Honourable Chairperson of the Session,
Chairperson of the Adhoc Committee on Intelligence, Hon. Connie September,
Honourable Ministers,
Deputy Minister of the State Security Agency, Honourable Ellen Molekane and other Deputy Ministers,
Deputy Chief Whip of the ANC, Hon. Doris Dlakude,
Chief Whip of the Adhoc Committee, Hon. JJ Skhosana,
Honourable Members of Parliament and National Council of Provinces,
Honourable Members of Adhoc Committee on Intelligence,
Director-General of the State Security Agency, Ambassador Sonto Kudjoe, the entire SSA, Leadership and members,
The Inspector General Adv. Ambassador Faith Radebe,
Veterans of the Intelligence Service,
Leadership of ANC, Alliance and Progressive Youth Alliance,
Mahlobo and Molekane families,
Distinguished guests,
Comrades and friends.

Introduction

Honourable Chairperson and Members, five days ago we joined the rest of the world in celebrating the international Mandela Day. During the State of the Nation Address this year, His Excellency President Jacob Zuma implored the nation to set aside sixty seven (67) minutes to clean South Africa in memory of Madiba.

This year’s celebration was the first since Madiba’s departure on the 5th December last year.

In paying tribute to our beloved Father of the Nation, Former President Nelson Mandela, allow me to borrow from his book, titled Long Walk to Freedom:

“I have walked that long road to freedom. I have tried not to falter; I have made missteps along the way. But I have discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb. I have taken a moment here to rest, to steal a view of the glorious vista that surrounds me, to look back on the distance I have come. But I can rest only for a moment, for with freedom comes responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk has not yet ended.”

The contributions that Madiba made for our country, the sacrifices he made for his beliefs, the selfless and tireless manner in which he fought so that you and I could stand here today free attest to the fact that our freedom was not free. We do consider ourselves very fortunate to have been led by such a great giant who strode the globe like a colossus. Madiba was one of the finest leaders our movement, the ANC and Africa has ever produced. (Akekho onjengaye)

Faced with harsh realities with his generation of O R Tambo, Walter Sisulu, and others, he had to respond to the generational call eloquently captured by Frantz Fanon, the author of the Wretched Earth: “Each generation must, out of relative obscurity, discover its mission, fulfil it, or betray it in relative opacity”.

This generation knew that in order to advance greatness in humanity, they had to make a choice, either to submit or fight. They chose to fight, a very serious choice because Madiba wanted to live a life of selflessness, a life that would change the lives of many who endured a life under the repressive regime of apartheid and colonialism. He dedicated his entire life to serving his people in the quest for freedom, justice and equality.

Our achievements

Honourable Chairperson and Members, as country and its people we have made significant strides on a journey started twenty years ago. We embarked on a hard, long and arduous but fulfilling journey to eradicate the legacy of apartheid and colonialism in pursuit of a truly united, non-racial, non-sexist, democratic and prosperous society. 

This vision of a National Democratic Society is clearly articulated by our Freedom Charter and it became the cornerstone of our constitutional democracy after 1994. His Excellency President Jacob Zuma eloquently says that we have a good story to tell!  We have managed to undergo a far reaching first phase of our democratic transition. 

During this phase, we have restored people’s dignity, ensured that government is based on the will of the people and the lives of many have been improved. South Africa is indeed now a better place to live in, than it was before 1994 (Iningizimu ye Africa ingcono). We are however the first to admit that despite our achievements, a lot more still needs to be done. Inde Lendlela esihambayo. Indeed, ours is a long road towards the realisation of kind of society we all envisioned in the Freedom Charter and Constitution.

Together, we have come a long way in stabilising the domestic security situation and in creating the conditions for democracy to flourish, as well as creating space for citizens to exercise their constitutional rights. At the same time we have also contributed significantly to the security of the Southern African region and the African continent.

Together, we have brought to an end the political violence which caused misery among many families, eliminated the urban terrorism, brought right-wing extremism under control and have also made an incalculable contribution to the security of all major national events since the dawn of democracy.

We have introduced legislation that ensures that the intelligence tradecraft is subjected to the rule of law and the constitution. In addition we developed an oversight model that is based on democratic and constitutional imperatives. This process culminated into the integration of all the intelligence structures into a single integrated State Security Agency (SSA). The State Security Agency will continue to build on these proud achievements of the past 20 years.

And yet, through this journey we have learned from a number of challenges that we have experienced. We are not oblivious to the complexity of the task at hand, we remain committed to delivering on the vision we have set for ourselves.

Our priorities

The ANC has been given an overwhelming mandate by our people to implement bold and decisive interventions for socio-economic transformation to eradicate poverty, unemployment, create sustainable livelihoods and reduce inequality. This constitutes the main tasks of our second phase of the transition as espoused in the National Democratic Revolution.

In consolidating the gains made over the last 20 years, government has put in place a programme of action based on the 2014 Election Manifesto of the African National Congress (ANC) and the National Development Plan vision 2030.

The Department of State Security supports government objectives as outlined in in Outcome 3:  All people in South Africa are and feel safe and Outcome 11: Create a better South Africa, contribute to a better and safer Africa in a better world.

