Cabinet fails to pass muster, but some new appointees shine

The Democratic Alliance believes that Cabinet narrowly failed to pass muster in 2008 but performed, on balance, marginally better than last year. In a rating of ministerial performance on a scale of one (1) to ten (10) across all 28 ministries, including the offices of both the President and the Deputy President, the average grade was just under 5 (see full report).

This remains an unsatisfactory score - one which the Democratic Alliance hopes easily to surpass when it becomes the core of an alternative government nationally after the 2014 election. A Cabinet comprising DA Ministers would be responsive and accountable to the electorate at all times; govern fairly and transparently; insist on the highest levels of executive performance; and implement policies designed to create an open, opportunity society for all in which citizens have the right and the means to exercise their freedom, take advantage of their opportunities, and develop their full potential.

It has been a tumultuous year in Cabinet, with the resignation of former President Thabo Mbeki, his Deputy, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, and several senior Ministers.

The caretaker President, Kgalema Motlanthe, has executed his duties commendably thus far, but he stumbled and fell over his first major hurdle on Monday when he announced his decision to fire the suspended National Director of Public Prosecutions, Advocate Vusi Pikoli. Up until that point, President Motlanthe was due to score 8/10 in this year's Cabinet Report Card. Now, he gets a second-rate 6/10 instead.

The President's move to dismiss Pikoli - despite the Ginwala Commission's recommendation that Pikoli should remain in office - smacks of partisanship. The inevitable inference is that he fired Pikoli in order to replace him with someone one who will do the ANC's bidding in respect of the prosecution of Jacob Zuma. The President has failed to give any credible reason for his action, and so we must assume this is the case. Just as (in the absence of any explanation) former President Mbeki appeared determined to protect Police Commissioner Jackie Selebi from prosecution, so President Motlanthe seems determined to protect Zuma. This underscores the point that the DA has repeatedly made: the President should not, on his own, effectively have the power to hire or fire the Public Prosecutor.

Until this point, the President has shown flashes of great promise during his brief spell in the Union Buildings. When I met with him soon after he assumed office, he said he was open to the possibility of an arms deal enquiry. He scotched the idea of a "political solution" to Jacob Zuma's legal woes, maintaining that all people are equal before the law. And he committed himself to the independence of the judiciary and the supremacy of the Constitution.

President Motlanthe has not given into populist pressure to abandon prudent macroeconomic policies, and his statements about the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zimbabwe indicate that he favours a return to a human rights-based foreign policy, although he has prevaricated on tough action against Robert Mugabe, which must count against him strongly. Overall, the balance sheet remains positive, as do some of his new Cabinet appointments.

In fact, two of the Cabinet Report Card's best performers this year are both newcomers to Cabinet, appointed by President Motlanthe after his reshuffle in September. They are the Minister of Health, Barbara Hogan, and the Minister of Public Works, Geoff Doidge, both of whom, along with the Minister of Science and Technology, Mosibudi Mangena, score 8/10. Notably, in previous years, no Cabinet Minister scored higher than 7/10.

Minister Hogan has wasted no time in rejecting Aids denialism, opening up communication links with civil society, and working to restore some sense of order to a department which had lost all coherence.

Minister Doidge did well to withdraw the Built Environment Professions Bill from Parliament after it had already been pushed through by the ANC majority in the National Assembly. His stance on the insidious Expropriation Bill - which was also withdrawn - was commendable, although that Bill seems likely to be re-introduced next year.

On the other hand, some of the new Cabinet appointments were inadvisable. Shifting former Health Minister MantoTshabalala-Msimang to the President's Office, for example, might have stopped her from doing any further damage to the health system, but it jeopardises many important programmes that fall under her ambit, including the Office on the Status on Women, the Office on the Status of Disabled Persons, and the Office on the Rights of the Child.  It is difficult to think of any person less suited to managing these tasks than Dr MantoTshabalala-Msimang. Perhaps her political survival can be explained by the fact that her husband, Mendi Msimang, is a former ANC treasurer, and knows too much about the financial dealings and misdealings of the ruling party.

Of the "old" Cabinet members, the most improved performer was Education Minister Naledi Pandor, who scored 7/10 - up from last year's 5/10. Last year the DA accused her of tough talk but little action. That was not the case this year, and the Minister took some educational bulls by the horns with programmes to address tough problems that were conspicuously ducked by her predecessors - in particular teacher performance, learner discipline and the lack of accountability within the system as a whole. If she is able to follow through with these, a new generation of South African children can expect much improved educational prospects.

Finance Minister Trevor Manuel, whose rumoured resignation saw the Johannesburg Securities Exchange top 40 index to drop by almost 4 percent, continued with his prudent macroeconomic path, despite a public and powerful populist attack on these policies. He scores 7/10.

Several old faces have also been retained for reasons that are difficult to fathom.  The Minster of Communications, Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri and the Minister of Correctional Services, Ngconde Balfour were the worst performers, both scraping 1/10. Minister Matsepe-Casaburri continued to pursue a failed telecommunications policy of "managed liberalisation", while Minister Balfour had his highly competent National Commissioner, Vernie Petersen, redeployed on spurious grounds.

The Minister of Sport and Recreation, Makhenkhesi Stofile, was the biggest dropper from last year: he went down from 7/10 to 3/10 - mostly for tying himself up in knots over the Springbok emblem and for his Department's abortive multimillion rand expo at the Olympic Games.

Overall, this year's Cabinet scored better than last year's Cabinet. This reflects our optimism that those new Ministers who have proved themselves capable in other fields, and who have started off well in their new jobs, will be able to sustain their performance over the next few months. While there are several high scores this year, they remain provisional. We will be in a better position to assess Ministers when their terms come to an end after the next election.

That election will accelerate the realignment and reconfiguration of South African politics, herald the ANC's long-term decline, and consolidate the DA's position as a party of government.

Statement issued by Democratic Alliance leader, Helen Zille, December 10 2008