and allow genocidal criminals to go free. That is not the South Africa we envision.

We should be world leaders in morality and peace, in human rights and democracy, and the President must take the lead in restoring us to that place.

He can begin to do so by abandoning any thought of withdrawing from the International Criminal Court.

If anything, let us strengthen that institution by offering it our full support, sending to it our best jurists, and helping to ensure justice for the victims of crimes against humanity around the world.

Honourable Members,

These are the reforms our country urgently needs.

This is what is required from our President.

But it will be very hard for President Ramaphosa, because he doesn’t have the mandate for meaningful reform. He only has room for tinkering.

We don’t need someone who is better at executing the old plan. We need a new plan.

And we need a President bold enough to lead our country out of the perilous situation we are in.

Time will tell if we have a President who can do this.

Time will tell if we have a President who will deliver real change, or if we simply have a slightly more presentable version of the old one.

If we want to serve the people who put us here in this house with their votes, then we have to start treating their future as our number one priority. And that future is one that is shared by each and every South African, black or white.

We must stop creating enemies in our society. We must stop mobilising around race.

Mr President, you once said that if people voted for the DA, the “boers will come back”, by which you meant South Africa would return to apartheid. That is a dirty and scurrilous lie, and you knew it when you said it.

I hope you have put those views and that language behind you, because it doesn’t serve our country. It causes divisions while we should be uniting our people.

It takes a lot of effort to keep these fights going. Let us rather put all that effort into building a prosperous, non-racial, inclusive country.

Let us make ours a nation where people no longer feel threatened by criminals in their homes, their streets, and their schools.

Let us rebuild our police service into one than can protect our communities and make our neighbourhoods safe again. Let’s begin by shifting control of the police to our provinces.

Let’s introduce rural safety units so that farmers and farm workers can sleep well at night.

Let us give our military what they need to be able to properly protect and secure our borders.

Let us put our efforts into fixing the broken education that the majority of our children still receive. Let’s bring back accountability in teaching and let’s attract talent and passion to this crucial job.

Let us commit to meaningful land reform with full title for people.

Let us reconfirm that ours is a nation governed by the Rule of Law. That’s one law for all our citizens, no matter how rich or politically connected.

But most importantly, let us look to the future in everything we do.

Because if we don’t we will never progress as a nation.

Mr President, the task before you is not an easy one. The reforms our country so desperately needs are at odds with much of the ideology your party still clings to.

If you decide to put your country first, it could come at a cost to the ANC.

But I assure you, if we don’t make these reforms we will be left behind.

We’re part of the global economy. We have to be competitive and resilient if we are to get ahead.

We need a President who recognises this and can make the tough decisions that will move us forward.

We need a President who will fearlessly confront the enemies of our progress, including those inside his party or his alliance.

We need a President who plans future victories, and not one who leans on the crutch of past glories.

We need a President strong enough to introduce the reform that will save our country, even if that means taking on his own party.

The months ahead, before we go to the polls, will tell if you are such a President.

Thank you.

100 Days in and the cracks in “Ramaphoria” are beginning to widen

The following statement was delivered today by Democratic Alliance (DA) Leader, Mmusi Maimane MP, at a press briefing at Nkululeko House, the Party’s Headquarters in Gauteng. Maimane was joined by DA Chief Whip in Parliament, John Steenhuisen MP, and DA Shadow Minister in the Presidency, Sejamothopo Motau MP. Please find the press briefing document attached here.

The election of Cyril Ramaphosa as President of the Republic of South African on 15 February 2018 was predictably met by a wave of optimism and anticipation not witnessed in our nation for the better part of a decade. Many believed – and still do believe – that the election of Ramaphosa as President was the seminal moment in turning around the fortunes of our country and putting us back on track to becoming a leading light in the region, on the continent, and in the developing world.

At the time of his election, South Africa was in a state of political and institutional turmoil. State capture, pervasive and unyielding corruption, nepotism and patronage, an economy on life support and in “junk status”, record high levels of unemployment, increasing poverty reaching unsustainable levels, a basic education system failing our youth, and several broken institutions of state and State-Owned Entities (SOEs) was the status quo. It is these fundamental issues which President Ramaphosa is expected to address and do so thoroughly and timeously.

Indeed, the bar was set pitifully low by former President Jacob Zuma. However, we must not forget that President Ramaphosa also had a role to play in the turmoil he eventually inherited. Ramaphosa faithfully served as Jacob Zuma’s Deputy President for the previous four years and at every juncture displayed solidarity with, and support for, the former President. He protected and endorsed Jacob Zuma and was a crucial member of the senior leadership of the ANC and the government during these tumultuous years.

