Vote of thanks by the Premier of Limpopo Mr Chupu Mathabatha on the occasion of the Film and Television & New Ventures Creations Skills Programme launch
Programme Director
The Chief Operating Officer of the SABC, Ntate Hlaudi Motsoeneng
Representatives of the SABC in the region
Leadership of the MICT SETA
The Acting Directopr General of our province, Ms Hilda Andriaanse
Our Learners
Ladies and gentlemen
Thank you very much Mr Programme Director for the opportunity to say just a few words of appreciation on behalf of the government of our province.
I am sincerely grateful and wish to thank the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) for this groundbreaking opportunity that is afforded to young people in our province.
I hold no doubt that this is a dream come true and a life changing opportunity for the 50 young people who are with us here today. What you had yesterday as a mere distant dream, is today unfolding a living reality.
I am aware that this reality is born out of both the visionary leadership of the SABC and some strategic partnerships.
In this regard, I also wish to extend my appreciation to the Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals (MICT) Sector Education and Training Authority (SETA), the National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) and the Capricorn College for Further Education and Training (FET).
There is no doubt that going forward we will still require this type of partnership if we are to change the lives of our young people for the better.
The films and television industry is not just about entertainment, it is in actual fact a melting pot of opportunities for a better life.
We are aware that thousands of work opportunities are created in this industry thus reducing the burden of unemployment from our communities.
The recent graduation of a Limpopo based Skeem Saam from a drama series to a soapie has been overwhelmingly welcome by the people of Limpopo. We congratulate the SABC for providing this big stage for local talent.
I am aware that with the recent challenges facing Generations Skeem Saam has been elevated to the converted 20h00 prime slot. I am however afraid that the SABC is likely to be faced a good problem when Generations returns because it will be difficult to replace Skeem Saam.
Programme director,
Earlier this year during my State of the Province Address I congratulated Ms Florence Masebe for her sterling performance in the first Venda movie called Elelwani. This Limpopo born and bred actress had scoped the best actress award at the African Movie Academy in Nigeria last year.
The fact is that there is a lot of talent in this province; it is initiatives such as this that will help us unearth this talent.
To this extend I think that the SABC has done well in providing a stage for our children to play out their talents, however I think we can still do more.
I want to challenge the SABC to consider reducing the weight of foreign content from our television. There some shows that in my view do not worth importing from other countries. We must reserve such a space for locally produced content. This will help us create jobs.
The truth is that when we import we narrow the net of opportunities for our people.
In conclusion Programme Director, I wish to challenge of 50 learners to embrace this opportunity with the knowledge that thousands of other young people have wanted to be part of this programme. This is a one in a life time opportunity.
From you we expect discipline, focus, dedication and hard work. We will be monitoring your progress from time to time.
Once again, thank you very much to the SABC and all role players who have made this day a possibility.
God bless you, I thank you!
