Violence will increase if poverty does not decrease

The miners who lived and were killed in Marikana, which is situated within the Rustenberg local municipality, died while protesting for better living conditions and higher wages. Most of them were from the Eastern Cape. 

Residents of Rustenberg fare better than those in some Eastern Cape municipalities in terms of
living conditions, but are worse off than the average South African. This is according to data from Statistics South Africa and the Gaffney Group.

Rustenberg local municipality has a poverty rate of 37%. Some 14% of households have no access to water, some 22% have no electricity, and 39% have no access to refuse removal services. Some 6% of households have no sanitation, meaning they use the bucket toilet system or other means. The proportion of households that do not live in formal housing is significant, at 49%.

Some 66% of those who were killed in the Marikana violence were from the Eastern Cape. Alfred Nzo district municipality, home to some of the miners, has a higher poverty rate than Rustenberg, at 83%. It is the poorest district municipality in the country. Some 68% of households have no access to water, while 66% have no electricity. Almost 95% of households do not get their refuse removed, and 30% have no sanitation. Less than 30% of households live in formal housing
structures.

In comparison, the average South African is better off. Some 11% of households in the country have no access to water, some 16% have no electricity, and 39% have no refuse removal services. The number of households who have no access to sanitation is higher than in Rustenberg but lower than in Alfred Nzo, at 8%. Less than a quarter of all households, at 23%, do not live in formal housing.

Most miners have two homes to take care of – one in Marikana and another elsewhere where their families live. Both homes, as the data suggests, are likely to be situated in municipalities that are not faring well in terms of access to basic services and employment opportunities. This is perhaps one of the reasons why some of the miners that died in the Marikana violence were prepared to risk their lives in an attempt to improve their living conditions, including those of their families.

18 years after the end of Apartheid, South Africa is still a country of insiders and outsiders. The insiders have access to jobs, income, skills and assets, but the excluded live in poverty, without skills and without jobs.

The DA has a plan to break down the barriers that keep so many locked out of opportunity. We plan to generate a dynamic economy that includes everyone. Our plan paves the way for a very different future: one of innovation, entrepreneurship, investment and growth.

That is why we are working for change, and working for jobs. The DA’s Growth and Jobs plan outlines how the DA will reduce poverty and create jobs by putting South Africa on a high-growth path. Our plan outlines how the DA will break down the barriers to opportunity by allowing an open and inclusive economy to develop in which each person has the skills and the resources to become a productive member of a dynamic, integrated and forward-looking society.

For more on the Working for Change, Working for Jobs campaign click here.

DASO landslide electoral victory at NMMU

The DA notes the spectacular electoral victory in the SRC election at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University. The DA won the election for the first time in September 2011, with a very narrow majority of 200 votes. This enabled the DASO (Democratic Students Organisation) to implement its electoral manifesto and deal with the real issues that impact on students’ everyday lives and their concomitant challenges.

A year after good student governance and the fulfilment of a realistic and coherent electoral manifesto the DASO went into yesterday’s election quietly confident that they would be given a renewed mandate to govern the NMMU SRC.

What happened in fact yesterday was an unprecedented and record "LANDSLIDE" electoral victory for DASO, where they won 16 of the 21 seats on the SRC. Additionally, DASO has won all four Site Representative Portfolio's, all Faculty Council Seats and 7 out of 8 Oppidani Council Seats. This historical victory in fact confirms and reinforces the fact that all voters, including students, wish for good governance and governability. This is in fact also an important rejection of the poor governance and characteristic "ungovernability" of the ANC aligned SASCO.

What is of grave concern however is the undemocratic and thuggish behaviour of SASCO aligned students, who when they came to learn of their imminent crushing defeat, resorted to switching off the electricity, invading a voting station and stealing a Ballot box (which had fortunately already been counted). This behaviour is an ominous portent of things to come in future elections where the ANC will come under more and more pressure as shown by the DA's by election results yesterday.

