R 291449Z MAY 09
FM AMCONSUL CAPE TOWN
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 3106
INFO SOUTHERN AF DEVELOPMENT COLLECTIVE
AMEMBASSY ABUJA

UNCLAS CAPE TOWN 000129 
 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SF PGOV
SUBJECT: ZILLE SETS AGENDA, SOUNDS CONCILIATORY TONE, IN 
PROVINCIAL PARLIAMENT OPENING 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: New Western Cape Premier Helen Zille laid 
out an ambitious policy agenda for the province in her May 29 
speech that opened the provincial Parliament, noting that 
poverty alleviation, infrastructural development, and job 
creation will be the Democratic Alliance (DA) government's 
primary goals.  To do so, she said her government would take 
care to work closely with national and municipal governments, 
carefully audit provincial spending to cut waste, make the 
public tender process more transparent, and cut red tape that 
slowed service delivery and hindered private sector 
investment.  Most notably, Zille made several conciliatory 
statements in her speech toward President Jacob Zuma, 
suggesting she hopes to move past the verbal sparring with 
the ANC that has marked her first month in office.  End 
summary. 
 
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AN AMBITIOUS, IF REALISTIC, POLICY AGENDA 
----------------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (U) Speaking to a packed house at the cramped provincial 
Parliament chamber in Cape Town, Zille's hour-long address 
focused mostly on the DA government's key goals for the next 
five years.  Zille emphasized that she did not buy into 
"gimmicks" like assessments after a government's first 100 
days -- the challenges Western Cape faces are too daunting to 
be addressed right away.  While she noted that the province 
is far ahead of many others in terms of economic growth and 
service delivery, the DA government cannot afford to stand 
still.  Because of positive perceptions of Western Cape, 
Zille noted, immigrants were flocking in from other parts of 
the country and the continent, putting strains on the 
province's health and education sectors. 
 
¶3. (U) The Premier noted that a recent provincial government 
legkotla (meeting), the provincial leadership had identified 
job creation, poverty alleviation, and infrastructural 
development as the key challenges for the province, and Zille 
said that her government's policy initiatives would be 
focused primarily on addressing those goals.  Zille then 
elaborated on some of her government's more specific plans: 
 
--Establishing special economic zones for investors, which 
would create jobs and develop skills. 
 
--Encouraging industrial clusters, focused on areas wherein 
Western Cape has competitive advantages.  She cited tourism, 
agriculture, services for the oil and gas industry, and 
information and communication technology as examples of such 
areas. 
 
--Instituting tighter financial management controls to ensure 
that money is spent where it is intended and lowering the 
possibility of corruption. 
 
--Making the tender process more transparent, including 
putting all tender information online. 
 
--Working with municipalities, particularly the Cape Town 
metro, to increase their capacities, particularly in the 
housing arena. 
 
--Demanding that civil servants adequately perform their jobs 
and weeding out poor performers. 
 
--Laying out clear lanes in the road with municipalities and 
national government about which level is responsible for 
which services.  Currently, Zille noted, some issues fall 
through the cracks because it is unclear who should be 
addressing them. 
 
¶4. (U) Zille noted, however, that the ongoing global economic 
crisis will make service delivery challenging in the short to 
medium term.  Already, falling revenue projections mean 
Western Cape will see its national budget allocation cut by 
nearly R900 million (about $110 million) over the next three 
years.  While she said she would fight to ensure Western Cape 
Qyears.  While she said she would fight to ensure Western Cape 
got its fair share of the budget pie, the province was going 
to have to do more with less.  Hence, Zille said that initial 
audits had found more than R400 million (about $50 million) 
in "fat" in the provincial budget, including salaries of 
consultants hired by the previous ANC administration who 
appeared to bring little to the table.  She also noted that 
the private sector had a key development role to play.  While 
noting that her government did not consist of "free market 
fundamentalists," they did recognize that the state cannot 
overreach in a recessionary environment. 
 
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REACHING OUT TO ZUMA, ANC 
------------------------- 
 
¶5. (U) Outside of a few swipes at the missteps of the 
previous, ANC-controlled, provincial government -- as well as 
the controversial transfer of 1000 hectares of provincial 
land to national government just a day before last month's 
election -- Zille's speech was notable for its conciliatory 
language.  Having set off a verbal firestorm earlier this 
month by criticizing President Zuma for continuing to have 
unprotected sex with his wives after having sex with an HIV 
positive woman, Zille stated early on that "Jacob Zuma is the 
President of all South Africans" and deserved to be treated 
with respect.  She also addressed another issue causing mild 
local controversy, her decision to open provincial Parliament 
a week before Zuma opens national Parliament, noting that the 
national Parliament had originally set a May 22 date for its 
opening, and since the provincial budget had to be passed in 
June, delaying the opening would have unnecessarily rushed 
budget debate.  Zille noted that she had personally explained 
this to Zuma and that he understood. 
 
¶6. (U) Zille also took on the notion of Western Cape 
"exceptionalism," noting that she told President Zuma in a 
phone call the previous day that he should look at Western 
Cape as an opportunity, not a threat.  Contrary to popular 
beliefs in ANC circles, Zille said, Western Cape was not 
looking to "secede" from South Africa or become a minority 
enclave.  Rather, the provincial government was looking to 
solve problems for all of its people, and it needs national 
government's support to do so. 
 
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COMMENT 
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¶7. (SBU) Zille's speech seemed very much focused on getting 
beyond the verbal fisticuffs of her first month in office and 
into the dirty work of governance.  Alan Winde, the MEC for 
Finance, Economic Development, and Tourism, told Econoff at a 
lunch following the speech that the provincial government 
understands it cannot go it alone.  The South African 
Constitution vests extensive powers in the national 
government, so a combative relationship with Pretoria will 
not be beneficial to the Western Cape.  While Zille should be 
able to work closely with DA-controlled Cape Town for at 
least the next two years (new Mayor Dan Plato told Econoff 
he's already seen an improvement in the metro's working 
relationship with the province), it remains to be seen how 
"cooperative" the provincial-national government relationship 
will be -- particularly given the possibility of provincial 
amalgamation in the coming years. 
 
 
PATIN