On disruptions of services in floods affected areas in KZN
Honourable Chairperson,
The recent floods and heavy rains in the provinces of KwaZulu-Natal and some parts of the Eastern Cape, as well as parts of the North-West, have indeed brought untold misery and suffering. We have witnessed severe damage and destruction of houses, property, infrastructure, loss of homes, personal possessions, as well as unprecedented loss of lives and livelihoods, with the devastation felt most acutely in KwaZulu-Natal province.
Once again, we would like to express our deepest condolences to all the families and relatives of the people who have lost their lives due to this natural disaster and tragic calamity.
Our thoughts and prayers are also with all the families whose members are still not accounted for. We remain hopeful that continued recovery and rescue efforts will help us find closure in this regard.
In responding to the damage that has been brought about by the devastating floods, on 18 April 2022, the President declared a National State of Disaster as an effective response by all spheres of government to this disaster. In the main, this is to enable government to urgently coordinate and deploy all necessary resources to affected areas as part of its rapid response interventions.
In terms of the National State of Disaster, the primary responsibility to coordinate and manage the disaster is assigned to the national sphere of government, working closely with provincial governments and municipalities of the affected areas. This enables the mobilisation of resources, capabilities and technical expertise in providing relief, recovery and rehabilitation to affected communities.
In this regard, the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, through the National Disaster Management Centre, is coordinating response and recovery measures by the relevant organs of state and stakeholders.
The Organs of State across all spheres of government, have also activated contingency arrangements in line with their respective mandates, and integrated institutional arrangements to deal with the disaster.
As part of an integrated response to this disaster, government has developed a National Integrated Flood Response and Recovery Plan that outlines the multi-sectoral response and recovery efforts to be implemented by all stakeholders in affected communities.
Through this Plan, government has adopted a three-pronged approach to the disaster response and recovery, which is summarised as follows:
Phase 1: Immediate humanitarian relief, to ensure that all affected persons are safe and that their basic needs are met;
Phase 2: Stabilisation and recovery, which includes rehousing people who have lost homes and restoring provision of services; and
Phase 3: Reconstruction and rehabilitation, with a focus on “Building Back Better”. In line with this approach, government activated a Joint Response Tactical Team comprising of search and rescue specialists from all first responders across public, private and volunteer organisations, in order to spearhead the search and rescue operations as well as provide humanitarian relief to communities affected by this disaster in KwaZulu-Natal province.
The team is based in Virginia Airport, and is supported by the South African Police Service Air Wing, and the South African National Defence Force with a variety of resources including aircrafts; engineers; as well as water bunkers and tankers to support the provision of basic services to the affected areas.
As part of the rapid response interventions, the National Disaster Management Centre reported that, as of 30 April 2022, 8 096 people in KwaZulu-Natal were being accommodated in 98 shelters.
Government, with the support of the business sector, non-governmental organisations, civil society and communities, continues to implement interventions, including the provision of food and essential materials such as blankets, school uniforms, chronic medication, and psycho-social support services.
Progress reports are regularly received from affected provinces and national sector departments, to help improve the coordination of interventions.
Honourable Chairperson,
We must, however, acknowledge that much needs to be done in order to return the situation to normality. Communities like Tongaat and the surrounding areas are still facing water challenges flowing from the collapse of the water plant supplying the community, which current assessments indicates might take up to six months to resolve.
In this regard, a Water and Sanitation War Room has been set-up by the Department of Water and Sanitation in eThekwini Municipality, which seeks to find alternative provision of water for affected communities and social facilities like hospitals and schools. We applaud the intervention by the South African National Defence Force which has been providing the community of Tongaat with water.
Honourable Chairperson,
Government is conducting continuous technical assessments of costs to determine the extent of damage in affected areas that will determine medium to long-term interventions.
Furthermore, to fast track the implementation of response and recovery interventions, the National Treasury has issued guidelines to the affected Provinces and Municipalities on budget reprioritisation and reallocation of existing conditional grants in line with the Public Finance Management Act.