Before Cyril Ramaphosa could be elected President of the Republic of South Africa, he needed to be elected President of his own political Party – the African National Congress. This is relevant because the outcome of this conference – and the Presidential election race – shapes the scope, extent of authority, and direction a Ramaphosa Presidency would encompass.

Despite his narrow victory at the ANC’s 54th National Conference, the road to his election and the resolutions adopted at that conference will be a relentless constraint on his ability to govern. President Ramaphosa inherited a deeply divided and factionalised ANC. Internally, the ANC cannot see eye to eye on a litany of issues and therefore whichever faction won this leadership race would be forced to compromise their views to a common middle ground. The ruling party’s “top six” is split down the middle, factionally, and therefore many of the political decisions that influence government are reduced to a tussle between two factions within the ruling party.

This is witnessed in what is unfolding in the North West Province. Looting, violence and destruction of property has plagued the streets of the North West – particularly the city of Mahikeng – as different factions of the ANC fight each other for power in the party and in government. This has seen Ramaphosa use his executive power, through Section 100 of the Constitution, to try and resolve internal political strife within the ANC by placing the province under administration. We must condemn this move and call it out for what it is. Ramaphosa cannot use the state for internal political ends – we saw this under Jacob Zuma and will oppose it at every juncture.

In addition to the North West, at least three other provinces are falling apart – namely the Free State, KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape. Different factions within these provinces are taking each to court to challenge the validity of Provincial Executive Committees (PECs), and decisions taken by the ANC provincially. This has hamstrung these provincial governments. In KwaZulu-Natal, political killings are on the rise as ANC factions fight each other for control of resources and access to patronage networks. This has a direct effect on governance in those provinces and because of ANC infighting, the people suffer. President Ramaphosa is presiding over a disintegrating ANC, and our governments are feeling its negative effects.

Indeed, his first 100 days have been underwhelming, as South Africans have rightfully expected much for from the President. We remain stuck in a jobs crisis, while our country is not safe from crime, and our politicians continue to commit acts of corruption and nepotism. All while living conditions of South Africans have not changed. Tax is up, jobs are dying, petrol is increasing, and food is becoming unaffordable.

President Ramaphosa is governing on a fragile, compromised mandate, and therefore will never be able to effect total change that will turn our nation around, eradicate corruption, create millions of jobs, make our country safe, and fix our broken education system.

The National Executive

President Ramaphosa inherited one of the biggest Cabinets in the world – bloated and comprising of many compromised and incompetent individuals. The 35 Ministers and 37 Deputy Ministers will – in salary earnings alone – cost our country R163.5 million this year, and R510.5 million over the medium-term. This excludes Ministerial houses and vehicles, VIP protection, travel allowances, and private offices and their staff contingents.

While committing to reducing the size and cost of Cabinet – and ridding it of those who are underperforming and are linked to corruption – the President has failed on both accounts.

To this day he retains Jacob Zuma’s Cabinet in form, changing only a few personnel along the way. While he removed the likes of Mosebenzi Zwane, Des Van Rooyen, Lynne Brown, David Mahlobo, Faith Muthambi, Bongani Bongo and Fikile Mbalula – his new broom failed to perform a clean sweep of all compromised and incompetent ministers. Malusi Gigaba, Nomvula Mokonyane, Bathabile Dlamini, Aaron Motsoaledi and Angie Motshekga all remain in Cabinet, despite their dubious track records.

To create a capable, streamlined state, President Ramaphosa must cut the size of the National Executive, and remove all those compromised, underperforming, and non-performing Ministers. In this first 100 days, he has failed to do such.

The Economy

Due to a combination of the ANC’s uncertain economic policies, and Jacob Zuma’s personal mishandling of the economy, Ramaphosa inherited a struggling and stagnant economy. Once again, as the former Deputy President and second in charge, he cannot absolve himself from the mess he inherited. The expanded unemployment rate was 36.3% by the end of 2017, and with a staggering 9.2 million unemployed South Africans. The SA economy grew by a paltry 1.3% in 2017, coupled with a decrease in net Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).

Within the first 100 days, the President has signalled an intent to move us in the right direction. Small, cosmetic changes such as the appointment of four investment envoys to attract foreign investors to South Africa; signing long-delayed renewable energy contracts worth $4.7 billion with Independent Power Producers (IPPs); a proposed Youth Employment Service (YES); and the appointment of Nhlanhla Nene as Minister of Finance are all examples of such.

