... for the reasons I will clearly outline. First of all, because the example Madiba set was not followed. I recall today that as the Chairperson of the NCOP, members of the executive of the party to which I belonged at that time did not come to the House to answer the questions in the NCOP because they relegated the NCOP to lower status than this Other House. I rebuked them and the papers carried that. Some of the members of the executive were very angry and they took positions questioning why I, a member of the ruling party, was insisting that they should meet the obligations of the Constitution. Whilst they did that, President Mandela came on the side of the Constitution and supported the correctness of my position. It was my duty to make sure that members of the executive met their obligation in so far as they had to carry out functions in the NCOP. [Interjections.]
There are colleagues here, Ms Pandor and others, with whom we served there and we were supported in the wrongness of the executive which did not want to be held accountable. [Interjections.] I am not surprised at the noises that are being made because it shows clearly that to this day there are many who have not as yet understood that lesson of history. That is why there is a staggering deficit of accountability in our politics today.
Today, we have rulers and not governors.[Interjections.] They took away the Scorpions and gave us the Hawks. They took away our right to a police service and foisted a police force upon us. They ignored the Constitution to push the Protection of State Information Bill down our throats. They curtailed open debate in this House. They showed scant regard for the legislature and secretly sent troops to the Central African Republic, without engaging with this Parliament.
They expended hundreds of millions of rands in Nkandla and channelled the report on it to a committee that meets in secret, because they do not want accountability. They do not want the people to see. [Interjections.] I dare say, by the way, only Deputy Minister Cronin openly condemned the outrageous expenditure in Nkandla. He is the only person amongst the ruling party who did that. That was something noble. That is an example to be emulated. Those who are holding their tongues today are forfeiting their right to express any moral repugnance tomorrow.
Symptomatic of the accountability nightmare is the failure of many Ministers to come here to this House and answer questions that the opposition raises. We have consequently been asking for a meeting with the Deputy President to discuss the large number of questions, which very many members of the executive do not want to account for in this House.
Countrywide the situation is, of course, shambolic and shocking. In a city that bears Nelson Mandela's name, a capable municipal manager was by all accounts harassed into resigning because she was determined to fight corruption. A similar situation prevails in the Deeds Office in Pietermaritzburg. On the other hand, shockingly, Block and Botes are back in the Northern Cape executive. [Interjections.]
Secrecy and a failure to uphold ideals were anathema to Nelson Mandela. In defence of his ideals, on the way to Robben Island, he told the Rivonia Trial that he was prepared to die for that which was right. Interestingly, even after he came back from Robben Island, he remained true to that position. When Louis Luyt wanted him to appear in court to testify, and many advised that he should not do so, he rejected that advice. He went and stood in court, and answered the questions he had to answer. [Applause.] In doing so, he affirmed the constitutionality of our judiciary, not just prescribing to others, but acting out that which he wanted everybody else to follow.
Nelson Mandela set what I call the gold and platinum standards for governance. He wanted to be beyond reproach, but not beyond criticism. His moral and visionary leadership won us the esteem of the world. Whilst he made the truth visible, the present executive is determined to make unpalatable truths invisible. True followers of Mandela are those willing to be bound by the moral rectitude and intellectual rigour he demonstrated. All others are name-droppers who pretend to be the carriers of his legacy. [Applause.] What South Africa needs today, as the crisis of governance deepens in our country, is visionary and moral leadership. I am not surprised, therefore, that Gill Marcus joined, a few days ago, a growing chorus by asking for decisive leadership as the country descends into an unpalatable situation of directionless and unguided national drift.
Hon President, we would have supported this budget as it is set had you, at least in my view, taken the step of reducing this Cabinet of Ministers and Deputy Ministers, that numbers up to 64, consuming huge quantities of resources that should be addressing the needs of our people. Had you only done that. Have you looked at the example of President Uhuru Kenyatta in Kenya, who has just reduced the Cabinet of his country from 44 to 18 to release resources that can then address the needs of the people of his country? [Applause.]
By our reckoning, the National Assembly itself needs a review and we must consider whether nothing could be done to save resources and redirect them away from consumption to deal with the issue of the conditions of the people. We cannot afford to have a government that is preoccupied with itself and with this handbook of how much they must earn when the people have nothing to earn and eat. Because of the increase in executive members, the administration itself increases. If you increase the number of Ministers, Deputy Ministers, and all of that, you must then employ more staff for them.
A huge chunk of the budget goes to feeding individuals who are busy talking and writing, and people have nothing to eat. [Interjections.] In fact, that bloated administration the Minister of Finance has constantly advised on. But nobody listens to the Minister of Finance. The more he says we must cut down on the bloated administration, the more you employ friends and family, the more you increase it, and then what happens? [Applause.]
What happens, of course, is that inefficiency sets in. The line of administration just to get a certificate signed is too long. It is so long that in the end the Guptas land at Waterkloof Air Force Base because nobody knows who is doing what. [Interjections.] We must stop this situation. Government should be looking after the people.
I want to say to my colleagues, the members of the House, both on the side of the ruling party and the opposition, the time has come that we must unite as the legislature. [Interjections.] We must say to the executive - we are the legislature - that we will not have you there because you are failing all of us. We must revolt on behalf of the poor, hungry and homeless. We, you and I together, that is what we were elected for.