Need For Speed Undercover Project Reformed

[Vernie Montagna]

TheSPEAKER: Order! Hon members, I wish to announce that the vacancies which occurred owing to the resignations of Mr R Coetzee, Mr A T Fritz, Ms D van der Walt and Mr A Louw have been filled with effect from 10 September 2010 by the nominations of Mr T D Harris, Adv L H Max, Mr J F Smalle and Mr D J Stubbe, respectively.

In terms of section 48 of the Constitution members of the National Assembly must swear or affirm faithfulness to the Republic and obedience to the Constitution before they begin to perform their functions in the National Assembly. Will two members please accompany the members into the Chamber? [Applause.]

The SPEAKER: Order! Hon members, I wish to announce further that the vacancy which occurred owing to the resignation of Ms P de Lille has been filled by the nomination of Ms S U Paulse, with effect from 10 September. Will two members please accompany the member into the Chamber.

That the House debates the total unacceptability of the continued bungling by the police in respect of taking blood samples of drunken drivers in the manner specified by the law in that once again, for the umpteenth time, the metro police in the so-called Jub Jub drag-racing accident, in which four innocent schoolchildren lost their lives, bungled the taking of blood samples as a result of their ineptitude and thereby caused the case of the state to be weakened.

That the House debates the dire consequences of the disruption of trial examinations in Port Elizabeth by the ANC-aligned Sadtu and in Limpopo by the ANC-aligned Cosas, after a strike that has halted progress in preparing learners for the final examinations.

That the House debates whether all medical practitioners in private practice as well as all medical facilities, such as hospitals and clinics, have current contracts with registered waste management companies for the safe disposal of all medical waste, considering that two KwaZulu-Natal hospitals were alleged to have dumped medical waste illegally in Mariannhill three months ago.

That the House debates the recently released World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Report of 2010 to 2011, which ranks South Africa number 137th out of 139 countries when it comes to the quality of mathematics and science education, and ranks South Africa 125th in terms of the quality of primary school education.

(4) acknowledges their right to participate fully in all issues concerning their present, future and wellbeing, as well as the rights of freedom of religion, association and freedom from all forms of oppression.

(2) determines whether any remedial action is required to improve the perceptions of foreigners who may be considering South Africa as a destination, but have had their confidence in the country dented as a result of the strike.

(3) supports the recommendations of the Fifth Tibet Work Forum to improve the lives of the Tibetan people, especially in rural areas which are economically marginalised, by directly involving Tibetans in development programmes.

(1) debates whether Eskom, which is unable to meet the energy demands of the country, is justified in supplying electricity to corporate businesses outside the borders of our country at prices far below those which obtain in respect of South African companies; and

(1) notes that in 2002 the United Nations General Assembly officially declared September 21 as the permanent date for the International Day of Peace ("Peace Day") and thereby the UN devoted itself to worldwide peace and encouraged all of mankind to work in co-operation for this goal;

Ms A VAN WYK (ANC): Speaker, the ANC welcomes the release of the national crime statistics for the past fiscal year by the Minister of Police, Nathi Mthethwa, signifying a tremendous decline in the murder rate for that period. Murder decreased by 8,6% from 1 April 2009 to 31 March 2010.

There has been a noticeable decline in crime in other categories. Crimes such as car hijacking, attempted murder, aggravated robberies, street robberies, cash-in-transit heists and bank robberies all showed a decrease.

Whilst there may have been increases in crime at nonresidential premises, we are further gratified to note that in almost all major business sectors there has been a significant decrease in robberies.

We also acknowledge the role played by our communities by creating a favourable environment for our police to execute their responsibilities. These successes were not going to be possible if our communities were not part of our crime-fighting strategy. Together we can do more. [Applause.]

Mrs S V KALYAN (DA): Speaker, 2 September 2010 marked the 50th anniversary of Tibetan democratic institutions in exile, following the flight of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and 80 000 refugees from Tibet. Since then, Tibetans have set up democratic foundations for their institutions, including a draft constitution of Tibet and the charter of Tibetans in exile.

