Co-operative Governance Minister Sicelo Shiceka probably upset quite a few of his fellow ANC members – especially those who enjoy the perks of office associated with provincial government - when he questioned the relevance of the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) as well as the present constitutional arrangement for provincial government. He said there should be no “holy cows” when discussing the future of provinces and the bodies associated with provinces.
A Cape Argus report says while intended to represent the nine provinces’ interests in the national legislature, the NCOP is widely regarded as the ‘Cinderella’ house. Shiceka said it needed to be reviewed. He also questioned the provincial system, arguing that provincial legislature members were unable to effectively hold government departments to account because of their limited numbers.
The NCOP has not been a great success. As the second house of the national Parliament, it is supposed to represent the interest of provinces in the national law making process. Hence it was envisaged that the NCOP would play a pivotal role in the passing of laws by the national Parliament – making sure that impractical laws that will be impossible to implement properly in provinces are never passed. But for several reasons this has not happened.
The NCOP is not a democratically elected body, but each province nominates a delegation of 10 members to serve in the 90 member NCOP. Only 6 of the 10 delegates representing each province are permanently in Cape Town (if they are not driving up and down to their so called “constituencies”, costing the tax payer millions of Rands). The other four are members of the provincial legislature and can be nominated by each provincial legislature from time to time.
This means that for all intents and purposes the 4 temporary delegates of each province play little role in the work of the NCOP and that the body doing the work is very small (54 members). The NCOP permanent delegates therefore find it hard to fulfil their lawmaking and oversight roles. Even the diligent members are overstretched.
Another problem is that parties nominate members to serve on the NCOP after the national election. This means that positions on the NCOP are dished out after all the other important positions in national and provincial parliaments have been filled. The poor loyal party hacks who are still without a job after the positions in the National Assembly and the nine provincial legislatures have been filled are then often deployed to the NCOP. This means that in general the quality of the members of the NCOP is not impressive. Don’t expect any Einsteins among members of the NCOP.
A third problem is that each provincial delegation to the NCOP is supposed to get a mandate from its provincial legislature on how to engage with a piece of national legislation that will affect the provinces. But because party discipline is so strict in our system, this is often a mere formality as each party representative automatically follows the party line. If Luthuli House or Helen Zille says “jump”, you just ask: “how high”.
Moreover, the provincial legislatures often get little time to decide what their position on a draft Bill might be and, as we know from several Constitutional Court cases, often fail to engage sufficiently with the issues that might affect the lives of ordinary people before giving a mandate to the provincial delegation on how to deal with a Bill before the NCOP.
This means the NCOP is not really fulfilling its function as envisaged by the drafters of the Constitution. Although some of its members are hard working and although they sometimes do engage seriously with legislation, the distinct voice and perspective of each province is lost.
But as is the case with provinces (with their Premiers and MEC’s, and accompanying blue light brigades and R1 million cars), it is going to be difficult to abolish the NCOP because there are serious vested interests in the existing system. Both in terms of status and money, many people have a lot to lose if the provinces and the NCOP are abolished. Members of the NCOP, members of Provincial Legislatures and especially Premiers and MECs will not be happy to hear that merely for the sake of efficiency and sound principle they might be out of a rather cushy job.
So, I for one will be rather surprised if the plans now being flighted by some in the ANC to consolidate or abolish provinces and to scrap the NCOP ever come to fruition. In politics, when principles of good governance (however one wish to define that concept) clash with self-interest and political expediency, principles of good governance has very little chance of coming out victorious.
I propose that Ch 4 of the Constitution be combined with Chapter 12 of the Constitution and that the NCOP be transformed into a consociational, ethnically representative chamber.
I further propose a tax strike until this is done.
Why do we even need parliament?
Speaker lays down law
Boycotting portfolio committee ordered back to work on defence bill
National Assembly Speaker Max Sisulu has ordered the defence portfolio committee to resume work immediately on a bill they boycotted because his sister, Defence Minister Lindiwe Sisulu, has been reluctant to provide them with crucial reports.
http://www.timeslive.co.za/local/article643502.ece/Speaker-lays-down-law
The Travelgate scandal continues to haunt parliament, with the legislature now seeking to recover the remaining R12.6-million owed by MPs and travel agencies that defrauded it by abusing travel vouchers.
http://www.timeslive.co.za/Politics/article641598.ece/Travelgate–parliament-seeks-money-from-MPs
Cele lied, say his generals
Brass who questioned dodgy property deals were quickly let go, they say
Sep 5, 2010 12:00 AM | By STEPHAN HOFSTATTER and MZILIKAZI WA AFRIKA
Police generals hit back at national commissioner Bheki Cele yesterday after he linked them to corrupt procurement deals in parliament.
http://www.timeslive.co.za/sundaytimes/article641584.ece/Cele-lied-say-his-generals
Zuma’s ministers ‘go AWOL’
http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-africa/zuma_s_ministers_go_awol_1_679699
I have always questioned the relevance of the NCOP. In its recent and history , im yet to find any meaningful contribution to any legislation that comes before it.