However, there are still policies within his government and the ruling party that will always act as a barrier to growth and job creation. Until he deals with such policies, we will continue our low growth high unemployment trajectory for the foreseeable future. This has seen the number of unemployed South Africans increase during the first months of his Presidency, from 9,216 million in the previous quarter to 9,481 million.

If Ramaphosa is serious about revitalising our economy and ensuring jobs are created, he should at once:

  • Reverse the 1 percentage point VAT hike;
  • Upgrade the current Employment Tax Incentive (ETI) to a full Youth Wage Subsidy;
  • Introducing a National Civilian Service year to provide work experience for the approximately 78 443 unemployed matriculants (from the class of 2016 alone) to enter into work-based training in the community healthcare, basic education or SAPS fields;
  • Reverse the decision to cut the Competition Commissions budget, as the Commission is crucial to reducing the concentration of the economy and allowing small businesses to flourish;
  • Institute a review of all labour legislation, with a view to liberalise the labour market making it easier to employ people;
  • Amend B-BBEE legislation to include internships, bursaries, and funding of schools as legitimate empowerment;
  • Reject the proposed amendment of section 25 of the Constitution to expropriate all land without compensation, which creates uncertainty and volatility in the economy;
  • Ensure that the 100 000 unpaid invoices, worth over R7.7 billion, between government departments and small businesses are paid;
  • Adopt a City-led economic growth agenda, focusing on cities as the drivers of growth and job creation; and
  • Reconsider a blanket National Minimum Wage, which favour the employed at the expense of the unemployed and will cost at least 700 000 jobs, killing many small businesses.

Countries rise and fall on the strength of their economies, and this holds especially true for the developing world. Just tinkering at the edges, with a talk shop here and a summit there, will not fundamentally restructure the economy to creates jobs. The President still has a long way to go when it comes to the economy.

Corruption

Corruption has long been the hallmark of the ANC-led national government. Since the first allegations relating to the now infamous “Arms Deal”, corruption has been rampant across government – fed by the patronage politics of the ruling party.

President Ramaphosa has had a seat at the table throughout the majority of the Zuma years, witnessing and turning a blind eye to the corruption within government. Therefore, it remains difficult to know where Ramaphosa stands when it comes to corruption.

During his State of the Nation Address he said the word “corruption” six times, four of which related to public sector corruption, and the other two touching on private sector corruption.

Most notably, he stated that “this is the year in which we will turn the tide of corruption in our public institutions” – signalling an intention to tackle corruption head on during his first year as President. He also said he would “urgently” deal with the National Prosecuting Authority “to ensure that this critical institution is stabilised and able to perform its mandate unhindered.”

Over the past 100 days, the evidence of Ramaphosa tackling corruption head on has been scant, and he has left much to be wanting. His appointment of Arthur Fraser as National Commissioner of Correctional Services is a move from the Jacob Zuma playbook, where questionable and compromised individuals are reshuffled and rehired, instead of fired. We have approached the courts to have this decision reviewed and set aside, and we urge the President to not waste time and to reverse his decision to rehire Fraser following the allegations against him during his time employed at the State Security Agency (SSA).

For the President to stamp his mark and be taken seriously when it comes to corruption, he needs to take the following decisions:

  • Ensure the independence of the NPA by immediately appointing a National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) with the ability to restore the integrity of the NPA;
  • Support the DA’s move to remove the current Public Protector, Busisiwe Mkhwebane from office;
  • Ensure justice is served in the ongoing trial of Jacob Zuma by cancelling the agreement for the state to continue to pay Zuma’s legal bills;
  • To not oppose the DA’s legal action in this regard; and
  • To take firm again against those accused of corruption within the ANC, including Secretary-General, Ace Magashule, and National Spokesperson, Pule Mabe.

Basic Education

Basic Education in South Africa is in an appalling state, and with each passing day it jeopardizes the futures of our young people. Currently, we have one of the worst literacy rates in the world, and 3 of every 4 children cannot read with meaning. We essentially have two education systems in South Africa – one for the rich, and one for the rest. Those who cannot afford private schooling are sent to schools that are run by SADTU appointees, where teachers cannot pass the subjects they teach, and where infrastructure is almost non-existent.

While there are many excellent and dedicated teachers in South Africa, there are currently over 8 million children attending dysfunctional schools where the quality of teaching, in general, is not up to standard.

In order to save our crumbling education system, the President must ensure the following:

  • SADTU’s stranglehold on education is broken;
  • Reestablishment of teacher training colleges;
  • An independent inspectorate is established, mandated and empowered to inspect schools and evaluate the quality of teaching, leadership, management and governance; and
  • Charter schools are established, allowing a private-public sector partnership which will increase standards of education and accountability.

