Hon Speaker, the role of the Central Drug Authority, CDA, is to guide the development and implementation of programmes for prevention, treatment and creation of public awareness about substance abuse in our communities. The Central Drug Authority therefore serves as the advisory structure in terms of implementing the national drug master plan, which is a national blueprint for tackling the scourge of alcohol and substance abuse.
As the Minister responsible for overseeing the work of the CDA, I have taken significant steps to ensure that the CDA board plays a more meaningful role especially in our prevention efforts at local level. I have also instructed the CDA to develop a proper monitoring tool that will enable us to ensure that there is progress in the implementation of the revised master plan.
In addition, the CDA is required to report to the Inter-ministerial Committee on Substance Abuse established by Cabinet in 2010. To complement the work of the CDA, the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Substance Abuse has developed the Anti-Substance Abuse Programme of Action, which was approved by Cabinet in 2011. The National Drug Master Plan and the Anti-Substance Abuse Programme of Action together outline government's approach to reducing alcohol and substance abuse. Prevention through education, community engagement and early intervention are fundamental to ensure long- lasting change across our society.
However, government alone will not produce the changes needed to stem the tide against the scourge of alcohol and substance abuse. Everyone has a responsibility to act, and this is the time to act. We remain hopeful that working together, we will continue to make significant progress against alcohol and substance abuse in South Africa. Through our continued and collective efforts, we can build a drug-free society. Thank you.
Hon Speaker. I would like to know from the hon Minister, when will the Biennial Conference on Substance Abuse take place? I am asking so that we, together, as Parliament, government and civil society can evaluate whether the resolution taken at the last Biennial Substance Abuse Summit had any effect on curbing this scourge. Thank you.
Hon Speaker, the CDA will be launched next week. We have taken a long time to launch the CDA, particularly because members who were appointed or elected by Parliament were not representative. We had to look for people from other areas, more especially areas where there is a problem of alcohol and substance abuse.
There has been a call for action by many organisations. We thought we should try to ensure that we consult extensively, and we have done that. After the launch, we are going to have a meeting as the committee so that we agree on the timeframes and how we are going to implement the programme of action. We think now is the time to act and implement the programme of action. Thereafter, we can have a conference and ensure that the outcomes of the last summit have been implemented. Thank you.
Hon Speaker, the damage of substance abuse, particularly tik, to the brain and its devastating effects on family life necessitate a robust approach by government to deal with this scourge. Family members of tik abusers are reportedly so traumatised that they have to be taught, and I quote, "how to live again". Abusers and addicts become verbally abusive and dangerously violent when they are high on tik.
Now, I want to know whether government is planning to have treatment centres where people who are addicted are treated. There are NGOs and private institutions that deal with abuse of substances, but because of the costs many people in poor communities cannot afford them. What I want to know is whether government is doing anything to help those from poor communities whose addiction is causing the destruction of their own families. If there are any plans, I want to know when those plans will be put into action. Thank you.
Hon Speaker, firstly, hon Meshoe, two weeks ago, as Social Development, we informed the Department of Health that wunga should be classified as a substance because there are a number of people who have died from it. Research conducted discovered that wunga is made of these things: scouring powder, bleach, rat poison and other things. Secondly, by the time people go to centres for rehabilitation, it is too late in some cases.
Thirdly, one other issue that we are looking into as government is to ensure that in all the provinces we have rehabilitation centres, because it is not all the provinces that have them. Therefore, we always have waiting lists. We have also mobilised communities to form community-based organisations because you need, firstly, to campaign for the prevention. Secondly, we have also asked communities to form NGOs because it is useless for someone to go to town for rehabilitation. Most rehabilitation centres are in towns, and there are no centres locally where they can go for continuous consultation. We have looked into those things. Thank you.
Hon Speaker, hon Minister, coupled with the problem of drug abuse is the issue of human trafficking and child trafficking, in particular. Now, when you have such a high level of child-headed households in the country, what interventions, coupled with this awareness, prevention and treatment, is your department prepared to engage in to protect the children who are living all by themselves from those who are preying on them to make them conduits of drugs, when the borders of this country are so porous, leading to a rise in child trafficking, which will make them prone to or push them further into the activities of drug abuse? Questioning the effectiveness of the CDA is one thing, but what interventions are there to deal with this particular aspect of the problem? Thank you.
