National Health Insurance (NHI) public hearings in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) got off to a bad start in Hopewell on Friday last week as the ANC turned what was supposed to be a consultative public process into a party rally.
The conduct of provincial Health portfolio committee Chairperson, Nomakiki Majola, laid bare the ANC’s intolerance for arguments against the bill. It also demonstrated an alarming disrespect for citizens’ public participation rights.
Those who attempted to present their views on the bill’s failings were subjected to a screeching tirade about how they should present their submission, and instructed to state if they are “in or out”.
This was met with much mirth and rapturous applause by the majority in the audience, bedecked in ANC colours. The Chairperson’s shocking conduct was, however, not applied to speakers in ANC regalia or those who spoke in support of the bill.
KZN’s Taliban-led ANC faction is clearly in full campaign mode and content to trample on our constitution in the process. What took place in Hopewell last week was an abuse of power and a violation of the personal rights of individuals to be heard.
The ANC’s “in or out” ideology is a clear signal that it does not accept democratic principles and processes. Tolerance, respect and unifying conduct are core values on which a successful future should be built.
The NHI Bill was recently rammed through parliament by the ANC, in a desperate rush to have it ready as a campaign weapon for next year’s general election. Two other bills have followed a similar trajectory, namely the Expropriation without Compensation (EWC) – a property theft bill – and the Employment Equity Amendment Act (EEAA) – an unfair racial quota bill.
All three serve the same sinister motive of driving a racial wedge in the hope that this division will manifest itself at the polls next year. The strategy has worked in the past and evidently the ANC think it will work again.
For the ANC, which has systematically crippled our economy, looted the public purse and junked our infrastructure, winning at the polls trumps building national unity.
The DA will take up the matter of the Chairpersons conduct with KZN Legislature Speaker, Nontembeko Boyce. We will also consider the options of lodging a case with the Public Protector and the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC).
Our citizens have a right to be heard and treated in a respectful manner.