The DA applauds His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan parliament for having reformed the Tibetan political system by implementing democratic institutions in exile and providing social services in health, education and welfare, thus improving the livelihoods of the Tibetans in exile. We commend foreign governments who have received His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and call upon the South African government to grant the Dalai Lama a visa to visit South Africa at a time of his choosing.

Mr M E GEORGE (Cope): Speaker, Parliament is kept informed about what is going on in the government through the media, never through Ministers who are constitutionally bound to provide this House with reports. We learned that government purchased a new home for Gen Cele, after reading what Gen Cele had to say about his procurement style. The question uppermost in our minds is whether Gen Cele is busy bullying the Department of Public Works and his own department to get his way.

Mr J J MAAKE (ANC): Hon Speaker, the ANC welcomes the launch of the new transport system, the National Rolling Enforcement Plan, the NREP. The campaign will be effective from 1 October 2010 until the end of October 2011. October, which is Transport Month, will be used by the department to raise driving standards by tightening the screws on driving schools and testing centres.

The new transport campaign will see at least a million vehicles stopped and checked every month, and aims to reduce the number of road fatalities across the country. The plan was informed by the Fatal Crash Report and the Offence Survey Results for 2009.

The Department of Transport has committed itself to ensuring that the plan is supported by a clearly targeted strategy and well-defined objectives. According to the Minister of Transport, the strategy will be based on the scientific analysis of statistics relating to causes of death and problem areas in all the provinces. The campaign will be carried out in partnership with the SA Broadcasting Corporation.

The ANC-led government supports the National Rolling Enforcement Plan and encourages all South Africans to give their support and commitment also, because together we can make a difference to the high offence and fatality rates. I thank you. [Applause.]

Mr M E GEORGE (Cope): Speaker, this government clearly does not want to operate in a transparent manner. The Congress of SA Trade Unions, Cosatu, says that South Africa under the ANC has become a predator state.

This government has been pleading poverty, saying that the envelope is not only empty but that it is broken. On the other hand, it shows that it is flush with cash to indulge the General in whatever he wishes. That is how banana republics are run. I thank you. [Applause.]

China will not change its ways in Africa until it changes its ways in China. China will not change its ways in China, until it rights its wrongs in Tibet. Tibet has become a turning point in history. History will recall how a group of peaceful monks pursued a decades-long struggle, exclusively through the method of nonviolence.

The Rome Convention on Tibet received reports of evidence of extensive atrocities in Tibet. We heard of the desire of many to abandon nonviolence to embrace an armed struggle. By granting Tibet the limited and reasonable autonomy it seeks, China will bequeath to the world a legacy of a successful nonviolent struggle, which will undoubtedly inform how the conflict of the present and the future may be resolved.

Conversely, the failure of the Tibetan cause may discredit nonviolence forever. We must turn the Tibetan issue into a new unifying cause, which can again bring together democrats from across the world, as happened with the worldwide rejection of apartheid.

This battle may move forward because of mankind, and enable China to become the great international partner and leader, which we all sincerely hope it may rise to be, for its own sake and that of mankind. If we fail, Africa will be amongst the most adversely affected. Thank you, Mr Speaker. [Applause.]

[Dr C P MULDER (FF Plus): Hon Speaker, earlier this month the International Network of Parliamentarians on Tibet appealed to the Chinese government to negotiate in good faith with the Dalai Lama and the Central Tibetan administration on self-determination.

In a country with a linguistic diversity spanning 11 official languages, it is essential that our learners are able to access languages other than their mother tongue. With more than 2,8 million pupils taking isiZulu as a language subject at school, the dictionary will help pupils and teachers to keep up with the changes in the language.

South Africa is a multilingual country, and besides the 11 officially recognised languages, scores of other languages - African, European, Asian and more - are spoken here as the country lies at the crossroads of Southern Africa. The ANC has raised and will continue to raise and lobby around issues of multilingualism, linguistic diversity, linguistic integration, linguistic equity and language rights. Together we can protect and promote our linguistic diversity. I thank you. [Applause.]

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