Chairperson, today telecommunications and electronic communications provide an easier and quicker means of keeping in touch. Indeed, such technologies are serving as substitutes for postal communication and, in turn, diminishing the importance of the social function of the postal service.
That is not to say that mail does not have a part to play in the social and economic development of our country. It certainly does, but the role of the postal sector needs to be viewed on present need and not historic precedent.
The country's economic framework, known as the New Growth Path, NGP, outlines government's approach to accelerate growth and employment. The NGP focuses on several key drivers, amongst those drivers being continuing and broadening public investment in infrastructure, and supporting rural development and regional integration.
The SA Post Office is one of the state-owned companies, SOEs, under the Department of Communications, whose main function is to provide mail, financial, logistical and consumer services. The SA Post Office complies with legislation governing state-owned enterprises and is guided by various postal, courier and financial regulations laid down by regulatory bodies such as the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa, Icasa, and the Financial Services Board.
The SA Post Office's business model is aimed at managing its services in the context of a developing economy. The intention is to make it an effective arm of service delivery for government by using its infrastructure for the service and development of the people of South Africa.
The government's aim is to increase the number of people making use of the postal services offered by the SA Post Office. However, the SA Post Office remains subject to regulatory scrutiny by Icasa and the provisions of the Public Finance Management Act of 1999.
The SA Post Office Bill seeks to put new provisions in place regarding the governance and structure of the SA Post Office. A comprehensive legal framework will be established that deals with corporate governance at the SA Post Office.
The proposed legislation will set up institutional arrangements that foster efficiency, improve competitiveness and enhance accountability within the SA Post Office. The South African Post Office SOC Ltd Bill will also aim to facilitate universal access to postal services.
It is important to mention that the South African Postbank Limited Act, Act 9 of 2010, which was passed in December 2010 and came into operation on 22 July 2011, provides for the establishment of the SA Postbank as a subsidiary of the SA Post Office. The synergy between these two Bills exists because both create precedent governance models that will still be adopted by many other state-owned enterprises.
The objective of the Act is to provide for, inter alia, the provision of universal, accessible, reliable and affordable postal services. It is also to ensure that there is provision of a wide range of postal services in the interests of economic growth and development and the development of human resources and capacity within the postal industry, especially among historically disadvantaged groups.
The National Assembly passed the Bill on 16 August 2011. On 21 September 2011, after two subsequent briefings to the select committee, the Department of Communications appeared before the select committee for deliberations and finalisation of the Bill.
In terms of the Constitution, the NCOP could not amend a section 75 Bill but it could propose amendments. After intense deliberations, the select committee members were satisfied with the responses from the Department of Communications and proposed the following amendments. The Bill should omit the word "concurrence" in clause 4 and substitute it with the word "approval".
The two words were used on separate occasions in the same clause and for the sake of consistency, only "approval" should be used. References to the National Assembly in clause 22, 25 and 29 were to be replaced by the word "Parliament" in order for the NCOP to be given an equal role to that of the National Assembly. Thereafter, the select committee adopted the Bill with the proposed amendments.
The Post Office exists in all areas of the country and provides services to economically disadvantaged communities. Access to basic services, including postal services, is the right of all South African citizens. The South African Constitution demands that certain criteria should influence service delivery to ensure basic human rights. Accordingly, a universal postal service suggests that all citizens, regardless of race or gender, shall have equal access to basic postal services.
The obligation is placed on the SA Post Office to ensure such access, as well as a rebalancing of the postal network for equity, improvement of the scale, scope and quality of service, and the elimination of cost inefficiencies. In the light of this, the Bill states that the Post Office will actively provide and develop a citizen's Post Office that contributes to community and rural development and education, thereby serving as an interface between government and the community.
The South African Post Office SOC Ltd Bill is, therefore, one step towards ensuring the universal, affordable provision of postal services, especially in the rural areas as it seeks, in the main, to increase the number of people making use of Post Office services. I thank you. [Applause.]
Debate concluded.
Bill, subject to proposed amendments, agreed to in accordance with section 75 of the Constitution.