Greetings and salutations hon Chair, hon Ministers, hon Deputy Ministers, hon members, diplomatic corps present, our guests in the gallery and fellow South Africans, hon Minister, it will be a disservice to South Africans watching this debate, if I did not bring to light that some members have come to this podium having not attended the committee meetings or even read the Annual Performance Plan, APP, but express blinding support for this Budget Vote. That is an act of criminality to those constituencies that have sent them here. [Applause.]
I quote the late great Martin Luther King Jr, who said:
Life's most persistent and urgent question is: What are you doing for others?
How apt hon Minister, is this quote when the reference to the Department of International Relations and Co-operation and its role on the African continent?
According to the Annual Performance Plan presented to the committee and Minister depending who you ask? The chief
financial officer, CFO, will tell you is R855 million, the director-general will tell you is R955 million and if you look at the APP it is R1,1 billion. You take your pick, Minister.
This allocation for Programme 5, international transfers which provides for South Africa's membership to international organisations, such as the United Nations, African Union and SA Development Corporation.
A persistent source of discomfort during the Fifth Parliament was always that South Africa was not receiving value for money in return for these membership fees.
The amount contributed should surely ensure that we are at the forefront of setting the agenda, not merely sitting on the sidelines, as is currently the case. South Arica has always been the reluctant leader, even when our African compatriots view us as a beacon of hope for the continent.
But then again, one need not look far on why we struggle to own our place as a geopolitical leader.
Despite the international embarrassment that the Ambassador Zindzi Mandela brought to the country, President Cyril Ramaphosa still went ahead and extended her tenure.
Also, Minister, the shocking testimony at the Zondo Commission by yet another delinquent Ambassador, Bruce Koloane from the Netherlands, and his involvement in the irregular and illegal landing of the infamous Gupta plane at the Waterkloof Airforce Base, should warrant his immediate removal from office. [Applause.]
Frankly, Minister, we can do better in vetting ambassadors and diplomatic staff.
Hon Minister, you need to awaken from the dream that President Ramaphosa concocted during the state of the nation address and come to the realisation that the appointment of ambassadors need to move away from the current patronage model where political rejects are given a soft landing.
Government should be bold enough to appoint ambassadors from opposition parties who have played a role in the advancement of South Africa's democracy. [Applause.]
Minister, this government's foreign policy veers to the East, where we seem comfortable to be playing second fiddle to China and Russia, has not been met with the same zeal from our own citizens.
Students, who not of their own choice, but out of desperation, go to China to study medicine, suddenly find themselves with medical qualifications that cannot be practiced in their very own home of South Africa.
The Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology, Blade Nzimande, made an unfulfilled executive promise to recognise these medical qualifications.
Minister, you have an opportunity to right this wrong by taking up the plight of South Africans who spend years in foreign universities studying, only to be rejected by their own country.
We simply cannot lose this vital human resource.
The department's handling of the suspension and ongoing investigation of its CFO, leaves much to be desired. The lack of decisiveness has a direct bearing on how we effectively use the Department of International Relations and Co-operation for the South African brand and meet pour obligations internationally.
In as much as we seem to sing our own praises regarding the country's international footprint, this does come with financial constrains. Serious consideration should be given to downsizing some diplomatic missions and merging functions such as tourism advocacy with consular services.
The need for cost-cutting measures has further been reinforced by the department's own acknowledgement that there is widespread fruitless and wasteful expenditure across our missions and properties abroad.
Spending money on properties that are not being used is not only a waste of money, but is an insult to South Africans who are both homeless and destitute. [Applause.]
Hon Minister, the Fifth Parliament went by and the department failed to ensure that the Foreign Service Bill was approved. It is my sincere hope that you will play your role to facilitate the passing of this legislation during this Sixth Parliament.
One of the mandates of the Department of International Relations and Co- operation is to assist South African citizens abroad, yet on numerous occasions, most of them have often been left stranded due to red tape at our embassies. Thank you, Madam Chair. [Time expired.]