E Molewa: Response to debate on State of the Province Address

18 February 2009

Honourable Deputy Speaker of the Provincial Legislature
Colleagues in the Executive Council
Honourable members of the provincial legislature
The Director-General and Deputy Director-General of our different provincial
departments
Members of the public here present.
As we met last week Friday to open the last session of the democratic
legislature, we pronounced that even as we conclude the business of the third
democratic government “the vision lives on”. We pronounced as we did because
growing out of experience we know where we come from and where we want to go.
We very well understand the challenges faced by our country and have gained
better experience how to move forward in addressing the task of building a
better live for all our people. Hence we continue to commit ourselves to build
a truly democratic, non-sexist, non-racial, peaceful and prosperous South
Africa. We have also acknowledged that there are still challenges we are
facing, there is still some distance we need to travel and we believe that we
are on course.

Honourable deputy speaker let me profoundly thank all those members who have
contributed to the debate on the state of our province. A special word of
thanks goes to all members who have gone beyond listening to the address but
went further to research and contextualised some of deliver record. The
Honourable Chief Whip and Honourable Tselapedi aptly spelled out our departure
points and actual baselines as well as up to date delivery and its positive
impact on the people during yesterday’s debate. They have proven that indeed
they are solid founders of our government policies. Their knowledge of our
policy frameworks will certainly enhance the oversight work that this august
house is tasked to perform.

Land redistribution and agriculture

Honourable Gerber spoke of the importance of ensuring the right balance
between land redistribution, land use and increasing our productive capacity.
We do indeed agree with Honourable Gerber. What he said is exactly and largely
the intention of our policy drives on land reform. We are making a point and an
observation that our country is currently a net import of food. This important
point is made in the ruling party manifesto as well.

We therefore need to transform our economic footprint as a net importer of
food products to a net exporter of food products, and this we can achieve
through working effectively and productively on our land. It means that we must
ensure that no land lies fallow. Therefore, the assistance and continued
support to all our farmers and in particular the small and emerging farmers in
this regard becomes an endeavour we never have to postpone. We will intensify
this effort in order to get maximum utilisation of all farming land.

This goes along with the entire program of rural development. It is for this
reason that our government will implement the policy of a holistic rural
development. The second face of Expanded Public Works program implementation is
a direct response to rural development policy. Through this program, we will
look at upgrading of roads and other forms of infrastructure in rural
areas.
Once again we welcome the fact that Honourable Member Gerber has raised this
matter. We simultaneously make a call that our commercial and emerging farmers
should take this important matter forward in real implementation.

Honourable deputy speaker we have recorded some achievements and have spelt
them out in the state of the province address delivered from this podium last
week. We still have challenges as we go further in our journey to a better
society. These challenges will only be met if all of us resolve to work
together in concert. Therefore, we must really encourage all the farmers, black
and white, to work together for the common good of our country. We commit the
government of the people to work together with all who want to put their
shoulder to the wheel of change.

Second economy matters

Honourable deputy speaker, it is indeed true that we had, referring to page
fourteen (14) of our State of Province Address (SOPA), we spoke widely of our
efforts to build local economies and to continuously support our Small Medium
and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs). We share the view of Honourable Mahlakeng
Mahlakeng and this august house that more can and should be done. We want to
acknowledge as Honourable Mahlakeng has put it, that SMMEs can create a lot of
jobs. We are consistently working towards achieving this goal, through the
Department of Economic Development and Tourism, other key departments like
Public Works, Agriculture Conservation and Environment as well as other key
partners and stakeholders. We have finalised the provincial approach and
strategy on local economic development, which will be implemented also within
the context of Regional Industrial Development and revival of smaller towns.
The MEC for Economic Development will elaborate on this matter further. The
Local Economic Development (LED) task is a key deliverable in our local
government strategic agenda and thus remains in the radar screen for monitoring
and continuous focus.

Poverty alleviation

Honourable Mahlakeng also raised the critical issue of poverty alleviation.
Once again we agree with the sentiments raised. We must indeed prioritise the
very poor areas like Mazista, Sonop, Willowpark and many of our farming areas.
The overall objective of our antipoverty, household surveys and campaign is to
enable us to work with our communities to eradicate poverty or deprivation that
some of our citizens still experience. We will ensure that in these communities
and households, change agents in families and communities are identified, and
working with and through them our people are taken out of the fierce cycle of
poverty.

FFC formula and equitable share to the North West province

Honourable deputy speaker, our consistent attempts to convince the National
Treasury of all the matters correctly raised in this august house by the
Honourable Mahlakeng, have been on our list of critical issues to be
consistently engaged with the relevant structures and the Honourable Minister
of Finance. We have made inputs to the Financial and Fiscal Commission (FFC)
and also met them for further motivation during one of our Makgotla. We will
continue to do so at every opportune moment we get. Indeed, as we have alluded
to during SOPA last Friday and as the MEC for Finance will indicate tomorrow in
the overall provincial budget speech, we have been affected by severe budget
reduction due to cross boundary adjustments and lately by the reduced revenue
collection. If we don’t move with speed to readjust some of our expenditure
line items to allow spending on real developmental programs, this may constrain
us and defeat the purpose of developing the province to the best of our ability
and to its optimum.

