Mme Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, on the occasion of the building of a house by
celebrities for an indigent beneficiary at Aganang Municipality, Ga-Sebora
Village
5 October 2007
Programme director
The Mayor of Aganang, Manoko Masehela
The Speaker of Aganang Municipality
The Chief Whip and Councillors
SABC programmes manager, Ronnie Makgothokgo
Kgoshi Magandagela Mashashane
Representatives from business
Representatives from Moshate
Members of the media
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen
Thobela
Avuxeni
Le hophi
I feel immensely privileged to be part of this momentous gathering,
celebrating Housing Focus Week. As government, we have resolved that the first
week of October be dubbed Housing Focus Week and therefore, as part of our
constitutional mandate, our focus throughout the Limpopo province must be in
the interest of our indigents and to highlight their plight with a view of
eradicating poverty and underdevelopment.
The Aganang Municipality has identified the indigent beneficiary as Mme
Mokgaetsi Johanna Ntene who is staying with nine people - three boys and six
women - surviving only through the meagre pension grant.
Mme Ntene currently lives in a two-roomed shack with her children and is
unemployed. She is struggling to support the whole family. She cannot afford to
pay school fees for her five children.
The conditions under which Mme Ntene and her family live are uncomfortable.
Therefore, the Department took note of her situation and decided to partner
with the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) and the municipality of
Aganang in building a house for the Ntene family so that they can reclaim their
dignity in this hard-fought democratic dispensation.
On 26 June 1955 in Kliptown, Soweto, near Johannesburg, people from all over
South Africa and the neighbouring states gathered to formulate our country's
blueprint for democracy, the Freedom Charter. The Charter was adopted at the
Congress of the People that was to be the African National Congress policy
document for future democratic South Africa.
It is against this backdrop that we have gathered here to advance the ideals
of the Freedom Charter, which said that "there shall be housing; security and
comfort". Our task as elected representatives is to provide leadership in the
provision of shelter to our people, the poorest and the downtrodden, most of
whom happen to be the black people of our country.
The democratically elected government has adopted a policy known as Breaking
New Ground (BNG) that seeks to integrate our communities and break the
apartheid settlement patterns. We are hard at work to bring our people closer
to economic activities.
The department has identified provincial growth points for the
implementation of the BNG policy. We have purchased strategically located land
in the Ba-Phalaborwa, Lephalale and Polokwane Districts for the implementation
of the BNG policy.
We shall build integrated and sustainable human settlements in these
municipalities in the current financial year, 2007/08, to ensure that our
vision of a truly non-racial and democratic society is realised in our
lifetime.
Programme director
Our partnership with the SABC and the Municipality of Aganang as part of
this Housing Focus Week signals the importance of providing shelter to our
people and the interest in which these partners have in eradicating
homelessness. Government values partnerships aimed at housing the needy and
eradicating poverty.
We are of the view that those who can provide shelter must do so without
having any other expectation for reward because it is in their interest and the
interest of ubuntu that fellow human beings acquire dignity.
It is in the interest of our democratically-elected government to ensure
that every indigent in our province has shelter and a roof over his/her head.
We strive, as government, to ensure that we eradicate homelessness,
unemployment and poverty.
In conclusion we appeal to our communities to participate in the process of
Integrated Development Planning (IDP) so as to ensure that housing programmes
form part of our Municipal IDPs.
Ward committees are there to serve as the mouthpiece of communities. Let us
use them in pursuit of a better life.
I thank you.
Issued by: Department of Local Government and Housing, Limpopo Provincial
Government
5 October 2007
Source: Limpopo Provincial Government (http://www.limpopo.gov.za/)