This election result is not only a resounding endorsement of the incumbent DASO led SRC leadership in this university but is also a significant momentum shift for DASO campaigns on all the other tertiary institution campuses across the country. In this regard we also note the biased and spurious reasons for non-recognition and non-registration of DASO on some campuses such as Fort Hare University.

DASO like the DA is more and more being embraced by voters as a competent and realistic alternative to SASCO and the ANC.

Eeastern Cape capital expenditure lowest in the country

The first quarter National Treasury expenditure figures for the Eastern Cape once again highlight the alarming trend of low capital expenditure in the key Departments of Education (7.7%), Health (11.3%) and Human Settlements (17.7%).

Under development, inequality and poverty are directly related to the lack of capital expenditure in the social cluster.

The only way to stop the rot is for the MEC for Finance and Provincial Expenditure, Phumulo Masualle, to table a quarterly statement on the state of the province’s finance upon which findings and recommendations are made by the finance portfolio committee for debate in the house.  When he and the officials of the affected departments have to face quarterly scrutiny by the Legislature, they will be forced to jack themselves up or face the music.

The historical slow pace and under expenditure on capital works are detrimental to a sound education and health system in this province.

These figures are the worst in the country. 

There is a crying need to improve our school and health infrastructure.  Under expenditure cannot be tolerated.  Provincial Treasury must ensure that capital expenditure is speeded up and that officials, who cannot do their job, be disciplined.

Millions of learners in this province are suffering at the hands of a dysfunctional educational system and deserve a decent learning environment.

For the first quarter of the 2012/2013 financial year (April – June) Education only spent R74 million out of a total of R960 million of capital expenditure, being 7.7%.

The Health Department was slightly better spending R104 million out of R925 million of capital expenditure, being 11.3%.

Human Settlements only spent R242 million out of R2 292 billion, being 17.7%. 

In the 2010/2011 financial year Education only spent 43.9% of its capital budget and in the 2011/12 year 63.9%.

In the 2011/2012 year the Health Department under spent by R193 million spending only 84.8% of its budget.

Social worker shortage undermines effectiveness of social welfare legislation

The total number of social workers registered with the South African Council for Social Service Professions (SACSSP) as at March 2012 was 16 740. This number includes social workers that work for the Government, non-profit organisations (NPOs), or the private sector, as well as those that are no longer in practice but retain their registered status.

Of these social workers, only 6 655 (40%) are employed by the Government and 2 634 (16%) by NPOs. This leaves 7 451 (45%) registered social workers that are either employed in the private sector or are not practising.

According to the Department of Social Development’s own costing, some 16 504 social workers are required to provide the social welfare needs of children in terms of the Children’s Act of 2005. This accounts for 99% of all registered social workers, illustrating the shortage of social welfare skills given that social workers are also required to provide services related to substance abuse, older people, people with disabilities, crime prevention and support, and HIV/AIDS, among other things.

In order to overcome these social issues we need more social workers, but with a failing basic education system I don’t believe we have much hope for increased graduates in the future. Once again, if education fails everything fails!

Expiring US trade policy could spell economic meltdown for East London

I’m disappointed in the local media coverage surrounding discussions with United States Secretary of State Hilary Clinton in South Africa this week to extend an essential trade policy that expires in 2015.

South African negotiators have been scrambling ahead Clinton’s visit to ensure we remain a beneficiary of the US African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) after it expires in 2015. If South Africa were to be excluded from the act, it would have serious implications for players in the local motor and motor components industries, among others.

Under the act, African countries have been granted tariff-free access to the US market, with widespread implications for apparel manufacturers on the continent. Locally, companies exporting cars and car parts to the US have also fallen under the act. Both Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies and director-general Lionel October confirmed that elements within the US Congress were questioning South Africa’s continued involvement in the act. "They think we’re too developed," Mr October said, and the fact that "the World Trade Organisation classifies us as industrialised" was not helping the cause.

