POLITICS

Zuma should have placed competence over cronyism - Lindiwe Mazibuko

DA PL welcomes departure of Dina Pule, but ask why Mthethwa, Shabangu and Joemat-Petterson remain

President Zuma should have put good governance above cronyism 

The DA notes the announcement by President Jacob Zuma of new members of his executive. This should have been an opportunity for the President of the Republic to stamp out poor governance which has been the mainstay of his administration, and replace all poor performing Ministers with competent and dedicated individuals. 

Instead, President Zuma seems determined to keep in the executive Ministers who should have got the sack some time ago.

We are pleased that the Minister of Communications, Dina Pule, after some initial foot-dragging, has been finally removed from the cabinet. The Minister has been found guilty by the Public Protector in her investigation into the ICT Indaba scandal, and is currently under investigation by both Parliament's Ethics Committee and the South African Police Service. 

But this is just the exception. It makes little sense why the Minister of Human Settlements, Tokyo Sexwale should be removed from the cabinet, but the Minister of Police, Nathi Mthethwa, the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Tina Joemat-Peterson and the Minister of Mineral Resources, Susan Shabangu, for example, continue to be considered suitable candidates to serve in the executive.

Minister Joemat-Peterson has been found by the Public Protector to display a "blank cheque attitude" and her conduct regarding hotel expenses and travel was viewed as "improper and unethical." Her portfolio remains in disarray and she has admitted to providing public money to BAWSI just before the commencement of the violent farm-workers strike in the Western Cape.

Minister Nathi Mthethwa has proven himself to be ineffectual,absent at crucial moments, such as the Mido Macia case earlier this year. He should have done the respectable thing and resigned after the Marikana Tragedy. He has presided over an increasingly brutal police service and has failed to take any concrete action to fix this, in a country with unacceptably high violent crime rates. Instead he opts to oppose the Western Cape Community Safety Bill and the Commission of Inquiry into policing in Khayelitsha.

Minister Susan Shabangu has done little to counter the continued decline of the Mining Sector in South Africa. While the Deputy Minister of Police, she made the irresponsible "kill the bastards" comment. In the wake of the Marikana Tragedy the much needed reforms to reverse major job losses have not been introduced, and she instead seems determined to push through with the job-killing Mineral and Petroleum Resources Amendment Bill. With strikes continuing to take place across the sector, and her noted preference for ANC aligned NUM, she is a detriment to stability in the Mining Sector and to job creation in the economy. 

In the DA's shadow cabinet report card, released at the end of last year, the Minister in the Presidency: Performance, Monitoring and Evaluation as well as Administration, Collins Chabane, the Minister of Labour, Mildred Oliphant, the Minister of State Security, Siyabonga Cwele also received the lowest possible score of an ‘F'. 

The reality is that this cabinet reshuffle by President Zuma proves that he is more interested in his political survival than ensuring that good governance is his top priority. This is symbolic of a President who lacks the leadership needed to deliver on his government's promises.

It is for this reason the DA remains determined to move a motion of no confidence in the President, which if successful, will force the resignation of his cabinet. The problem continues to remain at the very top, and Parliament must lead the way in ensuring that this is effectively addressed.

Statement issued by Lindiwe Mazibuko, DA Parliamentary Leader, July 9 2013

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