This will enable the National Treasury and the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs to finance shortfalls that are currently being experienced by Organs of State, given the extent and magnitude of the impact of the damage, in order to bring back normality, and restore the delivery of services to the affected communities.
The government, as led by the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs is in the process of finalising a comprehensive report with a specific description of interventions, estimated costs and timeframes. Clearly, this exercise has been made more arduous by the severity and magnitude of the devastating floods.
Honourable Chairperson,
In conclusion, we would like to express our gratitude and appreciation to all our partners including individuals, businesses, non-governmental organisations and development partners who have stepped up to collaborate with government in assisting our affected communities.
It is in working together that we can recover from this situation and continue with our rebuilding efforts.
Thank you very much.
On the Service Delivery Agreement between Maluti-a-Phofung Municipality and Eskom
Honourable Chairperson,
When we responded to the Parliamentary Question on Maluti-a-Phofung Local Municipality on 15 June 2021, we indicated that processes were underway to finalise the Service Delivery Agreement between the Municipality and Eskom.
We further stated that such an agreement would include modalities for collection of revenue, as directed on 8 June 2021 by the Court.
This view was based on an understanding that the agreement would result in a sustainable resolution of the municipality’s outstanding and escalating debt, which was having a negative impact on the reliable provision of water, sanitation and other basic services.
However, that court order lapsed on 22 June 2021 due to some terms and conditions of the Distribution Agency Agreement not being agreed upon and finalised by the two parties. Further to this, the local government elections also impacted on the smooth finalisation of the activities linked to the agreement including putting into effect the Court Order.
To this end, the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs has advised that the two parties are now preparing to go back to court to adjudicate on the matter, and for the court to grant the final order in order to bring finality to the dispute. This means that as far as the Eskom Distribution Agency Agreement is concerned, this is still subject to court processes.
Notwithstanding the court processes, the newly elected leadership in the municipality has acknowledged the debt owed to Eskom, and has equally expressed its commitment to servicing the current electricity account.
This demonstrates the political will by the municipal leadership to find mechanisms to reduce Maluti-a-Phofung Local Municipality’s debt, and ensure that Eskom is paid for its services thus ensuring uninterrupted supply of electricity to the municipality.
This commitment is evinced by a joint statement on 22 April 2022, wherein Eskom and Maluti-a-Phofung Local Municipality announced a breakthrough in this longstanding impasse to a smooth delivery of electricity in the area. In terms of this development, the parties have agreed that:
- Eskom will install protection equipment on Maluti-a-Phofung Local Municipality’s substations so that they are able to isolate faults and conduct repairs;
- The Municipality will switch off all its substations so that Eskom can switch back power without the risk of tripping. The municipality will then manage how to bring back power to its customers supply dependent on the risk posed by overloading;
- Eskom will change the billing date from the 15th to the 28th of each month to assist the Municipality with additional time for revenue collection and to meet its current bill payment; and
- The Municipality will pay its current account for the next 6 months, and thereafter engage Eskom on the payment of their arrear debt. Thereafter, the two parties will reopen the active partnering discussions.
It is our understanding that some of these areas of agreement have already been met by Maluti-a-Phofung Local Municipality. This is a good sign towards finding a lasting solution towards the provision of sustainable services to the people.
Thank you very much.
On stimulating rural and township economies
Honourable Chairperson,
Government understands the negative impact of inefficient business processes and regulatory barriers on business investment and activity.
To overcome these challenges, the Presidency has prioritised the coordination of government measures on the ease of doing of business in South Africa.
As communicated by the President earlier this week at the Africa Mining Indaba, these regulatory and administrative efforts anchor our economic recovery and reconstruction efforts.
In this regard, a Red Tape Reduction Office is being established in the Private Office of the President, as was announced by the President in the 2022 State of the Nation Address.