Hon Speaker, I think this is a new question. However, I can just say that, in terms of trafficking, there is legislation in South Africa. During the Fifa World Cup in 2010 our programmes were very effective in that we were able to protect five children who were trafficked. Those were the only children who were reported to government because we had an operations centre for the children. We do have a programme, but the issue of youth and child-headed households is a big issue; a question on its own. However, we have a programme with the youth from child-headed households and we are trying to ensure that we have a register of those children. We will further ensure that within a period of three years we will train 10 000 youth workers who will be looking after each and every family so that the kids do not fall between the cracks. Thank you.
Hon Speaker. I do not know whether the Minister is still suffering from jetlag from her latest New York trip or if she simply does not know what is going on in her department. However, as far as the CDA board is concerned, Parliament passed and submitted to her department the 12 names for the board before the end of September. Her excuse for not appointing them, after five months that she has had those names, and five months after the previous board's term has expired, does not hold water. She cannot just simply change the 12 names that Parliament has submitted to her. Can the Minister give the real reason why it has taken her nearly six months to appoint the CDA board? Thank you.
Mr Speaker, if I can talk on behalf of the delegation to New York, we were there to defend our country and to talk about programmes that have been put into place. [Interjections.]
And to shop! [Interjections.]
Order! Order!
... to fight abuse against women and children and abuse by men who think that no one can say no to them. [Interjections.]
And to shop!
Hon member, order!
We had gone there to do that. So, do not talk about things you... We also went there to talk about the rights of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex, LGBTI communities. Those are the rights that came with the ANC. Some of you were in the closet. The answer is that the CDA is there and it is going to meet next week.
Hon Speaker, on a point of order, the Minister is deliberately misleading the House. The CDA has not been appointed and she knows that. It has not been appointed. You are misleading the House, Minister. [Interjections.]
Order! Order! Continue, hon Minister.
Ndicela uMnumzana arhoxise oku akuthethileyo, Somlomo, phambi kokuba aphume. [Hon Speaker, I would like to ask the hon member to withdraw his statement before he leaves.]
No, we are not going to stand conservative people who do not want to accept the changes that are taking place in the country.
Ayisayi kwenzeka loo nto! [That is not going to happen!] [Interjections.]
Order! Hon members, order!
So, you cannot shout at us for going to New York. You cannot shout at us about clothing as if we could not grow up without clothing. [Interjections.]
Speaker, I rise on a point of order ...
We grew up without clothing.
Order! Hon members, order!
So stop shouting at us for nothing. [Interjections.] Just understand the rights of women...
Speaker, I rise on a point of order. [Interjections.]
Look at how men are shouting!
Hon members, please respect the House. Please respect the House. [Interjections.]
Men are shouting; they are agitated; they are angry!
Hon members, clearly this is not right. Please respect the House.
Hon Speaker, may I address you?
Yes, hon member.
I would really like to appeal to you to protect the Ministers as they respond to the House. [Interjections.] Allow them space because it is not fair that a question is put to a Minister, and when she tries to explain and respond, there is howling. There is the decorum of the House. I'm appealing to the Chief Whip of the opposition parties to take responsibility and protect the decorum of this House. [Interjections.]
Hon members, please, order! Order! Order! Order! The point is valid! We must have decorum in this House.
Hon speaker, yes, but the Whips will control the members if the Ministers answer the questions. [Interjections.]
The Whips must control the members! It is not conditional. [Interjections.] Hon members, order! Order! Hon members, I have been informed that hon Sithole has withdrawn part two of question 65 and that all parties have been informed accordingly.
Particulars regarding rectification of RDP houses
65. Mr K P Sithole (IFP) asked the Minister of Human Settlements:
(a) In respect of Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) houses, how many (i) have been rectified to date, ii) still require rectification and (b) which provinces are still using the bucket system? NO423E
Mr Speaker, I thank the hon member for asking the question. Our department focuses on building quality houses, and we are firm on that. Sadly, there are people who continue to deliver shoddy workmanship and, as stated in this House before, this cannot be tolerated. Therefore we are strengthening our monitoring capacity.
Since the introduction of the programme up to 31 December 2012, the provincial departments rectified a total number of 158 729 units. According to the provincial business plans for the 2012-13 financial year, provincial departments planned to rectify a total of about 30 000 units. I thank you.