Health

President Ramaphosa inherited a health system that is in disarray within various provinces – Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal to name just two. Despite Health Minister, Aaron Motsoaledi, overseeing both the Life Esidimeni tragedy and the KZN oncology crisis – claiming 144 and over 500 lives respectively – he remains in his job. Motsoaledi is also responsible for the medical student placement crisis, whereby due to administrative failures by government, hundreds of qualified doctors were not placed for their community service for 2018 – many of which are still unemployed.

At a national level, there are too few clinics with 3 182 clinics in South Africa, each serving 16 971 people on average, whilst the WHO suggests a clinic to population ratio of no less than 1:10 000. South Africa has insufficient medical practitioners with less than one (only 0.7) physicians per 100 000 population, and 2.2 nurses per 100 000 population, leaving us well behind peer and OECD nations. Over 2.5 million South Africans live further than 5km from their nearest primary healthcare facility. This is the state of healthcare in South Africa.

As of now, the oncology crisis in KwaZulu-Natal is still not solved. There was and still is a major shortage of doctors, nurses and medical personnel.  Various hospitals and clinics are and were in a dilapidated state and have a major shortage of working medical machinery, essential medicines and other medical equipment. Ramaphosa has taken little action in relation to the healthcare system.

President Ramaphosa’s first move should have been to announce the scrapping of the NHI in favour of a more sustainable and affordable hybrid system, which will still ensure all South Africans receive healthcare cover.

He should have placed the KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng Health Department’s under administration, and assessed other provincial health departments for staff shortages, ongoing strikes by nurses and health workers, and equipment and medicine shortages.

Ramaphosa should immediately introduce an Expanded Clinic Building Programme in under-served areas nationwide, conduct feasibility studies for under-served areas in order to assess the impact of extended clinic operating hours, and ensure mobile clinics are provided for existing settlements which are not yet formalised and exist beyond a 5km radius from existing public health facilities.

The announcement of a few roadshows and the implementation of the unworkable NHI – as witnessed in his State of The Nation Address – will not solve our country’s healthcare shortfalls.

Public Enterprises

Over the past decade, State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) have been a constant strain on our economy and the national fiscus. Not only were SOEs the playgrounds whereby billions were stolen from our country via State Capture, but the overwhelming majority of SOEs are inefficient, loss making entities which need largescale reform.

Despite chairing the Inter-Ministerial Committee for State Owned Entities (SOEs) while Deputy President, Cyril Ramaphosa failed to ensure the Committee carried out is mandate of “overseeing the stabilisation and reform of state-owned entities”.

For the 2017/18 financial year, SOEs hold R466 billion in government guarantees. These SOEs continue to make massive losses. Overall, public entities lost R53.7 billion in the 2016/17 financial year. Each and every year, these entities lose more money, ask government for further guarantees, and provide a platform for corruption and nepotism.

In his State of the Nation Address, Ramaphosa undertook to change the fortunes of SOEs, including the manner in which their Boards are elected and removed, and the extent of private sector strategic involvement – all the while coordinated by Ramaphosa himself.

The President has made some positive decisions – including replacing the boards at Eskom and Denel, as well as ensuring SOE boards reviews bonus payments and conduct lifestyle audits.

While these appear to be positive steps in the right direction, much more is required to address the real menace here. The President should have already:

  • Identified SOEs that are to be part-privatised;
  • Begun the process of splitting Eskom into a generation entity and transmission entity, with the generation entity privatised, and the transmission entity state owned;
  • Ensured stability at PRASA, and investigated tender irregularities and the R50 billion locomotive deal;
  • Made sure all those who are found of wrongdoing be held criminally and civilly accountable;
  • Finalised new shareholder compacts which highlight the targets and specific objectives for the SOEs – to which they will be held to account;
  • Merged SAA, SA Express and Mango, with a view to sell off the ailing airline; and
  • He should have changed the board of both Alexkor and Safcol.

Police

President Ramaphosa inherited a police service that is chronically under-resourced, under-staffed, under-equipped and under-trained. Crime is rampant in South Africa, and the police are simply unable to reduce crime and ensure our country is safe. This would require an entire overhaul of the SAPS, in order to professionalise and equip police men and women, and to depoliticise the appointment of those at the very top.

In his State of the Nation Address, Ramaphosa committed to a range of new programmes that will tackle crime and build safer communities – including the “Community Policing Strategy” and the “Youth Crime Prevention Strategy.”

