North West Premier successfully interacts with the members of business forums
North West Premier, Prof Tebogo Job Mokgoro, held a successful and productive session with members of Business Forums from different parts of the Province at the Garona Building on the evening of Tuesday, 29 October 2019.
Premier Mokgoro convened the meeting following reports of various incidents of alleged disruptions of tender briefings and alleged acts of intimidation of government officials by the various Business Forums across the Province.
The meeting, which lasted for about four hours, was attended by the Premier and the Section 100 (1)(b) Administrator in the Office of the Premier, Mr Sibusiso Mpanza, as well as a number of senior government officials and about 30 representatives of the Business Forums.
Even though there was a disagreement on who should be part of the meeting at the beginning in terms of the composition of delegations on both sides; the evening engagement ended well with the following resolutions, that :
- The Premier must encourage the Provincial Government Departments to practice more openness in terms of provincial spending;
- That the Premier must step up the fight against corruption in the Provincial Supply Chain Management system;
- That Business Forums must assist the government on whistle blowing on incidences of corruption that they are aware of;
- That a focused SMME Summit be hosted by the Provincial Government before the end of the financial year; to allow small and emerging business people to share their views and make inputs on how opportunities can be created for them within the applicable laws of the country;
- That young black business people must take advantage of the youth economic empowerment opportunities that are coming to the fore as a result of the formation of the Youth Entrepreneurship Service (YES) in the Office of the Premier.
In conclusion, Premier Mokgoro, on behalf of the North West Provincial Government, and the various Business Forums agreed to work hand in hand with one another to ensure that the Government’s Built Infrastructure projects do benefit the previously marginalized groups in the province; namely youth, women and people with disability.
Premier Mokgoro also encouraged those that are interested in participating in the Built Infrastructure Projects, to enrol into the Contractor Development Programme currently being rolled out by the North West Department of Public Works and Roads aimed at empowering youth, women and people with disabilities.
Premier Mokgoro also urged them to be disciplined and not disrupt tender briefings and refrain from the alleged intimidation of government officials.
For more information:
Vuyisile Ngesi - Spokesperson
Tel: 018 388 4972
Cell: 079 778 1772
Email: vngesi@nwpg.gov.za