This work augments initiatives that are already underway through Operation Vulindlela, which is focused on resolving regulatory reform blockages in network industries, speeding up the issuing of mining and water licences, and environment authorisation.
This Office will deal with policy and regulatory matters that are coordinated at national government level, and also focus on the resolution of provincial and local functions, in partnership with the Presidential Coordinating Council.
Currently, ongoing efforts within government are focused on resolving the following impediments to business investment in township and rural economies:
- Inefficient delivery of basic services by municipalities;
- Poor customer relationship management systems in municipalities;
- Inadequate municipal policies, by-laws, and regulations;
- Inefficient Supply Chain Management Processes across government;
- Lengthy land development processes and their turnaround time;
- Lengthy building plan approval processes and their turnaround time; and
- Poor management of informal traders by municipalities.
In resolving these impediments, the focus is on establishing standardised regulations across all spheres of government for emerging businesses, in an attempt to enhance economic growth and create employment.
Whilst all our efforts are directed at resolving these issues, there is already significant work that has been undertaken to reduce red-tape and promote the ease of doing business.
Part of these efforts, include championing of Sub-National Doing Business Reforms by the National Treasury and the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, which tracks progress in metropolitan municipalities across four regulatory areas. These address issues of construction permits, getting electricity, registering property and enforcing contracts.
The initiative is being implemented through the City Support Programme, to inspire better regulatory practices, improve the experiences of small businesses, and to encourage entrepreneurship. Government is supported by the World Bank Group, the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs and the United Kingdom Prosperity Fund in this initiative.
Indeed, we have found that there are good practices in South Africa comparable to other developed countries. Of course, there is potential for improvement through the emulation of good practices where we may be lacking.
Since the start of the Sub-National Doing Business Reforms initiative a number of key reforms have been achieved, which have benefited SMMEs irrespective of their location. These include the following:
- The launch of Biz Portal, which is a new integrated digital platform for company registration, to ensure smooth and seamless business registration.
- Simplifying construction permits through automation and the circulation internally of Site Development Plans for stamps by the Land Use Management department within all metropolitan municipalities.
- Reducing the number of procedures, time and cost for SMMEs to obtain permanent electricity connection and supply, and to improve the reliability of supply, transparency of tariffs and the price of electricity.
- Registration of property has been made more transparent by publishing the list of documents required in conveyancing on the new deeds website and less costly by reducing the transfer tax.
- Payment of taxes has been made easier by decreasing audit turnaround times through improved risk rules by the South African Revenue Services. These reforms have reduced the time taken for business process by 30 hours and have also led to an improvement in transparency.
We are confident that the coordination of all ongoing efforts by the Red Tape Reduction Office in the Presidency, will fast-track the revitalisation of rural and township enterprises by streamlining regulatory processes, thereby reducing the cost of doing business.
Honourable members, this will ultimately transform these areas from being labour and consumption reserves, into thriving productive investment hubs.
Thank you very much.
On Ministers responding to Parliamentary questions
Honourable Chairperson,
We have in the past responded to this question in both Houses of Parliament, wherein as the Executive, we reaffirmed our commitment to fulfil our constitutional obligation of accountability to Parliament.
The Constitution stipulates that Cabinet members are accountable collectively and individually to Parliament for the exercise of their powers, and the performance of their functions. To give effect to this, Parliament developed its own mechanisms to monitor outstanding responses to Parliamentary Questions by Members of the Executive.
The Speaker of the National Assembly further proposed new mechanisms to monitor outstanding responses to Parliamentary Questions by Members of the Executive, which were adopted in August 2021, and effected as amendment to the rules. Similarly, we have used the same mechanisms to monitor responses to questions from the National Council of Provinces.
For our part, the Leader of Government Business in Parliament has taken the necessary steps according to the Rules of Parliament to ensure Executive accountability to Parliament. At every Cabinet meeting, we present a report on parliamentary matters including scheduled appearance by Ministers through their various clusters, to brief and account to Parliament.
