Thirdly, House Chairperson, the hon Mazibuko, the leader of the DA, has raised concerns about the constitutionality of the Bill but at the same time it is not clear what is unconstitutional. She says that she's still going to look for legal counsel. As the ANC, we've been looking for legal counsel all along, that's why we have been making changes in order to ensure that we comply with the Constitution. She goes on to say that it is probably unconstitutional because it encroaches on the exclusive provincial powers or competencies. I think, maybe hon Swart was better explained, it was about provincial archives.
Maybe, let me address this thing very briefly, House Chairperson. The assertion that the Bill encroaches on provincial competencies with regard to mandate of provincial archives is not founded. That is what we know, because that's what they complained should be taken out off the Bill.
The Bill does provide that once the information is declassified by security apparatus or agencies, it will be handed over to the national archives or other established archives, as the case may be, for storage. It doesn't say that we'll declassify the information that is within the archives. This is done so that people can have access to this information, because information is stored in our archives. I thought I should clarify this issue for hon Mazibuko so that she doesn't waste money with expensive legal counsel. We can offer these legal opinions to you for free. [Laughter.]
So, House Chairperson, in conclusion, let me just say I would have liked to quote from one of the leaders of the ANC, particularly this month, but let me quote from a scholar because we have many people here who have their own interpretations. Regarding this worry about control over intelligence agencies, one of the renowned scholars in this respect is Loch Johnson, everyone knows him. He is the best scholar in terms of intelligence and how it should be controlled. I quote: "Is it possible to have an effective secret service in an open society?" Mr Johnson says that everything is suggesting that it is possible. According to him, views that we fully share, the world is full of dangers, threats, and risks, and intelligence agencies are there to provide protection by serving as the eyes and ears of government.[Time expired.] [Applause.]
Debate concluded.