Peter Draper, of the South African Institute of International Affairs, said "there have been rumblings over the years concerning whether South Africa should be part of Agoa. South Africa’s economy is much more diversified and the scheme was devised for the very poorest and some argue we should graduate from it." Draper said there "have also been rumblings from US industrial and agricultural groups who want certain products excluded, or South Africa totally out" of the act. He said the view that South Africa was "anti-US and pro-China" was "gaining currency".

The implications of South Africa being excluded from the act could be significant for the motor industry – particularly the East London Area. US ambassador Donald Gips said South Africa exported more than $2bn worth of cars to the US last year. Mercedes Benz exports most of its cars to the US, and it is possible that they could cease production of future models in East London if it becomes expensive to export to the US, which would spell and economic nightmare for the greater Buffalo City area.

Fani tries to account for BCM tender chaos

Buffalo City Metro’s (BCM) city manager Andile Fani said the award of tenders was sometimes delayed because of the workload of the tender committees and threats made against committee members. 

Speaking at a council meeting last week, Fani also said the leaking of information to potential service providers and threats against some members had resulted in resignations by committee members and delaying the tender approval processes. He said the situation was so serious members of BCM’s bid evaluation and adjudication committees were living in fear of losing their lives after receiving threats over their decisions during committee sittings. “Some are confronted on the streets and some tell me they don’t feel safe serving on the committees because information coming out of those committee meetings is leaked to potential service providers,” he said. “Some find themselves being confronted by service providers about certain decisions or certain issues that had been raised in the bid adjudication committee. “Some would say they are approached by service providers who tell them this is what you said in the bid adjudication committee about my tender that is there. They just don’t take kindly to that,” Fani added. 

According to Fani, the metro was constantly “persuading and pleading” with committee members to stay on, but it was a struggle to keep some on board. “Just recently, one member pleaded with me that at the end of the financial year which ended in June, he be released.” 

The city manager also revealed the city faced legal challenges due to the awarding of tenders to companies whose names appear on attendance registers while in reality they never attended tender briefings. He said that led to companies which attended briefings, challenging the awarding in court and thus stalling project completion. “That really us backwards.” 

BCM’s political parties expressed concerns over the leaking of information from these committees and the threats made.  The DA’s chief whip Kevin Mileham said that the “forced resignation" of committee members would deeply impact on service delivery. “This is going to slow the process down, but as the DA, we believe the first step in ensuring trustworthy procurement processes is to open up the bid evaluation and adjudication process to public scrutiny. “Only by allowing everyone sight of the process can we ensure corruption and maladministration are rooted out,” said Mileham.

ANC and council chief whip Sangweni Matwele said investigations needed to be conducted.
“More than what the city manager had told us, we still need more information on the matter and thus investigations will be conducted,” said Matwele. 

Source: Daily Dispatch

DA to refer discriminatory assault to Human Rights Commission

The DA is shocked by a report yesterday on the criminal justice system’s total lack of care in the assault of a lesbian woman.

It is unacceptable to be assaulted because of one’s sexual orientation. It is despicable when the person assaulted tries to report the matter to the police, the very people who are supposed to protect us from harm, only to be told that the matter is “not a big issue”.

Crime is a big issue. Being assaulted is a big issue. Being assaulted to the point where one is unconscious for three hours, is a very big issue. This reportedly happened to 29 year old Bonisiwe Mtshali, who was assaulted by security guards after she confronted them about comments they made regarding her sexual orientation. 

We believe that this conduct goes beyond misconduct on the part of the police, as well as the security guards. It is a violation of the rights of Ms Mtshali to enjoy her constitutionally enshrined right to freedom from discrimination on the grounds of her sexual orientation, and a violation of her right to a safe and secure environment.  It also makes a mockery of our criminal justice system.  How can we possibly know the extent of this type of crime, when the police are setting themselves up as judges by preventing the matter from even getting to court?

For these reasons, we shall be referring this matter to the Human Rights Commission for their urgent investigation. This type of intolerance and violence must be stopped, and stopped now.

Debbie Schafer MP
DA Shadow Deputy Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development