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Date
: 25/05/2005
Source: The Presidency
Title: Zuma: Presidency Dept Budget Vote 2005/2006
Address by Deputy President Jacob Zuma on the
occasion of Budget Vote 1, The Presidency, National Assembly, Cape
Town
Madam Speaker,
The Honourable President of the Republic,
Ministers and Deputy Ministers
Honourable Members,
Distinguished guests,
Thank you for the opportunity to share with you some of our
activities in the implementation of our programme of action,
especially on such an important day for our continent.
The celebration of Africa Day provides an opportunity for us to
reaffirm our Africanness, and to promote our African pride and
identity, united in our diversity.
Madam Speaker, the importance attached by this country to promoting
unity in diversity is evidenced by the fact that we have in our
Constitution, institutions such as the Commission for the Promotion
and Protection of Religious, Cultural and Linguistic
Communities.
We are unique in the world. In the era where other nations seek
homogeneity, we are proud of our diversity.
In my meeting with the Commission yesterday, we discussed at length
the importance of building this dynamic nation and I am satisfied
that the Commissioners have a clear vision of how to execute their
mandate.
Honourable Members, part of addressing our diversity and cultural
heritage, has included attending to the issue of traditional
leadership.
This institution has been undermined from the era of colonialism to
that of apartheid. Our government has since 1994 worked to restore
the respect and dignity of traditional leaders and the institution
as a whole.
I must emphasise that no government has ever worked so hard,
proactively and deliberately, to protect and enhance the
institution of traditional leadership, like this African National
Congress (ANC)-lead government.
In the hurly burly of politics, claims are often made that this
government is seeking to destroy or undermine traditional
leadership as an institution, and the Zulu Kingdom in
particular.
The challenge and difficulty we face is that there are political
parties that present their views and issues in a manner that makes
it difficult to distinguish whether the issues raised are those of
the party or traditional leaders, for example in KwaZulu-Natal. The
matter is compounded when traditional leaders are also leaders of
political parties.
We believe the track record of this government speaks for itself on
this question. For the first time ever in the history of this
country, there are National and Provincial Houses of Traditional
Leaders. There are also processes in place to establish local
houses, so as to extend the representation and participation to
local government.
There are various other interventions that are well-known to
members of this House, for example the establishment of the
Commission on Traditional Leadership Disputes and Claims.
Madam Speaker, Honourable Members, the promotion of social cohesion
also involves strengthening the social fabric of our society.
Let us not forget that we come from a past in which the State
brutalised the lives of the people of our country in so many
ways.
This included separating families, driving people off the land of
their birth, preventing them from having equal access to economic
opportunities and imprisoning, driving into exile or killing those
that opposed the system.
We are continuing to take steps to redress this. The Moral
Regeneration Movement (MRM) plays an important role in this
regard.
We welcome the activities undertaken throughout the country by
government departments in all spheres and by civil society
organisations.
These range from the rehabilitation of prisoners, promoting
home-based care for the terminally ill, anti-drug campaigns - to
the building of recreational facilities. The campaign of 16 Days of
Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children remains one of
the highlights each year. While all these are important, we believe
we should also emphasise the developmental aspect of moral
regeneration. In our programmes and campaigns, as various sectors,
we should encourage developmental programmes that communities can
undertake.
These include activities that promote pride, confidence and respect
such as establishing communal food gardens, making our residential
areas places that we can be happy to live in, and encouraging the
engagement in artistic forms of expressions. There are obviously
many others.
Our challenge with the MRM is also to create the material
conditions in which millions of South Africans can reasonably be
expected to lead law abiding and moral lives. To attack poverty is
a moral struggle. To roll back poverty creates the conditions for
morality to flourish better.
Madam Speaker, the Freedom Charter proclaims that “The People
Shall Share in the Country's Wealth!”
In keeping true to the wishes of our people who drafted the
Charter, we are continuing with interventions to de-racialise the
economy. This is with a view to expand access to economic
opportunities for the historically marginalised - those making a
living in the Second Economy.
Following the updates on the government’s Programme of Action
will indicate the progress that is being made in growing the First
Economy, as well as in making interventions in the Second
Economy.
Madam Speaker, the promotion of national unity and social cohesion
cannot be divorced from the need to promote the health of our
nation.
You would be aware of the many programmes in this regard, including
interventions in response to problems such as HIV and AIDS,
tuberculosis, malaria, diabetes, and hypertension amongst
others.
