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SPEECH BY THE DEPUTY PRESIDENT, MR JACOB ZUMA, WELCOMING ADDRESS TO THE PARLIAMENTARY CORRESPONDENTS BREAKFAST HELD AT TUYNHUIS, 18 November 1999.
The Office of the Deputy President plans to hold these sessions at least once every parliamentary session where journalists, the Deputy President and his staff will be able to interact in an informal setting and answer questions on some of the more pressing issues that come up during the Session.
TUYNHUIS,CAPE TOWN - 18 NOVEMBER 1999
Good morning Ladies and Gentlemen,
Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules to meet with me this morning. I am truly honoured by your presence.
It has long been my wish to meet with you in an informal setting such as this one to discuss, enjoy ourselves and hopefully get to know one another a little better. My intention is, also, to put credence to the notion of government's accessibility and, hopefully, to engage and be engaged by some of you on matters of national interest.
On this last day of the current parliamentary session I would like us to reflect on the past five months and give ourselves a pat on the back for a job well done. Let me begin by complementing all of you for the comprehensive manner in which you have kept the public well informed on the work of government since the beginning of this new term.
I have no doubt that my colleagues will agree with me that, on the whole, you have done a commendable job. You have given praise where it is due and been diligent in criticising where you thought we could improve. We truly appreciate this type of constructive engagement and I urge you all to continue in this vein over the rest of this term of government.
Ladies and gentlemen, I am hopeful that in future we will continue to meet like this in an informal setting and on a more regular basis.
I invite you now to feel free to interact with all of us and I hope that at the end of this meeting we will all feel that we have moved a step closer to building a bridge that will ensure an easier accessibility to each other. I hope that we will have moved closer to better understanding the role that we each have to play in making our country a better place for all.
Bon Apetit!
Issued by the Office of the Presidency