We have set ourselves targets that by 2030 people living in South Africa feel safe at home, at school and at work, and they enjoy community life free of fear. Women walk freely in our streets and children play safely outside.  With respect to corruption, by 2030 the anti-corruption agencies have adequate resources and properly capacitated and corruption radically reduced.

The Department of State Security working within the Criminal Justice System will play a significant role on the realisation of the NDP vision and Medium Term Strategic Framework (MTSF) objectives by ensuring:

a) An efficient and effective criminal justice system
b) South Africa’s borders effectively defended, protected, secured and well managed
c) Secure the cyber space
d) Domestic stability ensured
e) Corruption in the public and private sectors reduced

In furtherance of NDP vision and MTSF objectives as per Outcome 11, the department of SSA within the International Cooperation Trade and Security (ICTS) cluster will ensure:

a) South Africa’s national priorities advanced
b) Political cohesion within Southern Africa to ensure a peaceful, secure and stable Southern Africa region
c) A peaceful, secure and stable Africa
d) A sustainable, developed and economically integrating Africa
e) Strong, mutually beneficially South-South cooperation
f) Beneficial relations with strategic formations of the North

Honourable Chairperson and Members, the National Security Strategy (NSS) approved by Cabinet in December 2013, places emphasis on issues of territorial integrity and asserting the authority of the State.

In order to discharge our constitutional mandate, the department of SSA has earnestly begun a process of improving capacity of the Intelligence services.  Improving our capacity is premised on our appreciation of the role of intelligence in securing the South African State, its sovereignty, its people, infrastructure and resources.  

Our task is to make intelligence relevant, effective, and robust and to deal with the evolving nature of threats both domestically and globally. We need to improve as Intelligence community through better coordination of operations, exchange of information and innovation in conducting our work.

Steps are underway to introduce and review regulations under the three intelligence pieces of legislation that were amended by Parliament in 2013 through the General Intelligence Laws Amendment Act. Further, a process has commenced internally in order to align this policy with the 21st century national and global security challenges. Once this internal process is completed, we will consult the members of the public for input.

These efforts are necessitated by the complexities of new threats, as well as the increasing number of issues that occupy the global and national security agenda. This has forced the intelligence structures to adopt a different posture to human, financial and material resourcing.

Furthermore, this implies that our department would have to strategically prioritise the attraction of new skills in the threat areas that would enable us to deliver on our priorities for the next five years while paying serious attention to the re-skilling of existing personnel to better equipped in the emerging trends of our tradecraft.

In giving effect to the above-mentioned priorities, during this financial year and this term, we are going to pay a great deal of attention to the causes of instability through focusing on the development of a qualitative understanding of the factors, processes and role-players that give rise to social and economic instability.

This will, amongst others, involve concerted focus on the combatting of corruption, organised crime, and illegal migration, illicit economic activity, whilst fostering conditions conducive to advancement of energy, food, water and environmental security, as articulated in government’s programme of action.

Honourable Chairperson and Members, our national security is not only about the securing our state; but it also about creating the proper conditions for nation building, the development of a national identity, common patriotism, and the development of our country to become a prosperous, thriving democracy.

We are also cognisant of the fact that the security of South Africa is intrinsically linked to the security of countries in the Southern African region, the African continent in general, as well as global security and stability.

We will strengthen our early warning systems to responds adequately to the ever changing domestic and global security issues such as international and domestic forms of terrorism and extremism, addressing cyber-attacks and securing our cyberspace and managing our national borders more effectively.

Ensuring effective control and management of South Africa’s border security is of paramount importance. Our concerns are on crimes such as drug trafficking, human smuggling, rhino poaching and identity and travel document fraud can be linked to the cross-border movement of people and goods. We will strengthen our interventions through close coordination of efforts with stakeholders in the Aviation, Maritime and Land Border environments.

Confronting and rooting out corruption remains a central objective, especially considering the negative impact it has on the economy and its potential to erode the authority of the State.

In pursuance of our vision of a country with an empowered citizenry that holds public and private officials to account; leaders who have high ethical standards; and a comprehensive and resilient anti-corruption system, the mandate given to the SSA in the 5^th ANC Administration in respect of rooting out corruption, will see the SSA  accelerating its pace to:

a) Implement the National Vetting Strategy across all spheres of government and state owned entities.
b) Improve perceptions of South Africa, and the country’s international standing in relation to corruption. 
c) Curb violent protest action that threatens both domestic stability and authority of the State.

People should exercise their right to protest within the ambits of the law. We will continue with all our partners in finding lasting solutions to curb violent industrial action and violence within the transport sector, with the primary focus of stabilisation of the mining and transport sectors to the benefit of all parties concerned.

We will continue to deal with the phenomenon of illicit mining which in itself is a complex, multi-faceted challenge. Will continue finding lasting solutions in preventing and mitigating against violence directed against foreign nationals through existing structures. We will deal decisively with organised crime such as drug trafficking, human smuggling, poaching and gangsterism that continues to display increasing sophistication and diversification through operations.

