Speaker, hon members, I rise to offer some views in this debate that I consider very important. As members of the South African democratic Parliament we have the collective responsibility to speak loudly on these matters to the world and on behalf of our continent.
Allow me to digress a moment to talk about a critical matter. The weaknesses that we are experiencing in Parliament as a focus group is that there is little effort that is being put in place for co-ordination and making sure that international matters are co-ordinated and engaged. Those who are entrusted with this job are dropping the ball big time and urgent measures are required on this particular front.
In 2009 President Barack Obama said in Egypt:
I do have an unyielding belief that all people yearn for certain things: the ability to speak your mind and have a say in how you are governed; confidence in the rule of law and the equal administration of justice; government that is transparent and doesn't steal from the people; the freedom to live as you choose.
Good governance includes accountability, transparency, efficiency, effectiveness, responsiveness, forward vision and the rule of law. These elements form the guiding compass which the nations of the world are losing and striving for. The practice of good governance is the only way to sustain peace and security in the world.
The lesson drawn from the recent events demonstrates beyond the shadow of a doubt that the wave of democratisation is sweeping through the world. People of affected nations have therefore chosen democracy and not autocracy.
The matter of good governance should always ensure that government strives to produce quality product output, including service delivery, to citizens at the best cost and to ensure that outputs meet the original intention of the policy-makers.
Forward vision is the government's direct ability to anticipate future problems based on the current data and trends. Policy must therefore take into account future course and therefore anticipate economic, environmental and demographic changes.
For the national Parliament it is critical that we continuously engage in this debate, determining the direction against all things that undermine good governance nationally and internationally. It must be understood that the requirements of basic needs of the citizens, if not fulfilled, lead to discontent. No amount of suppression can last forever.
We must realise that food prices, everyday living and the increasing inequality gap remain a breeding ground for revolts. However, it is important to note that we must guard and protect the interests of our nations against the underlying interests of external forces that do not serve our collective nation state.
In pursuit of natural resources such as oil, some nations show a complete disregard for good governance and democracy. The popular uprisings in the Middle East and North Africa have alarmed and reminded many governments around the world that accountability - good and proper governance - is of the utmost importance.
Autocracy, poverty, underdevelopment, unemployment and corrupt rule have contributed to the social uprisings in the Middle East and North Africa. We should learn from these events. It has shown us that the citizens of the world need full participation in the affairs of their respective countries. We must always be the advocates of democracy across the nation states.
This brings me to the initiative that was driven and championed by our country on the continent in the form of the New Partnership for Africa's Development, Nepad. We must show that this Nepad process was of course a foresight, designed to ensure that the policies and practices of countries conform to the political, economic and corporate governance values, codes and standards, as contained in the Nepad declaration.
I conclude by saying, as Parliament we must drive the agenda so that we become the prime mover of the centrepiece of the Nepad process for the socioeconomic development of Africa. We must ensure that Parliament's voice is always heard on the side of the people, the citizens and the voiceless poor of all the countries in the world and on our continent. [Time expired.]