Chairperson, firstly, I would like to thank all members for their contribution across the political line. Thank those that are supporting the budget and say to them, Support the budget because from myself and the rest of my team are prepared to make sure that we follow that money and make sure that, that money goes to the benefits of our people.
I wish to also say even those who are not supporting the budget; we have to work with each other because at the end of the day I do need to listen to the issues that you are raising. And I am a person who believes that there's time for politicking and there's time for doing what we need to do. [Applause.]
And to say to you hon Rider, you'll get to like me along the way. [Laughter.] Simply because I wasn't elected and didn't come here to waste the time, so I need to choose what do I do, when and how, because the ANC empowered me through the mandate of the ANC getting the opportunity to be voted in to govern this country. And we will do that in the same spirit that we have done all these years, in the past 25 years, where we've done a lot of good work but we've also done things that are not supposed to be done. And I think that the 25 years that we have been in government are lessons to all of us
and I request that members, really, work with us as much as they possibly can. At the centre of it all it is our people.
And we do appreciate the role of the NCOP which has to ensure that the nine provinces of South Africa are heard and through them the voices of the people whom they are representing here are heard, irrespective again of which political party we are coming from. But without necessarily undermining the fact that the mandate we got was that the ANC got the mandate to lead government and the opposition was also elected by those who believed in the opposition and what is important is how we are going to work together.
Secondly, yes, 25 years of government, we have put policies in place and it is said that South Africa is one of the best countries when it comes to policy development, policies and the correct polices. But our weaknesses in the system are about performance, action, action, action. And I do want to say to you here, I'm guided by the performance that we need to do, I'm also guided by the fact that I need to work with the two agencies, but more than that we need to work with all the other government departments because for me, Social Development on its own cannot do all these work. And, therefore, my first and most important issue is about working
together with the cluster of the economy because we cannot extricate or separate ourselves from that.
When the economy works, as many of the members have indicated here, then it gives opportunity for people to be able to get jobs, those that need to get jobs, but others will start their own businesses. If we can develop the economy make sure that the economy grows, it means must not grow for increasing social grants, but must grow to enable our people so that they can be able to be in charge of their own livelihoods without government, obviously not taking responsibility because when government says it will do the following things government must do that. And we in the Department of Social Development say to you, roads are important for us, clinics are important for us, education is important for us, infrastructure is important for us.
So, as we work together with other Ministers we are going to make sure that we make everyone to be aware and conscious of the fact that a better created environment for our communities is the only way that we can enable them to live better livelihoods.
I know, hon members, that many of you raised quite a number of questions, some of them I might not necessarily be able to answer
them because time is very short, but I do promise that as the department, as the portfolio we can be able to write those answers back to all the members so that you can hold us accountable on the basis of what we have said.
I also realised that what we have here is an agreement by members who are here that the mandate of the department is correct but the mandate of the department might need to be relooked into in terms of the empowerment of our people, particularly, so that they don't depend so much on the state. We will definitely look at that.
I also hear the outcry of the members with regard to the budget itself and the fact that the budget is being cut this year and the following year and year after that it start with 5% then goes to 7% ... I have had a meeting, fortunately, with some of the MECs this morning and I have said what is important for us is to go and present to National Treasury and make everyone aware that our people are very much dependent on social grants and all the social upliftment we are giving, not because by choice, not because they want that.
That's why I would like to say to the hon member of the FF Plus that we didn't bring ourselves to where we are today; we would have been
way far ahead than where we are, but because of the past we find ourselves here. However, I do want to say to the hon member, from where I stand as the member of the ANC I've not been mandated to look at the colour of the people that we support, I've been mandated to cover all South Africans who are in vulnerable state, and I know that ... I've seen not only do I know, I've seen that in some of our communities there are many of our white compatriots who actually are facing dire strains but some of them are too afraid to even step up and say "look at us" because the system created something in their heads about the fact that "when you are white you are better than this one" and some of them actually did not get the same kind of to grow their own wealth like others. So, there are those who, in apartheid days, managed to become big fat cats because of the fact that they had an opportunity through government. Today the government of the ANC ... I'm saying here in front of you all, I am a Minister of Social Development for all South Africans, irrespective of their background, as long as they need assistance from this government.
I also would like to say that the need for us to work together couldn't have come at any other time than now. It's not to say we do not understand the challenges that we face, whether it's with regard to land or whether with regard to poverty, unemployment and
inequality; inequality is the worst that we have in South Africa. It's not to say because we are finding ourselves in that situation we should not work together. I believe that working together will be the only way that we can salvage the country.
I, personally, am saying, the children who are a year old today, in about 20 years or 25 years time, they should refer to apartheid as history that was. But we must start creating a conducive environment for them today so that when we deal with the economy and the transformation ... because unless we really deal with the real issues that are related to transformation, it is a waste of time and we'll keep on putting more and more money into the issues of social development.
My view and my fight that I'm going to be committed to as I stand before you ... and I want you all to really appreciate that it's 25 years, the 25 years many of us carried the burden prior to 25 years to bring the country to what it is today; 25 years we've done the best that we can. And I'm saying to you, let's look at the best and build on the best, lets' look at the bad and the ugly, and the bad and the ugly we hold it by the scruff of its neck so that when hon members speak here they don't say my friend or my whoever was gunned down because they are fighting corruption.
Corruption is a problem and it is a two-way process; you get the giver and the taker. Let us, therefore, make sure that anyone who is able to come up and say "I found it" that person must not be scared and the person will only be scared if we don't do something about it.
All the other questions which are related to SA Social Security Agency, SASSA, and its development, I agree, I've been told that the conditions of some of the offices of SASSA are appalling, people are working under very difficult conditions, I do want us to go and see what ... in fact I am going to be visiting all the provinces. Because we are going on a portfolio approach, we'll bring SASSA, ourselves and DA to go to all these places together.
The assessment of doctors, I think that SASSA is in the process of requesting the health Department to allow its doctors to assist us. Because here is the question, you create another situation on the other hand when you've already got a system that can be able to help you immediately. So, we'll make sure that working together with other departments we can be able to take the process [Interjections.]
Oh sanitary towels. Yes. You know, I once came to a meeting here of the women's caucus. And one of the things that they raised - I was the Minister of Small Business development - was what is this that the factories and producers of these are mainly male-run businesses. I believe that this government has gone quite a long way in ensuring that we understand and appreciate that women didn't call upon themselves, that every month they have to go through what they go through and therefore ... it's menstruation, we are even afraid of calling it what it is, that's what it is. So, I do believe that we will do everything we can to make sure that women are given back that dignity and especially the girls at school who sometimes end up not going to school because they are going through that menstrual cycle. Thank you, Chair. [Applause.]