Speaker and hon members, no matter how you try and explain it, the issue of Nkandla is still going to haunt us for many years to come. [Interjections.]
Wherever you go, people speak about it. His Excellency the President spoke about it, and he said blatantly that he is not going to pay. I must say that it will still be with us. After all, Adv Thuli Madonsela was very generous in her recommendations: She said pay a portion because you benefited unduly. What is a portion? The President would have known better; the portion would have been paid by now. Pay the portion. [Interjections.] She said so. [Interjections.] Fowl run, chicken run, kraal, swimming pool - this is what the taxpayer is paying for.
South Africans wake up every morning with the hope that things will turn for the better but, for the majority of them, it is bizarre. Their lives remain the same, with minimum or no opportunities at all. This undoubtedly undermines our democracy. Millions of South Africans are unemployed, poor, illiterate, and plagued by hunger, starvation, and many social ills, including the scarcity of resources to empower them and make their lives better. We need to revolutionise public and private institutions so that they better serve the interests of our people. The instability that characterises the National Prosecuting Authority, NPA, the Special Investigating Unit, the Hawks, and many other critical units tells the story of ineffective structures of governance which spill over to every delicate organ of state. This inability has continued unabated. [Interjections.]
The NFP is unhappy about the lacklustre approach of government with regard to creating conditions that are conducive to job creation, poverty alleviation, and the reduction of unemployment. The government has not taken robust measures aimed at boosting and jump starting economic growth. Our economy is very sluggish. It keeps ailing, and no bold steps are taken to boost investor confidence. The unemployment level is above 36%. The projection is that the economy will not grow above 2% by the end of this financial year. That clearly tells a story that a lot of people will be jobless by the end of the financial year - and that stops at the door of the President.
This is a bleak story that stops at the door of President Zuma and his Cabinet. This bleak story epitomises the government that the President leads. Very little is being done to provide the financial injection that small businesses and entrepreneurs need to grow. South Africa is yearning for visionary and purpose-driven leadership, but the President has none to offer. A little more than 15 million people pay tax in our country. There are increases in tax and fuel.
No bold measures have been taken to vigorously clamp down on fraudulent tendencies and corruption in our country. Corruption is rampant in the public and corporate sectors. The ANC-led government is not doing enough to curb corruption even in nonprofit organisations and nongovernmental organisations. They are given money, and they don't use it.
Most of the corporate executives earn hefty salaries and huge bonuses, yet they fail to perform and deliver. What has happened with Eskom? If you think the NFP is exaggerating, go to Eskom, the home of load shedding, and see how much executives earn, yet ordinary people are suffering.
Nibaningi, sibaningi; singamphumuza kancane, sithi ukuthatha siqhubeke siye phambili. [You are in numbers, we are in numbers; we can ask him to take a bit of a break, and take over and move forward.]