With regards to HIV and AIDS, public education remains an important
part of our national programme, including the campaign to
destigmatise the disease, as emphasised at the Candlelight Memorial
events in Rustenburg on 15 May and here in Parliament on 18
May.
If we succeed in destigmatising, we will have an environment in
which people find it easier to take the HIV test, not for the
result to be known publicly, but confidentially in order to know
their status.
If negative, they will then strive to stay that way, if positive,
they will have to adjust their lifestyles accordingly.
Part of the management of HIV and AIDS includes the need to
alleviate poverty and provide nutrition for people infected with
HIV, in order to build the body’s defence mechanism.
Let me emphasise that our position is that nutrition is not a
substitute for appropriate treatment, but prolongs good health and
serves as a solid foundation that determines the success of other
medical interventions.
That is why nutrition was included as an important element of our
Comprehensive HIV and AIDS Care, Management and Treatment Plan of
November 2003.
The pillars of the Plan include prevention, enhancing the treatment
of opportunistic infections, and effective management of those HIV
positive individuals who have developed AIDS defining illnesses.
This Plan is widely recognised as one of the most comprehensive in
the world.
Let me reiterate the seriousness with which government is treating
this epidemic. This is borne out by the magnitude of government
expenditure in implementing our Comprehensive HIV and AID Care,
Management and Treatment Plan.
Government however cannot tackle this on its own.
Madam Speaker, I would therefore like to commend the contribution
of the various partners in the South African National AIDS Council,
and in the entire Partnership against AIDS, in the past year.
We are also aware of some further work that needs to be done. For
example, we need to continue to work at removing the obstacle which
limits the ability of some women to protect themselves against HIV
infection, namely the unequal power relations between men and
women.
The question of the emancipation of women in all spheres remains
paramount if we are to make a visible impact in curbing the spread
of the disease.
Madam Speaker, the people of South Africa demonstrated foresight
when they drafted the Freedom Charter 50 years ago, and
proclaimed:
“There Shall be Peace and Friendship. South Africa shall be a
fully independent state which respects the rights and sovereignty
of all nations; and this nation-state, South Africa, shall strive
to maintain world peace and the settlement of all international
disputes by negotiation - not war”.
In adherence to this vision, we undertook in our Election Manifesto
in 2004 to dedicate more resources to ensure that we contribute
more effectively to the efforts on our continent to prevent and
urgently resolve conflict.
We have remained true to both the provisions of the Charter and our
Election Manifesto. The President has spent countless hours in
efforts in contributing to bring about peace and stability in the
continent.
The progress being made in these peace efforts in the Great Lakes
region demonstrates that South African efforts have not been in
vain.
With regards to Burundi, the achievements scored this year have
brought us closer than ever to a democratic solution. A democratic
government should be in place by the end of August, in line with a
timetable adopted by the Great Lakes Regional Heads of State at
last month’s summit in Uganda.
Indeed, as we celebrate Africa Day, we do so in full realisation
that things are being done differently in Africa in this new
millennium.
We are therefore more confident now than ever before, that we will
achieve the regeneration of Africa that one of our founding
fathers, Pixley ka Isaka Seme, wrote about so eloquently, a century
ago in his famous article, entitled: “The Regeneration of
Africa”.
Honourable Members, we are encouraged by the unity of purpose and
action evident during the various interactions between The
Presidency and key stakeholders and communities.
The meetings of the President with Working Groups representing
various sectors, as well as our interface with decision makers in
other spheres outside of the formal working groups, demonstrates
consensus among the key stakeholders with regards to taking forward
the transformation and reconstruction of our country.
Our interactions with the public during the izimbizo and other
public interaction programmes, also demonstrates the level of
determination and enthusiasm to work with government to improve the
quality of life.
We are humbled by the faith that our people have in The Presidency
in particular, and government in general. It gives us the
encouragement to carry on with the task of building a better
life.
Madam Speaker, let me take this opportunity to thank President
Mbeki for his untiring support and guidance.
I also thank our Minister in The Presidency, Essop Pahad, and all
other Ministers and Deputy Ministers for putting up with us.
We thank our Director-General, the Reverend Frank Chikane, and all
other Directors-General for their support, dedication and
commitment.
We also extend our gratitude to the staff in The Presidency for
their hard work and much-valued support to all of us, especially to
the President who works 24 hours a day!
Madam Speaker, Honourable Members, Happy Africa Day to you
all!
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