Hon Chairperson, the question that has been raised deals with the issue of service delivery protests, that is, what we have done about them. What we have done, hon Doman, is that we have established a task team composed of national government officials. The officials have moved from their air- conditioned offices and are working on the ground with the provinces, because this programme is led by the MECs.
We are assessing the situation surrounding municipalities so that we can come up with solutions that are tailor-made and specific. We believe that there is no one-size-fits-all solution for dealing with the issues of local government.
We have received interim reports, or preliminary reports, if you like. We have looked at them and they raise various issues, one of which is the issue of service delivery. They indicate that there are challenges with regard to service delivery in certain areas. Of course, they are also telling a good story in that there are hard-working councillors and officials out there, men and women, who have done very well. There are some municipalities with best practices on different aspects. We believe that we must emulate these best practices and mainstream them to other areas.
The reports also raise issues that are not so encouraging, such as corruption, nepotism and fraud. We believe that all of us, as a nation, should reject these issues with the contempt they deserve because they don't belong in our nation.
The other issue raised is the issue of social distance between communities and government. It emanates in particular from the weaknesses in the ward committee system and the structures for popular participation. Therefore we believe that we must strengthen these areas going forward.
We are implementing the findings in various areas, and we will ensure that we investigate where an investigation is supposed to take place. We have entered into an agreement with my colleague here, the Minister of Police, together with the Hawks, under the leadership of Mr Anwar Dramat. We believe that people who have done wrong must face the law. As South Africans, we must know that every action has consequences. If we can inculcate that in the minds of the people, we can move forward.
Things are being implemented, and we are moving forward. In other provinces - with the exception of the Western Cape - reports on the state of municipalities are being adopted by provincial cabinets. The Western Cape has asked for a further postponement. We are working on them on that. Thank you very much, Chairperson. [Time expired.]
Chairperson, thank you very much to the Minister for the reply. We really support him in this investigation and for coming up with answers and really making a difference. In our visits to these hot spots, members of communities often say that councillors have disappeared and that there hasn't been any communication. So, I want to ask the Minister about this aspect. Will the Minister ensure that the findings are communicated properly to municipalities? Secondly, will the Minister also address the issue of proper communication with communities by all councillors?
Thank you very much, House Chair. I also want to thank the hon Doman. Yes, definitely; what we want to see is a situation in which local government becomes everybody's business. I would be happy if all Members of Parliament sitting here knew what was happening in their municipalities and were able to contribute at that level; and if there were issues that needed to be taken up, they raised them with us because local government affects everyone. In that respect, we want to ensure that the citizens of this country contribute to the development of municipalities.
We want to ensure that people discuss the findings and outcomes of the report. At the end of the day, we want to come up with a draft turnaround strategy. It will be localised in that people contribute. Also, the implementation of the turnaround strategy must be monitored by the citizens of that municipality. That is what we want to see. In that way, there would be transparency, transparency, transparency! Thank you.
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