I propose that the electoral system for provincial legislatures be changed from proportional to constituency based. For practical reasons one can even say the demarcation of election districts correspond to municipal boundaries, with each local municipal area having 1 rep, and each district also 1. Metro’s, the 3rd municipal type, can have 2. These members are voted for directly in “first past the post” procedure.
Such a system will hopefully ensure that provincial funds have a fair geographic distribution. MPLs can then be held accountable by their constituencies about the extent and quality of most govt services they interact with on a daily basis in their area. Unfortunately, such a system does have its faults, e.g. a metro MPL representing over half-million people, while the Karoo MPL represent maybe 50,000. However, I believe it will be more effective (and efficient?) than our current system, i.e. MPLs will have a direct stake in ensuring that each provincial dept is active in their area addressing the needs of the constituency.
It will hopefully also create a better system for prov. legislatures to hold the provincial administration / leadership to account. I.e. with the premier (and his/her cabinet) of each province still elected as per the current system (from the party that gains the most votes in that province), MPLs who are selected by the branches in their municipalities, are somewhat independent from the pronvicial party office.
http://www.dispatch.co.za/article.aspx?id=431324
If you thought rent boycotts were over.
http://www.dispatch.co.za/article.aspx?id=431308
Gwebecimele says:
September 6, 2010 at 14:39 pm
Eish!
And the expectation is that ordinary workers must accept government saying that it does not have money to pay decent wages.
Or that ordinary people should be disciplined and responsible.
It’s damn outrageous.
Prof de Vos, could you (perhaps in another article) enlighten me about the relationship between the NCOP and the National Assembly? Does all legislation have to be passed by both houses of Parliament, or does the NCOP have oversight over legislation related to the provinces only? And if the latter, who decides which legislation pertains to the provinces? Can the NCOP in any way “block” or “overturn” legislation passed by the National Assembly?
@ Brett
“I propose that . . .the NCOP be transformed into a consociational, ethnically representative chamber.”
Brett, I can only agree. The history of Africa teaches, if nothing else, the importance of ethnic differentiation. I would be happy to represent South Africa’s small but significant Slovenian minority.
Yes, and we can all see how well pretending we do not need to make to make provision for different ethnic groups in the legislatures has worked, can’t we?
Taxation without representation!
Quite besides the fact that making provision only for black traditional leaders in the constitutional framework makes a mockery of the ethos of equality in the Constitution….
If the government decides to scrap the provinces that would mean a constitutional amendment, the ANC does not have a 2/3 majority, but AZAPO wants the provinces scrapped so I would guess that would not be that hard to pass. But, here is the interesting bit, the NCOP would need to pass it as well with 2/3 (aka six out of nine) majority, would party discipline be that tight that turkeys would vote for Christmas? Might just be interesting.
Prof, the question really is, what to do with the NCOP? As you’ve said it is not really a big success in its current form, but not sure what other system might be better? perhaps a US/Australian style senate? or heaven forbid an appointed UK/Canadian style House of Lords?
The House of Lords does have its merits. The current coalition agreement in the UK has it that peers are appointed (for life) based on the last election’s proportionality, with a small percentage from non-political affiliation… I would champion this over the ineffectual NCOP we have now.
What do you think of the principle of opening the door to constitutional amendments, George?
Might be difficult to contain.
George Gildenhuys says:
September 6, 2010 at 22:55 pm
Scrapping the NCoP and reducing the number of provinces would probably be one of the better decisions post 1994.
Far too many of our country’s good people are sitting as lame ducks and ja-baasing at parliament.
Clerks can act as rubber stamps – our more abled people ought to be deployed to local government where they can really add value and ensure service delivery.
If the powers that be are wise enough to broaden the competence of effective local government by including local oversight of some of the national competencies it will go a long way (education, policing, health, even aspect of the criminal justice system for example) to ensuring better service delivery and towards creating a better life for all.
Yes, that makes sense!
The ANC is the problem in 8 out of nine provinces, their predeliction for cadre deployment and shifting incompetents between different spheres of government and branches of government as and when they get found out is destroying local government as well as provincial.
