GOOD Statement by Peter de Villiers
GOOD Member of the Western Cape Provincial Parliament
25 May 2023
Note to editor: This was the maiden speech delivered by GOOD’s Member of the Western Cape Provincial Parliament, Mr Peter De Villiers, today on the issue of securing South Africa’s status in terms of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA).
Honourable Speaker…
To prepare for today, I scanned the internet to get up to speed with all the news headlines about our beloved Western Cape.
What I found was a province that seems unhappy with just being a province… A province that wants to play in the world cup of global politics… arrest Russian President Putin… and directly negotiate deals with the US.
A province more invested in its anti-ANC position than improving the lives of the masses.
Honourable members…
This does raise a question.
The question isn’t about whether we support Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. We don’t.
Or whether we don’t believe in the benefits of securing South Africa’s status in terms of the US African Growth and Opportunity Act. We do.
The question is: on what should we focus?
Take AGOA: It is a country-to-country incentive that the US offers to certain African nations, and is of massive significance to our fruit and wine export industries in the region.
The Western Cape doesn’t have the power to sign its own deal with the US, but it does have the power to positively change conditions for struggling workers in the agricultural sector.
It has the power to demand that a portion of the AGOA benefits, actually benefit those who produce the fruit.
Our region is considered among the most unequal in the world. Yet our regional government is more focused on being seen as a global player. Who then is watching out for our people?
Honourable Speaker…
It’s simple in rugby. We have national and local competitions. The Stormers can’t play in the World Cup.
Understanding in which league the Western Cape sees itself playing, will better-equip me to account to my constituency and contribute constructively to the next debate of this house.
Media Enquiries:
Peter De Villiers, GOOD Member of Western Cape Provincial Parliament
Cell: 079 116 8957
Email: devilliers.pt@gmail.com
Janke Tolmay, GOOD Media Manager
Cell: 073 367 1223
Email: janke@forgood.org.za