Speaker, thank you for the Deputy Minister's reply. But I don't understand when the Deputy Minister says it is the province. Firstly, which province is she referring to? She is supposed to give us statistics per province as to how many units have been built per province and local municipality? However, if she just bluntly says what she is saying, it actually does not provide an answer to the question.
Secondly, what I wanted to find out, Mr Speaker, is the amount of money that has been collected from the suppliers who have defectively constructed our RDP houses. Lastly, I wanted to find out about the amount of money that has been spent on rectification and rerectification. Thank you.
Mr Speaker, the member asked about the number of houses that have been rectified nationally and I am giving him a national breakdown of what has been rectified. If he wants an answer to the question he asked just now, then the member should have clarified his question. He must articulate his question properly. Thank you. [Applause.]
Hon Deputy Minister, according to a 2009 Statistics SA household survey, it was found that as soon as the bucket toilet system was eliminated from the community because of the lack of alternatives, newly mushrooming communities started using them.
My question is: What measures are being put in place to prevent the mushrooming of the use of bucket toilets? Secondly, why is it not possible for the department to lay down a strict and mandatory timeframe by which the bucket system in all the municipalities will have been eradicated completely?
As for the rectification of shoddy work done in some of the RDP villages - I want to agree with you that you have answered this question before - it is still persisting in my municipality, where almost all the villages need rectification. The people have been waiting for so long and there is no movement towards rectifying the buildings. Is it realistic for the department to keep making all these unfulfilled promises? Thank you.
Mr Speaker, I will answer the second part of Mama Njobe's question because the first part of Mama Njobe's question has been already answered. Regarding the second part of the question, we have been utilising the National Home Builders Registration Council, NHBRC, for quality assurance. We are also beefing up our inspectorate unit in terms of monitoring and evaluation at national level.
We also want to have an inspectorate at provincial level so that at the end of the day the monitoring of the construction of houses should start from the foundation up to the roof in order to get rid of this nagging as time goes by. Although I do agree with you that there are still some instances of shoddy work being done somewhere nationally, they are not as they were before. Indeed, there are some improvements. We have seen quality houses that are being built now. Let us accept the improvements that we see. There is no way that we can continue harping on the negatives without talking about the positives. I thank you.
Madam Deputy Minister, vast sums of money have been wasted on shoddy construction work since 1994. So, my question to you in respect of these constructors with their shoddy work is: Do you have a register where these constructors are registered? And have you blacklisted them from any further work? In relation to that, what attempts have your department made to get back the money from the constructors who failed to perform according to their contracts?
Thank you, Hon Smith. Yes, we are compiling a register to blacklist those constructors who have given us this shoddy work and we are in the process of ensuring that we get back the government's money because we did not get the value for what this money has been spent on thus far. We are serious. In fact, what we want to do is to ensure that those who are found on the blacklist register must not get any tenders from government departments at all. So, we are really compiling the blacklist register. I thank you.
Hon Deputy Minister, I think you will agree with me that access to housing is a human right as enshrined in the Constitution, and that rectification is fruitless and wasteful expenditure. The R930 million that is spent on this could have provided quality houses to those on the waiting list. I think we are building backwards on this one and not providing any new houses. Can you therefore agree with me that if the NHBRC received a qualified financial report, with over R201 million on irregular expenditure, it's failing in its mandate to ensure that proper quality houses are being built for the poor? I thank you. [Applause.]
Hon member, I agree with you that rectification is a fruitless expenditure, but at the same time we must ensure the dignity of our people. It's important to ensure that houses that have cracks are rectified so that they don't fall on our people, because if that happens, then people will sue the government for the work that has been done shoddily. To avoid that, we need to put preventative measures in place.
That is why we say that we need to ensure that the houses are built properly from foundation level upwards. But I wouldn't agree with you when you say that the NHBRC is failing you because you must remember that what we are rectifying at the moment are processes that began back in 1994 onwards. Therefore, there is a huge amount of work that still needs to be done and not only for houses that we are building now, but even those that were built many years ago. So, please, you don't need to put a tag on the NHBRC. I thank you. [Applause.] Particulars regarding adjustment of remuneration packages of educators
90. Mrs J D KILIAN (Cope) asked the Minister of Basic Education:
Whether, with reference to the announcement by the President that the remuneration packages of educators will be adjusted, she can indicate if upward adjustments will be based on a system of performance assessments according to objective criteria; if not, why not; if so, (a) what other norm(s) government intends to use for such assessments and (b) how does Government intend to address the problem of teacher absenteeism?