Hon Chairperson, in conducting oversight into whether the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure is following its mandate of whether and how allocated budgets are employed to achieve the stated policy objectives, we found that the department has fallen short of its mandate.
In dealing with outcome 4 - offering decent employment through inclusive growth, the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure during quarter 3 struggled to make any real progress as sit only looked at reaching an additional 1,1 million people. Countrywide, the Expanded Public Works Programme is supposed to provide an important avenue for labour absorption and income transfers to poor households in the short to medium term. It has unfortunately not done that and has underperformed drastically. An underperformance which at this rate will sadly see South Africa drowning in youngsters looking towards the Expanded Public Works Programme as a career path,
not a stepping stone to inclusion and upliftment in the formal work environment.
While President Ramaphosa in his Sona of 20 June asserted that the ANC had done much to meet people's basic needs, to reduce poverty and to transform a devastated economy, I am asking you, Mr President, for evidence and tangible evidence. Minister de Lille, what we need is a comprehensive job seekers database. Opportunity centres that work to transfer skills, sustainable economic growth and equal opportunity for all our youth as advocated by the DA. Instead, the evidence shows that our economy is not growing and not enough jobs are being created. Our devastated country currently has over 9 million unemployed people and most of them are youth.
In the DA-led City of Johannesburg, evidence shows that in excess of 189 000 net jobs were created in just one year. Similar evidence can be found in the DA-led Western Cape and in the DA-led municipality of Tshwane. These job increases have resulted in from proactive job creation, not pipe dreams with no substance. Minister De Lille, the five year DPWIs current target
... I just want to say that you have your work cut out for you. Thank you.
Mr T V Mashele: House Chair, hon Minister, members of the Portfolio Committee on Public Works and Infrastructure, members of the National Assembly ...
Xitsonga:
... vaakatiko va Afrika-Dzonga, ...
English:
... I value greatly the opportunity to participate in this debate this evening. My standing in this podium for the first time is a testament to the maturity of our evolving democracy. House Chair, I stand here inspired by the wisdom of the great Thomas Sankara who called on us to have the courage to turn our backs on the old formulas and the courage to invent the future.
In constitutional democracies like ours, the future announces itself through the unending entry of new members into the corridors of power. It is thus a great privilege for me to stand
before you this evening today to be part of those who have the courage to invent the future of our country. This Budget Vote comes 20 days since the President of the Republic, President Cyril Ramaphosa, invoked the revolutionary command of Che Guevara who also called upon us to be realistic and to do the impossible. Being realistic demands that we must always be mindful of the difficult conditions our people face on a daily basis.
Daring to the impossible means that we must not be afraid to imagine a better future for our country, we must not be discouraged by those who accuse us of dreaming. There are some amongst us here who are buried deep in the rubble of blinding immediacy. These are the people who scream at the top of their voices begging the President not to invent a better future for our country by asking him not to dream. Such people want us to accept that the difficulties that we face today are the obstacles of tomorrow. The blind eyes of their imagination cannot see a way out of the current challenges.
House Chair, these nincompoops are happy to sing songs and choruses about the unchangeable current conditions as if we are not capable of rising above our current circumstances and incapable of building an ideal future for South Africa. A group of visionary South Africans 64 years ago, met in Kliptown Soweto, to invent a future for our country. Back then there were the very same idiots who dismissed that revolutionary gathering in Kliptown calling them daylight dreamers when they announced the Freedom Charter.
Hon members, the very same people who shout against the dreams of today are the biggest beneficiaries of the dreams of 1955. Even though they clearly deserve it, it will be unparliamentary for me to call them nincompoops or idiots. The vision outlined by the President is not a pie in the sky. It is rooted firmly in the concrete realities of Africa and her people. The national development plan with its 1 100 indicators, provide a practical blue print towards the national democratic society. As part of the practical work that the President has invited us to do, we are today afforded an opportunity to support the budget of
R7,8 billion for the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure.
House Chair, by approving this budget, we plead our support to Sihle Mavimbela who expects good quality healthcare when she goes for her lifesaving operation at Rob Ferreira Hospital in Mpumalanga. We are responding to Che Guevara's call to be realistic by approving this budget so that Fezidinga Mavhatha of Qofimvaba in the Eastern Cape may have the required infrastructure to receive better education. This budget is an instrument at our disposal to ensure that our government can build more roads that connect remote villages with our towns as well as towns and our cities. With this budget the ideal of turning South Africa into a model for economic development on the African Continent can be realised.
Our country needs this budget to build a critical infrastructure for our economy to thrive, for us to create jobs and to improve the livelihoods of our people. Hon members, in this harsh economic condition, Tiyani Makhubela of Bushbuckridge in Mpumalanga look upon the public works program for creating job
opportunities. In the last financial year, the department created over 900 000 EPWP work opportunities. The department must be encouraged to create more opportunities for our people. Many young people in our country just like Tiyani, are encouraged to hear that the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure will create 1200 skills development opportunities.
Other young people across South Africa such as Vusi Mkhize of Mtubatuba, in KwaZulu-Natal, must be excited that the Department will give 150 bursaries towards qualifications in the build environment. This is not a dream, but it is a realistic step in advancing the national democratic society. Many young South Africans out there cannot wait for us to approve this budget so that the department can swiftly roll-out programmes aimed at developing young professionals like; providing artisan training, support internships and leanerships as well as providing support to management trainees. These and other similar development programmes will benefit over 1 500 young people in the country Hon members, we expect improvement from this department. Last year they only achieved 43,8% of the envisaged 55% target for
youth opportunities. As we call upon the department to learn a lesson from its failures, we are equally appealing to young people of our country to remember that it is not possible for every young person to do office work. Real economic production and practical service does not happen in boardrooms. As our country's custodian, the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure has the critical role in entrepreneurship and industrial development.
The department's construction project management subprogram has an important role in supporting the development of black industrialists. Hon members, this budget addresses the discomfort expressed by Tessa Wholefield a senior researcher in the University of Johannesburg who some two years ago warned us that and I quote: The state needs to be held accountable to avoid the situation in which well intended solution may create pockets of disadvantage and exploitations. We must respond to this call accordingly by ensuring that government's EPWP does not exploit the very same people it seeks to uplift, that skills and work experience gained through this various programmes should increase their chances of getting work and that those
assisted by the department to acquire experience must not join the ranks of the unemployed
We must approve this budget so that we can use it to expand the size of the portfolio of immovable assets as an instrument to transform South Africa. It is unacceptable that 25 years into democracy the property sector of our country remains white and male dominated. This must change and it must change now. As a major player in infrastructure sector, the department has a role to play in transforming the ownership patterns of the country. It is also for this reason that we reaffirm the call for the department to expedite the conclusion of the Public Works Bill. Hon members, those of us who want to see better hospitals, better schools and better roads in our country will not waste time pontificating on words. The budget placed before us is not a dream, it is a realistic step in inventing the future. It gives us the strength and to gather more energy to do the impossible. Those who think that we should delay the approval of this budget should remember ...