As part of this report, the status of all outstanding responses to questions for written reply in both the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces is presented.
Honourable Chairperson,
We do write to Members of the Executive requesting them to prioritise responding to unanswered written questions within the stipulated timeframes. Where applicable, Members of the Executive with more than ten outstanding responses are expected to provide reasons for not responding within stipulated time frames, and to further outline remedial actions to identified shortfalls.
Furthermore, the Office of the Leader of Government Business in Parliament, conducts an analysis of selected responses to ensure their accuracy and relevance. Through these efforts, we monitor that the Executive complies with the Rules of Parliament in the execution of their responsibilities to ensure transparency and accountability to Parliament.
We do this not only to satisfy the obligation of accountability to Parliament, but equally, to deepen public trust in our institutions and the functioning of the state in line with democratic ethos as entrenched in our Constitution.
We wish to reiterate that the majority of Members of the Executive do make every effort to ensure that they comply with these rules. However, in instances where Members have not fully complied, such reasons must be communicated procedurally to the Presiding Officers. Records will show that there is discernible improvement in this regard.
We appeal to Honourable Members, especially of the NCOP, that in instances where questions should be directed to provincial legislatures, we should try to do so as this ensures that accountability is sought through applicable, pointed and relevant forums. This would shorten the turnaround time for submission of replies and the quality thereof.
As the Executive, we reiterate our commitment to our constitutional obligations to Parliament including supporting appropriate accountability mechanisms.
Thank you very much.
On attending to sewer spillages in Sol Plaatjie Local Municipality
Honourable Chairperson,
Our response last month stands that we will monitor and provide support to the Premier of the Northern Cape Province in addressing the situation of sewer spillages in Sol Plaatje Local Municipality, as we do elsewhere in other similar cases.
As we outlined in our written response to the Honourable Member, action is being undertaken to fix sewer spillage affecting the Platfontein community.
In this regard, the Provincial Executive Council of the Northern Cape Province has established an Inter-Departmental Committee that must identify the main causes of sewer spillages in Platfontein, assess the extent of the damage, and submit a costed plan with recommendations on how the identified challenges will be resolved.
The Department of Water and Sanitation is also working closely with the Province on efforts to resolve sewer spillages in Platfontein, and to ensure that economic activities are not disrupted.
To this end, the Province has advised that bulk water pipes from Riverton to Kimberly are experiencing severe leaks, which have contributed to the obstruction of R31 road, and access to the surrounding areas.
The Sol Plaatje Local Municipality has since carried out maintenance of all major water leaks and improving turnaround time for reported and observed water leaks.
The Sol Plaaijie Local Municipality has since announced a water shutdown so as to conduct much-needed repairs on the bulk water infrastructure. During this shutdown, new equipment will be installed to curb contamination of drinking water and further spillages. This operation is intended to improve water production efficiency, and maintain acceptable quality of water supply. In order to avert future spillages and damage to infrastructure, the municipality has committed to ensuring that:
- Regular inspections on water and sanitation infrastructure is conducted. This will assist in quick response to pipe bursts and major water leaks that may have a negative impact on the R31 Bridge;
- Conduct the refurbishment and reinforcement of the Thlageng Dam;
- Upgrading of water and sanitation infrastructure to minimise incidents of water leaks, pipe bursts, sewage spillages, and sewer failures.
Furthermore, the Department of Water and Sanitation has assisted the Sol Plaatje Local Municipality with repairs of the Gogga Sewer Pump-Station which has significantly reduced the volume of sewer spillages in the area, as well as repairs to the Carters Ridge Sewer Pump-Station that is still in progress.
As far as the maintenance of R31 road is concerned, the Province has advised that the Provincial Department of Roads and Public Works has begun upgrading this road to ensure that there are no further disruptions to economic activity in area. It is anticipated that on completion, this intervention will provide a permanent solution to this challenge.
