19 November 2007
The Executive Council held its fortnightly meeting at Nelspruit in the
Mbombela Local Municipality.
Memorandum on Organisation for Persons with Disabilities
The Executive Council discussed and approved the response report to the
Memorandum submitted to the Premier by the Organisation for Persons with
Disabilities earlier this year. The Memorandum highlighted lack of educational
resources and facilities; few economic and skills development opportunities;
widespread poverty; inadequate access to social grants and recreational
services and marginalisation of persons with disabilities in the employment of
both private and public sectors among other issues mentioned for attention by
the provincial government.
In response to the memorandum, the provincial government did a quick
evaluation of the work that was being done by government departments and
prepared a report that has revealed that government was seized with this
challenge, through a number of initiatives, such as:
* adaptation of government buildings and facilities to facilitate the access
by people with disabilities
* addressing skills and access to economic opportunities through such
initiatives as building a quota for people with disabilities that resulted in
three contractors with disabilities being included in the Department of Public
Works' Sakh'abakhi Project
* the Department of Health and Social Sciences ensures that two percent of all
funded poverty alleviation benefits people with disabilities
* the initiating of New Business Finance Programme that is meant to also assist
young entrepreneurs including people with disabilities by the Department of
Economic Development and Planning
* the Department of Agriculture and Land Administration has employed 149 people
with disabilities out of a total of 2 730 in the Extended Public Works
Programme (EPWP) projects.
The Executive Council welcomed the report, but felt that more still need to
be done in partnership with the various organisations of people with
disabilities in the province.
Concern on service delivery by public servants
The Executive Council discussed at length the rate at which service delivery
is being implemented in the province. In the centre of this was the laxity of
officials with regard to how public servants approach their work. The executive
council felt that stringent controls and performance monitoring and evaluation
must be put in place in order to put this tendency to an end. It must no longer
be business as usual and that henceforth, there must be disciplinary action and
severe measures taken against officials who fail to perform in their respective
duties.
The Delmas diarrhoea outbreak
The Department of Health and Social Services presented a report to the
Executive Council on the status quo at Delmas where as of Monday more than 840
patients had been treated for diarrhoea-related illnesses. The increase in
diarrhoea cases was noticed during the weekly survey starting from the end of
October 2007. A Joint Operational Centre has been established where daily
surveillance reviews are being conducted. All clinics have been alerted of the
outbreak.
Stool samples from all patients presenting with diarrhoea are collected and
analysed. Water samples for microbiological testing has been daily collected
and analysed and have not indicated any abnormalities.
Premier Thabang Makwetla has visited the Delmas Municipality on Thursday, 15
November. He assessed the situation and later on addressed the media on the
issue of the outbreak of diarrhoea and the possible causes of it. He was
accompanied by the MEC for Health and Social Services Mr William Lubisi, MEC
for Local Government and Housing Ms Candith Mashego-Dlamini, MEC for
Agriculture and Land Administration Ms Dina Pule, and MEC for Public Works Mr
Madala Masuku.
The Executive Council resolved that the construction of a purification water
plant and the pipeline linking the Delmas Municipality and Rand Water Board
must be prioritised to ensure that a permanent solution is found to clean
drinking water to the community.
Branding
The Executive Council discussed and approved a presentation of the new brand
positioning of the province. The new logo and payoff line of Mpumalanga
province will officially be launched on 28 November 2007 in Nelspruit.
Mpumalanga Roads Bill, 2007
The Executive Council discussed and approved the publication of the
Mpumalanga Roads Bill, 2007 for public comment. The Bill seeks to provide for
the transformation, restructuring, establishment and control of the Mpumalanga
provincial road network; to develop and implement provincial road policy, norms
and standards; to provide for optimum road safety standards; efficient and cost
effective management of the provincial road network; the maintenance of
provincial road assets and the provision and development of equitable road
access to all communities within the province. The public is hereby called upon
to make their inputs to strengthen the bill before it is presented to the
legislature to be passed into an act.
The Executive Council also discussed and noted the response of the Youth
Commission to a memorandum sent to the Premier by African National Congress
Youth League in June 2007. In relation to the issue of the two economies the
Youth Commission states that it has revamped the National Youth Service and has
lobbied all departments and municipalities to commit themselves to the
programme so that it is used as one of the interventions in the scenario of
addressing the challenge of the two economies.
In relation to the skills development government is rolling out a
learnership programme with effect from February 2005. For instance the
Department of Local Government and Housing has recruited 60 young people into
its programme from 2005. Furthermore the Extended Public Works Programme has
recruited 436 young people through the Department of Public Works.
Contact:
Lebona Mosia
Cell: 082 561 6465
Tel: 013 766 2244
E-mail: lmosia@nel.mpu.gov.za
Issued by: Office of the Premier, Mpumalanga Provincial Government
19 November 2007