So, lets let the ANC be the problem in 4 out of 4 provinces. Same incompetent, corrupt people, same faces, same and different places.
Hey, might work!
Quite aside from the fact that what Maggs is advocating is centralising government while decentralising their functioning.
Brett Nortje says:
September 6, 2010 at 23:12 pm
LOL!
Finally something makes sense to Brett (even if it is pretend).
Always a pleasure to help steer you back onto the straight and narrow, Maggs!
Now go away – I’ve finished playing with my new toy. Now I’m checking out William Kentridge’s awesome graphics on Mango Groove’s ‘another country’.
Reducing the number of provinces may be difficult. That is because section 74(8) requires the assent of the provincial legislature if an amendment deals with only some of the provinces. CHanging the boundaries between provinces will deal onbly with two provinces (usually) and will need the assent of the provincial legislatures in those two provinces. Western Cape Legislatrue is probably not going to agree to that. The question is whether section 74(8) can be scrapped which would allow the National parliament to ignore the Western Cape. If they scrap this section is it really nothing else than an attempt to deal with issues only affecting some provinces and therefore also reuiring assent from all the provincial legislatures? I am nnot sure what the CC would say about such an argument.
Pierre De Vos says:
September 7, 2010 at 8:33 am
Hey Pierre,
It may be that the constitution poses some challenges.
Beyond that, what do the provinces do currently that could not be more effectively done by stronger, beefed up local governments within say three large provinces?
ROTFLMAO@theANC!
http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/Content.aspx?id=120247
RHODA KADALIE: A party at war with itself and its own people
WITH the African National Congress (ANC) national general council fast approaching, the posturing and brinkmanship among the alliance partners is sickening.
Published: 2010/09/07 07:16:33 AM
WITH the African National Congress (ANC) national general council fast approaching, the posturing and brinkmanship among the alliance partners is sickening. Nationalise the mines; tax the super-rich; expropriate farm land; regulate the media — these are the threats emanating from an alliance jockeying for supremacy in a partnership that has lost its leadership and moral compass.
While mining deals are creating a class of super- rich in the ANC, and most recently the Zuma clan, ANC Youth League leader Julius Malema keeps screeching about nationalising the mines and no one shuts him up. Congress of South African Trade Unions leader Zwelinzima Vavi shouts “tax the super- rich” without a hint of irony, when billions of rands in taxpayers’ money are stolen with impunity.
The small tax base is being squeezed out of existence and the ANC’s new land-reform green paper threatens “to limit the size of land that can be privately owned by one person, with government having the right to acquire the ‘excess’ land and leasing it to black South African farmers; that state land may in future never be sold but only leased; and that foreigners buying commercial land … but who do not live on it, may only farm if they have black South African partners and that there should be productive discipline on such land”. Add to this the threats of media control through the Protection of Information Bill and proposed media appeals tribunal and we have the perfect recipe for scaring investors away.
The bigger the structure of the Presidency — with a Ministry of National Planning and a Ministry of Performance Monitoring and Evaluation and an additional Ministry of Economic Planning — the less clarity there is about economic policies for growth and job creation. With an unsustainable 14-million people on social grants, the ANC glibly entrenches its redistribution policy, unable to develop a concomitant growth policy.
The ANC is in an unholy mess, unable to speak with one voice.
While it has created unsustainable inequalities between the rich and the poor, by creating a ruling kleptocracy, it wants to punish those hard-working middle classes through multiple tax regimes. The ANC is a ghost of its former self and its rhetoric of “intensifying the fight against crime and corruption” rings hollow.
Whereas the 2000 national general council document boasted about the ANC’s enduring capacity to renew itself — its capacity for self-criticism, self-reflection and correction; steadfastness to principles, shunning shortcuts and populism; the capacity for managing internal contradictions; the centrality of the people and the belief that the people shall govern — the ANC in 2010 is a far cry from what the Mbeki and Zuma governments set out to do.
It is clear from the ANC’s website that the party is aware of the rot from within. It talks about the “influence and use of money as part of lobbying for organisational positions”. It admits resources are used to organise lobby groups, pay and bribe people and branches to vote for candidates and disrupt meetings. It acknowledges it cannot conduct meetings in an orderly manner — to the extent that the police are often called in to intervene. It is blatant about the lack of internal democracy and that party elections are breeding grounds for factionalism.
