The Presidency wishes to provide the following updates:
Schools
The Presidency has noted weekend reports of untenable conditions in some schools. The SABC reported on poor sanitation and lack of ablution facilities at Maqhingendoda High School in Ulundi, KwaZulu-Natal and the Sunday Times reported on two schools, Nyangelizwe Senior Secondary and Ntapane Junior Secondary schools in Mthatha in the Eastern Cape.
The President has directed the Department of Performance Monitoring and Evaluation in the Presidency to look into the matter and advise him on what is being done to change the situation in the three schools.
Public holidays
The Presidency has noted reports about the recommendations of the Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities, relating to public holidays.
Considering the fact that the recommendations of the Commission may result in the amendment of the Public Holidays Act, 1994, which is administered by the Department of Home Affairs, the recommendations of the Commission were forwarded to the Minister of Home Affairs for further consideration.
Loan request from Zimbabwe
The media has reported on a request from Zimbabwe for a loan reportedly to fund elections. The assistance to Zimbabwe is a Southern African Development Community (SADC) matter. Any such request would need to be channelled through to SADC which would discuss and provide direction on what the region should do to support Zimbabwe.
Protection of State Information Bill
The Presidency has not yet received the Protection of State Information Bill. The President will attend to it when it is referred to the Presidency by Parliament.
National Development Plan
The National Development Plan, developed by the National Planning Commission, originates from a directive in the 2009 ANC election Manifesto, which said the following: “The developmental state will play a central and strategic role in the economy. We will ensure a more effective government; improve the coordination and planning efforts of the developmental state by means of a planning entity to ensure faster change’’.
The said planning entity was established in 2009 in the form of the National Planning Commission in the Presidency. The Presidency, through the Department of Performance Monitoring and Evaluation, has already begun developing a draft Medium Term Strategic Framework (MTSF) for 2014-2019, as the first five-year building block of the National Development Plan. The MTSF will also include key targets from the New Growth Path, the Industrial Policy Action Plan, and the national infrastructure plan. This work will result in the alignment of the Medium Term Strategic Framework, the delivery agreements, sector plans, departmental plans, and municipal Integrated Development Plans to the national plan.
There is already a high level of correlation between the NDP priorities and the current 12 priority outcomes of government, which will make alignment easier. The MTSF will be precise and clear in identifying indicators and targets to be achieved in the period 2014 to 2019.
Work on the MTSF has begun with the aim of submitting a first draft of the 2014-2019 NDP aligned framework to the 2013 July Cabinet Lekgotla. This can then be refined so that it can be submitted to the new Cabinet for approval as soon as possible after the 2014 elections. This is intended to save time and prevent what happened in 2009, where it took over a year for the outcomes and delivery agreements to be finalised. It will also allow for departments to include the targets in the MTSF in their individual 5 year strategic plans, which they will be starting to work on later this year and in early 2014.
The President stated on Saturday in the Freedom Day address that space should be allowed for those who wish to make inputs and improvements to the National Development to do so, in the spirit of the country’s democratic culture and freedom of expression as enshrined in the Constitution.
The fight against crime
President Zuma lauded the work of law enforcement agencies in the combating of crime across the country. In particular, the President congratulated the South African Police Service for foiling a brazen armed robbery at the Emperor’s Palace in Johannesburg. The President applauded especially the manner in which the attempted robbery was handled by law enforcement agencies, which showed good intelligence capability, effective planning and sound execution in a public area that was fraught with potential danger to the public. President Zuma congratulated both the SAPS for sterling work and the public for their cooperation.
Enquiries:
Mac Maharaj
Cell: 079 879 3203
E-mail: macmaharaj@icloud.com
