North West MEC for Local Government and Traditional Affairs Manketsi Tlhape has committed to fast track the upliftment of women employees within the department by up skilling them and ensuring equity.
Manketsi Tlhape made the undertaking when addressing over three hundred employees who ranked from senior managers to cleaners at Lowe (Old Parliament Building) recently, in her endeavor to acquaint herself with the departmental workforce.
“It’s a serious concern that in the senior management structure we have only few women managers and that most of the cleaners in the department remain older women. We need to transform and give women preference to become drivers of our programmes. General cleaners who also constitute majority of cleaners must be up skilled and given lighter positions such as registry or admin positions which do not require specialist skill. Our Human Resource unit must fast track and implement that as soon as possible,” said MEC Tlhape.
MEC Tlhape labeled the employees of the department as a group of battalion that ensures the proper functioning of a service delivery machine. “We are at the driving seat of the development and we are the face of government services and for that we cannot afford to fail. We need to have an improved usage of money as well as better accountability and control systems in place, a situation that will translate into better provision of services.
On the same breath it’s also critical that challenges and concerns raised by ordinary employees such as backlog of appraisals and wellness programme, be addressed as soon as possible. We can’t expect to have a good performance from an unhappy and sick workforce. Mine it’s an open door policy however I encourage all of you to exhaust all available internal channels first,” she said.
Since assuming her position, MEC Tlhape met members of North West House of Traditional Leaders and further visited and met with members of Ruth Segomotsi Mompati and Ngaka Modiri Molema local Houses of Traditional Leadership.
“Traditional leaders have a huge role to play as they remain the key pillars of development and services to our communities. A harmonious relationship between municipalities and traditional authorities is vital in ensuring this, as we are operating within their territories and we need their support going forward,” she said.
She urged all employees to, in the few remaining months of the current government administration, work towards getting municipalities to function better and to fast track services to communities, work together with all traditional leaders in creating viable institutions of traditional leaders and deal with all challenges that might arise.
MEC Tlhape, the first women MEC to lead Local Government and Traditional Affairs Department, said she is aware of the challenges ahead but is looking forward to taking the department to greater heights.
The departmental employees also welcomed Tlhape and pledged their commitment and support to doing their best in turning around the situation. Next in her series of stakeholder engagement is the organised labour within the department and Bojanala Local House of Traditional Leaders.