Songs, posters and T-shirts that previously united the party are now used to insult and mobilise against each other. All this is attributed to indecisive leadership that has resulted in a “shadow culture and subcultures which co-exist alongside what the movement always stood for. It draws on ANC history and symbolism and, like a parasite, uses the membership, and the very democratic structures and processes of the movement, to its own end.” The effect is: internal democracy, cohesion, discipline, participation and the culture of debate in the movement have all been undermined, fuelling the perception of a movement at war with itself.
The problem with the ANC is that it is not only at war with itself and its alliance partners — it is at war with us, the people of SA.
- Kadalie is a human rights activist.
This is one other perfect example why our constitution needs to be reviewed. The NCOP is a creature established by the constitution and time and i again the NCOP has proven that it is worthless as the article states, it is a job securing entity for politicians.
This thing called experience is a new found requirement. Even Julius and Duduzane Zuma cannot match this rise to the top.
“Mr Hofmeyr was an infant prodigy. He matriculated at the age of 12. When he was 15 he passed his BA in classics. At 16 he obtained a second BA degree and at 17 his MA. He was awarded the coveted Rhodes scholarship and proceeded to Balliol College, Oxford, where he obtained a first in Moderations and a first in Greats.
Returning to SA, he was appointed the first principal of the University of the Witwatersrand at the age of 25 and, subsequent to that, administrator of the Transvaal in 1924. As deputy to Mr Smuts, he was also l eader of the House of Assembly, m inister of m ines and education. For his time he was the great and influential liberal in the Smuts cabinet. He represented the conscience of the nation. He was unequivocally opposed to racial oppression and prejudice. In this regard, in a historic speech made at a graduation ceremony at the University of the Witwatersrand as chancellor in 1946, he warned against the insidious evil of racial prejudice and therefore declared: “I put it more strongly than that — may you be prepared to say with Thomas Jefferson: I have sworn upon the altar of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man. And here in SA the greatest evil of all is the tyranny of prejudice.”
On the NCOP, this is probably an irrelevant gabfest which adds little to the wellbeing of South Africans. What is needed is more autonomy for provinces provided that these can be effectively governed. Herein lies the problem.
I may be misreading you, but in your final paragraph you seem to suggest that resistance to the abolition of provinces equates to political expediency. I disagree strongly.
In my opinion our there is only one hope for growing democracy in this country and reversing the depredations of the ANC. The the DA has to succeed in the Western Cape and create a template for how the other provinces and the country should be governed. The fact that the 8 ANC provinces are governance nightmatres is not sufficient reason to abandon democracy. The problem of poor ANC provincial government is largely a function of cadre deployment ( as pointed out by Brett) and that certainly needs to change.
The bottom line…..the ANC provinces are a disgraceful shambles and this is a problem that needs to be addressed.
Dare I suggest that the abolition of provinces will lead to the escalation of inter tribal hostilities and this could lead to widespread civil strife. Cadre and tribal are easily interchangeable words.
BEFORE
Buffalo City Local Municipality forms part of the Amatole District. It became the first winner of the National Municipal Performance Excellence (Vuna) Awards, a partnership between the Department of Provincial and Local Government (dplg), the South African Local Government Assocation (SALGA), the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) and the National Productivity Institute (NPI), on 5 December 2003. The awards ceremony took place in Gauteng on Local Government Day, also marking the 3rd celebration of the new local government dispensation.
AFTER:
POLITICAL infighting and poor financial management has been blamed for Buffalo City Municipality (BCM) losing a R45 million sponsorship from the European Union (EU).
The EU sponsorship was meant for the Mdantsane Urban Renewal Programme (Murp).
In a council meeting last week it was revealed that in October 2008, Buffalo City had applied to the EU for the money. The application was unsuccessful because the municipality did not comply with EU conditions.
Council documents added that a meeting between BCM and the EU on May 13 this year outlined reasons for the failure to secure money. The EU presented the following reasons:
The municipal financial management has not been satisfactory for the past three financial years;
Poor performance of the municipality in implementing projects in Mdantsane; and
Political and administrative instability within the municipality.
I suggest that the NCOP would function just fine in a system that was not dominated by a single party, and where represtantives were accountable to the electorate rather than the party. The same applies to Parliament, which let’s fact it is also largely dysfunctional. Nobody’s suggesting we abolish Parliament, are they? They are?
Guys, why do we need the NCOP? I am asking this because when there is an introduction of a bill and the members of the NCOP needs to come back to their legislature in order to get a direction on which way to vote, it sounds like that does not happened practically even though on theory it is like that. De Vos said, they get a very limited time to travle up and down to their provincial legislature and therefore, they do not really fulfill their function as sted in the constitution., but lets talk about this a little bit more.
I agree with you Moss, how can there be a reliance of it in a state that is dominated by a single party
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