Since then, it appears not much has materialised. The President did replace Police Minister Fikile Mbalula with former Police Commissioner, Bheki Cele, which received mixed feelings due to Cele’s recent past.

The President should have immediately moved to professionalise and equip the police service by:

  • Conducting a thorough lifestyle audit of all senior police members to stem corruption;
  • Beef up the independence of IPID and see to it that they are properly resourced;
  • Conduct an audit of all station-level resourcing issues and determine where the gap; and
  • Commission an independent evaluation of all current policing strategies and their effectiveness.

It would appear that tackling the scourge of crime in South Africa does not appear high on the President’s list of priorities.

Land Reform

President Ramaphosa inherited two problems. Firstly, a skewed pattern of land ownership to the exclusion of the majority of black South Africans. And secondly, a Department of Rural Development and Land Reform that has failed to address this skewed pattern for more than two decades.

The story of land reform in this country is one of utter failure of the ANC government. While land reform is often part of campaign rhetoric, results over the 24 years paint a dire picture. The recent EWOC campaign yet again just a campaign slogan that offers no real solution to the current crisis. The core argument is that compensation has not been the major stumbling block. The ANC must address the systemic issues from lack of political will, corruption and elite capture to lack of capacity, budgeting and post settlement support.

Unfortunately, the President has failed to carve his own view on land and has resorted to the divisive rhetoric of the ANC. In doing so, he has failed to protect property rights, ensure justice, and attract investment that will lead to job creation.

In his State of the Nation Address, Ramaphosa reaffirmed his commitment to expropriation of land without compensation, which should be implemented in a way that increases agricultural production, improves food security and ensures that the land is returned to those from whom it was taken under colonialism and apartheid.

Expropriation without compensation has provided uncertainty to investors and land owners in general, and people with informal tenure such as people living on communal land and farms are still not fully protected. ANC land reform programmes have continued to champion state custodianship which doesn’t expand black ownership of land and is an injustice to people deserving of the land they have been deprived of.

In his first 100 days, the President has erred in his approach to land reform. Instead of using the Constitution as a scapegoat, he should have done the following:

  • Directed more funds to land reform. Currently, the government spends more on VIPs for politicians and Ministers – R2.8 billion – than it does on land reform – R2.7 billion. Less than 1% of government’s total budget spending is on land reform;
  • Put in concrete steps for the speedy resolution of land claims and disputed land claims;
  • Inclusion of urban land reform to facilitate economic opportunities for people in urban areas;
  • Ensuring the protection of people’s land especially those with insecure land rights;
  • Assess all government owned land with a view to transferring to individuals; and
  • Ensure that 4 300 state-owned farms which forms part of the 17 million hectares of state-owned land must be assessed for distribution to black land beneficiaries.

In his first 100 days, the President has missed an opportunity to affect real change and unity in our nation regarding the land question. Instead, he’s reverted to the ANC’s rhetoric on blaming the Constitution – while many black South Africans remain without land and without dignity. We urge the President to make a necessary about-turn on this matter, in order to protect property rights, ensure justice, and attract investment that will lead to job creation.

Conclusion

Since this election as President, Cyril Ramaphosa has worked overtime in trying to distinguish himself from Jacob Zuma and the ANC – as a savior of the nation and the man who has the will, the grit, and the integrity to turn our country’s fortunes around and see it prosper.

Over the past 100 days, it has become clear that regardless of Ramaphosa’s intentions, he is a comprised President whose powers are greatly restrained by his political party, and by the individual and interest groups that got him elected. The cracks in “Ramaphoria” are beginning to widen.

Our country needs a fresh start and total change, that which President Cyril Ramaphosa cannot bring about. South Africa deserves better. Our vision is to see our nation become the united, prosperous and non-racial country we all desire. Where we champion a vibrant and growing economy that creates jobs, where those left behind are given opportunity, where our streets are safe and crime free, where our education system serves students and not SADTU, where the government serves the people and not politicians, and where corruption, nepotism and patronage are relegated to the pages of history.

Only the DA can bring about that future. We will work tirelessly to inspire hope in our nation and continue our mission of building One South Africa For All, based on the values of Freedom, Fairness, Opportunity and Diversity.

We have begun our election preparation ahead of the National Elections next year. Yesterday I met and briefed all our public representatives and staff in the North West, and this morning I did the same here in Gauteng. Our structures are ready and fired up, and we believe South Africans will be given a real alternative to the ANC come election day in 2019. Total change is possible, and it starts with the DA.