Deputy Speaker, with regard to the first matter that I wish to respond to, you have assisted me by referring to Rule 68 of the National Assembly Rules which the hon Ellis is fully aware of.
The fiction that is being propounded with respect to these comments about the National Conventional Arms Control Committee, NCACC, will be dealt with in the portfolio committee and through the regular parliamentary process. But I do assert that it is fiction.
Could I then move on to deal with the matter ... [Interjections.]
Madam Deputy Speaker, on a point of order: You have ruled today on the Rule of anticipation. The hon Minister is addressing the issue. Whether she pretends she is not addressing the issue or whether she is in fact addressing it is not quite clear. But, nevertheless, I would suggest that she herself is in breach of the Rule of anticipation that you have ruled on this afternoon.
Yes, the hon Ellis is made uncomfortable by his inability to have advised his members properly as a Whip.
I would then like to agree with the hon member from Cope who indicated a need to prepare to address any outbreaks of serious diseases that may occur in particular seasons. I say to the hon member and all members that I think all of us should assist communities with an information campaign during our constituency periods because such an alert is not just the work of government, but also the responsibility of all public representatives. There is information available that members of Parliament could use to assist communities to ready themselves to meet these challenges.
Finally, the hon Holomisa began rather well, but I think he lost it along the way. I am not sure why he conjoins the hon President with the Premier of the Western Cape in his congratulations. I couldn't quite understand that link. It might be evidence that we are seeing that he may be speaking of his future leader and really trying to disguise this by way of this statement. [Applause.]
Could we say that we believe the President has made appropriate appointments? I believe that it is most unfortunate to refer to the President as having made a practice of ethnicity in appointments. I think it is a pejorative reference which is totally unnecessary. May I also say that if we were to move to the vetting that has been proposed by the hon Holomisa, we mustn't just extract that which we want from the American system.
We would have to take the entire system, which would include the following: members of the executive would not be appointed from elected public representatives and would be nonserving members; the President would have veto powers; and so on and so forth. So I think we should have an appreciation of the strength of our democracy and ensure, as public representatives, that we make it work. Our President has appointed, appropriately, persons who are competent to the task that must be undertaken. Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. [Applause.]