National Assembly:   17th September 2009

Honourable Speaker,

There have been numerous debates and discussions about this economic crisis which is overwhelming countries and causing devastation across the globe. The situation in South Africa is no different, while we might not have felt the adverse effects of this crisis as harshly as other countries there is no doubting that it has impacted negatively upon us. Hundreds of thousands of jobs that have been lost while hardly any are being created; people are losing their houses and other assets while many more people will be pushed into poverty. This crisis will also impact on our county's developmental plans. Clearly something has to be done if we are to keep our plans on track.

Our infrastructure, in particular water and electricity, are in desperate need of improvement and projects of this magnitude will cost billions of Rands. The depressed state of the world economy will make it so much more difficult to raise the capital needed to fund such projects but we cannot go without water or electricity so the funds will have to be raised elsewhere, in all likelihood through higher prices that consumers have to pay, again putting extra burden on them. 

The higher electricity prices that Eskom charges are being felt by all South Africans. To make matters worse the increases in prices, and ultimately the cost of living, have not been accompanied by an improvement in service delivery and this is angering South Africans.  The many service delivery strikes in many parts of the country are evidence of this.

This crisis has exposed many weaknesses in our internal systems that need to be strengthened and this should be the staring point in efforts to minimise the impact of this crisis on our plans. Frivolous and unnecessary spending, for example, must not be tolerated and anybody found guilty of such behaviour must be dealt with accordingly. 

Accountability and transparency mechanisms must be improved, while performance monitoring is paramount. While these actions will not raise funds they will save money and cut costs. The consumer needs a break, trying to supplement income through charging consumers more or implementing an additional fuel levy, as was suggested by certain municipalities in KwaZulu Natal recently, are not solutions to our problems. They will also not have a positive impact as long as there is indiscipline in spending.

In conclusion Mister Speaker, while the economic crisis will hamper developmental plans, we must make the best of this disastrous situation and improve upon the areas of weakness that have been exposed by this crisis and find remedies for them.

I thank you.

Contact: Narend Singh, 083 788 5954.