President Jacob Zuma today, 6 February 2015, hosted the first meeting of the Presidential Interfaith Working Group in Pretoria, where they agreed to structure a programme of action for the interface with religious leaders.
The President and the Interfaith Leaders agreed on the paramount importance of the meeting and further agreed to meet regularly, given the many societal challenges facing the country and the role of religious leaders in re-instilling values of respect for human dignity, respect for the Constitution and all institutions of South African society.
The Interfaith Working Group meeting discussed issues of common concern between government and the moral leaders of society, raising sharply the unacceptable rise in incidents of women and child abuse, drugs and substance abuse, rising levels of crime, violent unrest and the destruction of property that have been evident in the country in the past few weeks.
Religious leaders undertook to work together with government, especially law enforcement authorities to restore normalcy in the communities that were experiencing a wave of unrest and disaffection.
President Zuma thanked the faith based sector for their continued role in the development of the South African society, bringing together people and instilling important values of respect, caring, compassion and selflessness. The President committed government to working together with religious leaders for development and prosperity for all.
The Minister in the Presidency for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, Minister Jeff Radebe gave the meeting an update on the National Development Plan, Medium-Term Strategic Framework, the recent Cabinet Lekgotla as well as preparations for the State of the Nation Address and Official Opening of Parliament on 12 February 2015.
The meeting further discussed its own operations and agreed to structure a concrete programme of action for this important interface with religious leaders that would allow for robust engagement, consultation and counsel in the common goal of building a united, non-sexist, non-racial and prosperous society.
Enquiries:
Mac Maharaj
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E-mail: macmaharaj@icloud.com
