Honourable Speaker 

Quite frankly, we in the Official Opposition are tired of this government's doublespeak about the role of traditional leaders in governance in KwaZulu Natal. On the surface, the provincial government pays lip service to the importance of amakhosi as stake holders in delivering services to troubled rural communities. In reality, amakhosi, who are represented by the provincial House of Traditional Leaders, continue to have their hands tied because of the government's failure to recognise the House as a legitimate public entity in terms of the PFMA.  

Instead of a credible move to finally allocate the House of Traditional Leaders the level of state funding it deserves, the provincial government launched another futile attack on its chairperson, Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi. We in the Official Opposition contend that the sole purpose of the provincial government's recent resolution to at last legitimise the full-time office of the Chairperson of the House of Traditional Leaders in KwaZulu Natal is to compromise the incumbent.

The resolution announced in this House out of the blue last month is the government's first response to the Prince's correspondence spanning past two years. As is the relevant MEC's custom, the resolution was not consulted with the House of Traditional Leaders prior to the announcement. Let me remind this House that the provincial government's first attempt to liquidate Prince Buthelezi through a democratic process backfired when the Prince was overwhelmingly elected Chairperson of the House of Traditional Leaders in a democratic poll. Needless to say, the current attempt to unseat him will prove just as futile.

The House of Traditional Leaders is a worthy partner in our efforts to develop KwaZulu Natal and South Africa. Most recently it proved its worth when it dispatched a number of amakhosi to Gauteng to urge calm in the communities afflicted by xenophobic attacks. It is a pity this government views the House essentially as an obstacle to its pseudo-liberal agenda.

Honourable Speaker, let us be clear about one thing when it comes to Ithala - another concern of the Official Opposition that keeps re-emerging on an annual basis from SCOPA resolutions. The modern day Ithala is a far cry from its noble legacy dating back to the erstwhile KwaZulu Government. In theory, Ithala remains a public-funded entity that falls under the control of the KwaZulu-Natal Economic Development Department.  

The IFP is concerned that the Department of Economic Development may be failing to monitor and evaluate the impact of the Ithala development projects on the ground and utilise the results of monitoring and evaluation to guide its subsequent initiatives. In short, - in order to qualify for an Ithala loan, a project needs to be economically viable with the prospect of creating jobs. 

The most recent example of Ithala's dubious management is the loan of R87-million given to Dolphin Whispers - a demonstrably troubled construction company.   A provincial newspaper reported lately that a plush development at the Point Waterfront in Durban was on the verge of collapse because of problems with this very company. 

Moreover, the loan to Dolphin Whispers amounts to more than five times the maximum amount that the institution is allowed to lend. New Ithala boss, Ike Nxedlana, who took office on April 1, told this House during a recent finance committee meeting that he had only received information on the transaction the previous day. How convenient! We are naturally interested to know how long the new management will take to part with the old sleazy practices. 

Honourable Speaker, KwaZulu Natal has the second-highest number of public servants - after Gauteng - who had wrongfully acquired RDP housing subsidies. Two weeks ago, the Official Opposition welcomed the fines for 26 public servants, most of them teachers and nurses, involved in one of the ongoing housing scams. The fines were meted out by the Pietermaritzburg regional court, albeit in rather modest figures - between R2 000 and R5 000.

It is questionable whether such minor fines will serve as a deterrent to other dishonest public servants. Another concern is the sheer number of the civil servants, who earned too much to qualify for houses: as many as 31 000 being probed countrywide for the same scam. The Official Opposition contends that the capacity of the relevant managers as well as the anti-corruption measures within the department concerned must be questioned and re-examined.

I thank you.

Contact: Dr Lionel Mtshali, 083 256 4902