Building safer communities

Honourable deputy speaker, Honourable Members raised the challenge of crime
in our society. We acknowledge that a lot must be done to fight and eradicate
this problem. Our strategy to revamp our criminal justice system speaks
directly to this challenge. It is indeed important that we work together with
our people on all issues including in fighting crime and corruption. If our
people are mobilised and vigilant, my neighbourhood on a farm will be able to
speedily engage the security forces when a break in happens like it happened at
Hon Maloyi’s private residence. Police will and must act swiftly. Our courts
will and must process cases speedily. We are confident that all the measures
included in the newly revamped criminal justice system will contribute in crime
reduction.

Honourable deputy speaker, we must also never let the self-defeating
argument that we would have at any stage of development arrive at a point where
there is absolutism in adjustment and strengthening of policy. What I mean by
this, Honourable members is that we will always strive for formulation of
watertight policies, and where we realise loopholes, we will always work hard
to close them, ahead of criminals. It therefore means that all of us in this
chamber, in the villages, townships and cities of our province and country,
have to be on high alert to identify any loophole that might be there in our
criminal justice system. We will win this fight and be successful through
continued partnership between the police, community policing forums and the
business community.” Our vision will by so doing continue to live on.

Building a strong public service

Honourable speaker the issue of “cronyism” as raised by Honourable Chris
Hatting is premised and based on wobbly grounds and the myth that this
government has developed a policy called “jobs for pals”. This is a fallacy.
Our clear policy is “affirmative action”. We know that the Freedom Front agrees
with us on this policy even though some other newly formed parties completely
miss the point. This policy has worked for the Afrikaner Community which was to
be dominated by the British.

So honourable deputy speaker, we do not subscribe to “jobs for pals”, as
Honourable Hatting refers to, but rather to affirmative action. Our affirmative
action policy does not say only the previously disadvantaged will be appointed.
We are always inclusive and representative of the demographics of our province
and country. That’s what makes us different. We therefore agree with Honourable
Members Tselapedi and Africa.

We will continue to ensure that we appoint relevant people to drive relevant
policy positions of this government as they currently do. We will however not
shy away from ensuring that we appoint people who were for a very long time
deprived by the system of apartheid to serve their country. We strongly believe
that those who qualify as they always do must be appointed.

As Honourable Hatting would know, the Constitution of the country dictates
that there should be a professional and efficient public service based on
democratic values and principles. The Constitution further provides for the
Public Service Commission which is charged among other things with the
responsibility to investigate, monitor and evaluate the personnel practices in
the Public Service.
We are still confirming our commitment to building a strong Public service and
also restate that together with the Department of Public Service and
Administration (DPSA), relevant policies and tools like “The competency
assessment policies and tools” for managers in the public service are developed
and implemented.

This is precisely intended to enable us to strengthen our recruitment and
retention initiatives within our public service. We are also proud to say that
we are, as stated in the previous year SOPA, still the leaders in reporting
various legislative requirements related to Staff matters through the Public
Service Commission. We have consistently evaluated staff, tested senior
managers for competency and have consistently been acknowledged and praised by
the Public Service Commission (PSC) in this regard.

We would encourage all of our people, including Honourable Hatting, to
report all of the cases which might in their view work against these profound
principles laid out by the Constitution of the Republic to this Organ of State
as clearly identified in chapter nine and ten of our Constitution. We have to
unapologetically, implement and re-emphasise the value of all policies in the
Public sector that speaks to the cause of building a better leadership core in
all spheres of government.

Building a strong local government

The SOPA goes in details to outline the successes we have achieved we have
made. The successes we have made at local level in relation to delivery of
services like provision of water, sanitation, electricity, houses etc, as
alluded to in the SOPA and further by Honourable Members like Honourable Maloyi
in this august house yesterday, have been delivered at a municipal level and
mainly by Municipalities supported by and also working with the province and
national government. When we say there are still challenges within our
municipalities, let us therefore not be misunderstood to mean that there is
absolute non functionality at municipal level. We can and must do better at
that level so that we attend to the many vexing questions and issues at that
level. We need more capacity, more attention to people issues and increased
pace of delivery.

The five year strategic local government agenda enables us to ensure that we
continuously support the local sphere for an effective services deliver program
and to make local government work better.

Honourable deputy speaker, as government we work with official statistics
released. On the matter of economic growth indicators what has been released by
Statistics South Africa is until 2006. We have achieved growth of 4,9 percent
in 2006, 4,3 percent in 2007 and projected growth for 2008 stands at 3,9
percent. We believe that this is very positive a development towards attaining
the target of 6,6 percent by 2014. If this is negative Honourable Hatting, then
it means we don’t live in the same world.

Economic meltdown

Honourable deputy speaker, we acknowledged the depressing downturn of the
economy in the last months and we as a government has never denied that this
phenomenon has never affected our people. Honourable Hatting should not attempt
to sensationalise the lives of the affected people, through cheap politics, and
by referring to my report as a joke. I want to believe that Honourable
Tselapedi has also dealt with this matter to the satisfaction of this house and
that of Honourable Hatting. The effects of the economic meltdown will be felt
in future and far below and we will still endeavour to cushion these effects
for the good of our people, as we promised them a better life.

Thank you for this opportunity to respond and for the lively debates. We
look forward to a good year and election period. Once again we echo the words
of our President when he said that as all political parties must ensure that we
have successful elections, free of intimidation and allow our people to once
again express their desire in the party and the government to lead them.

I thank you

Issued by: Office of the Premier, North West Provincial Government
18 February 2009