As the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Water and Sanitation, we are satisfied with the progress reported, and we commit to continue with monitoring this work to ensure access to water and sanitation service by residents of Platfontein.
Thank you very much.
On correcting design defects at newly-built power stations
Honourable Chairperson,
From the onset, we must admit that Kusile and Medupi power stations have not achieved the desired levels of performance and reliability. This is due to a combination of operational, plant designs and maintenance inefficiencies.
In order to establish for ourselves the progress being made in correcting the identified challenges, which in the main, involve design defects of the power plant, as the Political Task Team on Eskom, we undertook an oversight visit to Kusile Power Station in May 2021.
We have stressed to the management of Eskom our stance, that the defects identified at Medupi and Kusile Power Stations must be corrected expeditiously to avoid further project delays and cost escalations.
We can report that Eskom is making progress in developing and implementing effective technical solutions to the major plant defects at Medupi and Kusile Power Stations, in line with the Plant Defect Correction Plan.
As part of implementing this plan, the major design modifications at all units at Medupi have resulted in a substantial improvement in the availability and reliability of the commissioned units at the power station.
These units now consistently achieve design output, with the exception of unit 4, which suffered a generator failure resulting in a prolonged outage. There are however, long-term modifications to the milling plant that will still need to be carried out when maintenance outages are scheduled.
Similar modifications have been carried out at Kusile units 1 and 2, with unit 3 currently on a planned outage for design defect correction.
The timeframe for the completion of boiler plant defects solutions is October 2023 and corrections to the milling plant will be completed after December 2027, depending on the outage availability of units.
Honourable Chairperson,
In addition, the following principles have been built into the processes of correcting design defects in Kusile and Medupi Power Stations to ensure sustainability of these efforts:
- All defects are dealt with in accordance with the contractual conditions;
- The liable contractors are being held to account, within the provisions of the contract to correct the new plant design deficiencies at the contractors’ cost, while commercial and contractual issues are resolved through negotiation.
- Eskom has also reached an agreement with the boiler contractor in terms of which the total boiler defect correction costs will initially be split on a 50 percent-share basis between Eskom and the boiler contractor at both Medupi and Kusile. Once this is completed, the liable parties will be responsible for the defect correction costs.
- In order to ensure good governance, and compliance with Eskom’s commercial and procurement processes, Eskom is utilising its legal team to re-draft contracts, and to recover costs from liable contractors.
Honourable Chairperson
We take this opportunity to commend the parliamentary oversight processes and work undertaken by SCOPA, the Portfolio Committee on Public Enterprises, and the NCOP Select Committee on Public Enterprises and Communication, to keep Eskom in check, thus ensuring it delivers on its mandate.
The recent SCOPA visits to Medupi and Kusile Power Stations complement the work of the Political Task Team on Eskom, and ensure that we collectively make Eskom work for the people of South Africa and the economy respectively.
We remain concerned that Eskom may have somewhat inadequately addressed SCOPA’s recommendations after the 2019 oversight visit, more specifically, the continued shift in terms of the projected completion dates of the Medupi and Kusile projects.
In the main, the inability of Eskom to address SCOPA’s recommendations on Kusile and Medupi Power Stations, and the shift in completion dates, was impacted by the implementation of the Covid-19 Risk Adjusted Strategy.
All of this resulted in interruptions to construction, the supply of technical parts, which ultimately affected maintenance work, and meeting the completion dates. With regard to other governance and administrative recommendations, progress is being made to ensure that systems of accountability are enhanced.
Going forward, the Political Task Team on Eskom will continue to monitor the implementation of SCOPA’s recommendations by Eskom in order to demonstrate the entity’s commitment to operational effectiveness, fiscal prudence, and delivery on the mandate of the Power Utility.
Thank you very much.
Date:
Thursday, May 12, 2022 - 16:30
Tags:
.png)
.png)
.png)
