South African Parliament to allow the voters to vote on below recommendations. GIVE A VOICE TO THE PEOPLE AGAIN.

Let the public do a vote on all the below, also put this to the parliament. 

But I can guarantee you won’t because this goes against your own and creates problem for your salaries. 

As if the public votes these ideas in then parliament can not do anything about it. 

Parliament has failed South Africa, so give the people a chance to vote for their everyday ideas.  

• Make the voting days on weekends. 

• You complain when we don’t all vote but you make these days on workdays when the public is at… you guessed it, their jobs. Make it on a weekend, or even a public holiday. Fix oversee voting as well, as this is just horrible system you have. 

• Put a freeze on all parliament member salaries for next 5 years. 

• Members all get paid high enough not to feel the burden of South Africa, why not put a freeze on your extremely high salary increases and concentrate on reallocating the funds. 

• Put a freeze on all parliament member bonuses for the next 10 years. 

• Members are public servants why should they get bonuses for just doing their job when all SOEs and functions are crippling. 

• Slash parliament members salaries to cap them at R 1.8 million. 

• Slash president salary and cap it at R 2.5 million. 

• Slash the amount of VVIP guards for parliament members from 81 to 1, to just 10 to 1. Government spent 3 Billion on VVIP protection where as public protection was only 1.8 Billion. 

• Reallocate then the other 71 members into the hawks and specialised units in the police force. This would result in (71*400) 28,400 public protectors instead of protecting themselves. That would mean an increase of 15% in police force size. 
• Reducing the VVIP to 10 members per parliament member would mean our cost reduces to 400 Million.
• Saving of R 2.6 Billion. This 2.6 Billion saving can be pushed into the public police force + Job Creation. 
• R 2.6 Billion is almost double the current Police Force budget for the public. 

• Request all farmers to build dams to house at least 6 months water supply for their farm. 

• Half foreign deployment of SANDF and reallocate them to our border 

• Sell ageing and unusable military assets. 

• Sell 116 tanks under the SANDF control and divert money from sale into building borders and training of soldiers. As the SANDF does not use tanks nor due we use them for an active battles or peace keeping missions. This is a cost which we can get rid of. Maintenance of a tank is estimate to be around R200,000 a month (conservative number)(based off US). R 200,000 x 12 = R 2.4 Million a year/tank. South Africa has 195 tanks, this can be cut down to 80, which would result in a cost save of R 116 x R 2.4 Million = R 278.4 Million

• Sell 500 armoured fighting vehicles. Let’s estimate that a armoured vehicle costs around 20,000 a month which equates to R 20,000 *12 = R 440,000 a year/ vehicle.  If we are to sell 500 of those assets cutting our total amount from 2,500 to 2,000 that would be a cost save of 500* R 440,000 = R 220 million a year. 

• Sell 37 trainer aircrafts. Let’s estimate that a training aircraft costs around 8,000 a month which equates to R 8,000 *12 = R 96,000 a year/ aircraft.  If we are to sell 37 of those assets cutting our total amount from 67 to 30 that would be a cost save of 37* R 96,000 = R 3.5 million a year. 

• Total cost saving per year (R 3.5 Million + R 220 Million + R 278 Million) is R 501.5 Million per year. (Not including sale revenue of asset). This saving can either be reallocated within the military to beef up border patrol & create specialised task forces to work with Hawks to tackle crime. Military can also use savings to increase the quality of guardsman. Fix the bases and make bases habitable for the soldiers. 

• Hold ministers who fail to deliver the mandate and their duties personally liable. 

• All Ministers who have allegations against them are to be bared from office without pay until the allegations are investigated. 

• CEO’s and board members in a fully owned SOE should not get golden handshakes for leaving unless they have been with the company for more than 10 years.

• CEO’s and board members in a fully owned SOE should have their salaries capped at R 3 million and increases only given if company gets profit. 

• For example Eskom CEO gets paid R 8.9 Million however Eskom has a profit decline of 89%. 

• Parliament members to not receive any benefits (new car every 120km, DSTV, WIFI, Two houses, Free house upgrades, free flight tickets for family and them (first class) ) members can afford these benefits themselves. 

• Ministers get R 600,000 to spend on a car every year for their PERSONAL transport. If we have 70 ministers x R 600,000 = R 42 Million/year on cars.
• Ministers get free DSTV and WIFI even. If we have 70 ministers x ( 9,708(DSTV) + 6,000 (WIFI) ) = R 1.1 Million
• Ministers are allowed to buy two cars for official use at currently R 1.68 Million each and can be replaced every 120,000 km, they can use these cars for personal use as well. if we have 70 Ministers x ( 1.68 Million x 2) = R 235 Million. 
• Ministers are allowed 30 first class tickets per year, if we take it that they are flying SAA (lets hope) then the cost would be R 10,000 (Cape Town to Pretoria). If we have 70 ministers x 30 x 10,000 = R 21 Million
• Total cost saved per year if take away all the leisure expenses of ministers who earn on average R 3 Million. A saving of R 300 Million (this is a fraction of their benefits). R300 million could be diverted away from the ministers luxuries and into building proper toilets for South Africa rural areas. 

• Departments which can not give a clean audit shall have repercussions bought to the head of departments. 

• Members of parliament if want the state to reimburse during business trips. HAVE TO PROVIDE SLIPS OF PURCHASE, rather than taking random numbers. 

• All travel by parliament members and SAA board members have to be done by SAA airlines. 

• Water infrastructure to be upgraded across South Africa. 

• Remove foreign tax for expats. 

• This hurts SA in the long run with many HNWI leaving the country or financial immigrating. 

• Sell South African Airways. 

• Its a nice to have but it is not necessary nor is it bearing any fruit. This is a black hole which has and continues to suck up billions every year. 

• Privatise Eskom. 

• Government has failed to provide for the country, why not let others in and try. 

• Remove monopoly which Eskom holds on power. 

• Remove BEE

• Conduct lifestyle audits every year on every member of parliament and head of departments. Have private lifestyle auditors audit the auditors to maintain credibility and that no bribes take place. 

Just by simple cost cutting and selling of assets in two sections, Military and Benefits of Minister, we could saving R 3.4 Billion per year. It is shocking how much benefits take up compared to military even. That R 3.4 Billion could go along way if used correctly, sure it is not huge but the people of South Africa do not even realise how much is being wasted every year. For instance, it was a saving of R 2.9 Billion just from reducing the benefits which ministers get and can well afford by themselves. 

Parliament has failed South Africa with their over spending and lack of accountability. For too long this ‘unregulated expenditure’ has happened in the billions and yet not one person in parliament acts against it. Not one person holds those departments accountable. Not once is the publics comments actually ever bought up in parliament. These are simple ideas and changes but they are what MANY South Africans are hoping come out of parliament and yet no one listens to them. It is difficult to listen to the peoples comments when you are in your ivory towers. 

a Concerned South African    Contact the author of the petition