4 March 2003
The Premier yesterday talked about disloyalty of some members of the Provincial Executive Council to himself. What he forgot to say is that blind loyalty can lead one to be a local arrogant functionary of a regime that despises everything African and democratic. This is the type of loyalty once displayed by bantustan puppets of all hues. I will never be part of such loyalty which borders on treason against our people. I will never be loyal to madness. I will continue to rebel against such notion.
Whatever happens in the near future, Mr Mtshali will not be seated for too long where he is presently seated. The balance of political forces is in the state of flux. Unstrategic as the DA/IFP Alliance may be, yet it cannot afford to enter election campaign under the leadership of Mr Mtshali in the province. He has become a political liability to both the DA and IFP.
There is a pair of twinkling eyes of a young IFP leader eyeing the position of the premier of the province.
The following slums clearance projects are in progress:
1. Welbedacht East: 5 200 earmarked sites and Total number of houses constructed is 600, meaning 600 families.
2. Welbedacht West: 2 933 earmarked sites and total number of houses constructed is 400.
3. Parkgate: 1530 sites are planned and by the end of March this year about 70 houses will be completed.
4. Stop 8/Namibia 2 500 sites: Topographical survey is complete; township planning is awaiting community acceptance and the preliminary engineering design is nearing completion.
5. Joe Slovo with 280 sites: House construction to start by end of this March. There is a problem of interference from one of the notorious sharks in housing, whom I understand is desperately trying to worm himself into the confidence of the new MEC. I hope the new MEC will be able to discover this himself. Beneficiaries, I am told, are ready to pay in advance a sum of R2 479 as per new policy.
6. Uganda 442 sites: the Land Availability Agreement to be secured from Ingonyama Trust; topographical survey to be completed soon and civil construction to be started in April.
7. Umlazi Q8 and Q10 =AD 433 sites. Land is to be expropriated, revised town plan and topographical survey are complete.
8. I can give the same details on Newcastle, Richards Bay, KwaDukuza, Hisbiscus Coast and Pietermaritzburg slums-clearance projects.
One of the national and provincial housing priorities is the creation of the Rental Stock to afford those of our people who do have limited resources to enter into various rental schemes.
Umthakathi kuphela ongazonda lokhu. Ngempela ukwanda kwaliwa umthakathi.
Asinamona. Asinanzondo. Sisebenzela abantu bakithi.
Mr Speaker Sir,
Let me note that when I took over the portfolio of housing in this province, very few people knew what housing was all about in this province. Today communities have been empowered on housing matters. During my office acts of corruption were dealt with decisively. Many an official is behind bars, R53 million was uncovered hidden in a trust account, departmental officials have been fired and the department has been transformed into a truly South African department reflecting the demographics of our country.
This has enraged those who want to turn back the clock of history to apartheid. This amounts to what is loosely described as ethnic cleansing of the African leadership corps in the Department of Housing. But this will fail in the same way that apartheid has failed in this country.
Let me make it clear. We will not shield anybody who is involved in corruption. Our consciences dictates that we must fight corruption everywhere. But we must be vigilant against political witch-hunt aimed at turning back the clock of history to apartheid. We will have to differentiate between corruption and simply procedural matters. If we do not differentiate between the two, this must apply to all accounting officers.
On this matter, we will rely on the Auditor-General, provincial Scopa and this House.
We are talking about witch-hunt. The report of the Auditor-General on the South African Housing Fund in KwaZulu Natal is quite damning. When the powers that be did not realise that the report was about a period when Advocate Mduduzi Khoza was not yet the departmental Accounting Officer, knives were sharpened against him. But when it was discovered that he was not responsible for that period, the then Accounting Officer was left untouched. He is presently working in an important provincial government at a higher level.
We hope the probe recently announced into some activities of the Department of Housing will extend to the Department of the Premier, Safety and Security, Social Welfare, Environmental Affairs and Traditional Affairs. We are even more interested in the manoeuvres aimed against the present Gambling Board. Let me say these manoeuvres will fail.
We hope the Justice Thirion Commission of Inquiry Report will be made public soon and those who cost this government millions of rands in fruitless expenditure will be made to pay back that money. We hope all those accounting officers who were lambasted by the Auditor-General, including those who were in the past heading the Department of Housing, will be probed and asked to take forced leave wherever they may be employed today in any government department.
Issued by: African National Congress Kwazulu Natal