Our concern is also the spill-over effect on growth in the illicit economy that continues to pose a threat to South Africa and the well-being of all South Africans. Good progress has, however, been registered in areas such as the combatting of the trade in illicit tobacco and cigarettes.

Global illicit financial flows are increasing exponentially with research indicating that the total amount of revenue lost to the African continent annually is estimated at being equal to five times the amount of aid flowing into Africa annually. To identify and neutralise these, the SSA coordinates closely with institutions such as the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC). As late as July 2014, the SSA participated in a number of structures dealing with Money Laundering and Terror Financing.

To address the issue of the illicit economy comprehensively and in a coordinated fashion, we will develop a National Strategy on the Illicit Economy and improve our capacity on economic intelligence.

As part of the International Cooperation Trade, Peace and Security (ICTS) Cluster, we remain steadfast in our conviction that the prosperity and advancement of South Africa is in-extricable linked to that of our continent. Therefore, as the SSA we will continue to play our role of providing dynamic, reliable and timeous intelligence to advance our national security and interests.

Our sister countries such as Mali, the Central African Republic (CAR), Nigeria, Libya, Egypt, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Somalia, Kenya and South Sudan have experienced their share of conflict and are in the process of addressing these issues.

These security challenges in the various regions of the continent are an indication that there are new and unconventional threats that have emerged that will require us as African governments to collectively, through the AU, respond to these challenges. We will continue, together with the ICTS Cluster to advance the following:

a) Support and execute the decisions of the AU and promote the work of its structures;
b) Support African based initiatives, such as the operationalization of the African Capacity for Immediate Response to Crises (ACIRC) as an interim measure pending the full operationalization of the African Standby Force (ASF).
c) Support to multilateral initiatives to stabilise conflict areas through the AU and the United Nations (UN);
d) Continue to actively participate in the Committee of Intelligence and Security Services of Africa (CISSA).

Honourable Chairperson and Members this administration has prioritized the issue of securing our cyber space. At a national level reports indicate that cybercrime is costing our country approximately one billion rand per annum. We therefore continue to work tirelessly within the JCPS cluster to arrest and frustrate efforts to expand cybercrime within the borders of South Africa. 

We shall strengthen our cooperation in this space with our SADC, AU and BRICS partners through the existing mechanisms. We plan to create a coherent and seamless information regulatory framework which is aligned to national and international standards. Through this approach, all critical domains of information will be given necessary attention.

In this regard ongoing work on cybersecurity and classification of information will be finalized within this envisaged regulatory framework, and members of the public will be consulted.

During this 5^th ANC-led administration amongst other tasks, we will continue to build our technological capability and professionalise the intelligence services. We have undertaken and finalised a benchmarking exercise to review the SSA remuneration framework, thereby ensuring that the SSA recruits and retains the best calibre of professionals.
 
The process of giving impetus to the Veterans Association is at an advanced stage. This cadreship will be utilised by the department in areas like training, coaching and mentoring. We are going to strength our internal capacity by engaging various institutions of basic and higher education to secure the future of our intelligence community. 

We will indeed make intelligence a career of choice for many young South Africans and enhance the output of the academy and link up with other institutions with common interests. Internal training and development will be prioritised.

Members of the agency will be supported with all the necessary resource to discharge their responsibility and this leadership will also improve the organisational culture. Good performance will be recognised and in the same vein there will be consequences for poor performance and ill-discipline.

Conclusion

In the spirit of celebrating our twenty years of freedom and democracy, I wish to pay tribute to His Excellency President Zuma and the entire current and past members of our community who have made countless sacrifices to enable us to enjoy the fruits of their labour in a stable, peaceful and democratic South Africa.

Our responsibility is to ensure that we carry this proud tradition forward through the provision of relevant, timely and reliable intelligence, as well as building sustainable organisational capacity to secure many more generations to come.

We as the SSA are equal to the task, and we are working with government to protect the integrity and authority of the State, to collaborate our collective efforts in delivering the objectives of the ANC Manifesto and the National Development Plan and ensure that South Africa remains a nation at work for the protection and advancement of its most prized asset, her people.

Let me take this opportunity to thank His Excellency President Zuma and the ANC Leadership for the trust bestowed on me and Deputy Minister to lead SSA, the Adhoc committee members, the Deputy Minister of SSA Honourable Ellen Molekane.

I also wish to acknowledge the support from my predecessor Minister Dr. Siyabonga Cwele for the smooth hand over, the Director-General Ambassador Sonto Kudjoe, the Inspector General Adv. Ambassador Faith Radebe, the entire leadership of SSA and members.

Lastly my family, I wish to thank the ANC and broader alliance for their continued support and guidance. We will remain resolute, unflinching in the face of opposition and focussed on achieving the goals we have set as government to advance our beautiful country, a country full of possibilities.

We invite all South Africans to be part of our national effort to secure the security of our country, her integrity, her people, infrastructure and resources. (Nawe uliphoyisa). I humbly submit this budget vote for the Department of State Security for your consideration and approval.

Together we move South Africa!

God bless South Africa, her sons and daughters.

I thank you!