Honourable Mr Speaker
Honourable premier
Colleagues in the executive council
Honourable members of the house
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen and
Fellow South Africans
1. Introduction
There is growing consensus among economists and economic commentators alike that the global economic storm has subsided. World economies, especially emerging economies are showing signs that they have overcome the recession. Indeed, South Africa’s economy is also showing positive signs that it is rapidly emerging out of its first recession in almost two decades, with a projected gross domestic product (GDP) growth of two percent to 2,3 percent in 2010 and 3,9 percent in 2011.
There is an indication that our province is also exiting recession reasonably fast, this is good news considering the fact that our province was hardest hit by the global economic meltdown.
Honourable Speaker and members
The global recession has however demonstrated that the old patterns of growth, income distribution, regulation and governance do not always meet the needs of the world economy. Therefore, the growing weight of China and India in international trade signals a change in world economic balance.
Confirming this assertion, Finance Minister Honourable P Gordhan had this to say in his budget speech: “we operate in a global village where our fortunes are partly dependent on how well we are able to leverage off the global economy. Other countries are not standing still. Brazil, India, China and a host of other middle income countries are actively taking steps to improve their competitiveness, raise their skills levels, and invest in infrastructure and to remove obstacles to growth and employment”.
This, honourable members, signifies immense change and necessitates new policy approaches by developing economies in general, and particularly South Africa, for she must not be left behind. The international economic crisis has seen thousands of people losing jobs over the past two years. In South Africa, employment fell by 870 000 during 2009, raising the jobless rate to 24,3 percent, the highest level in five years.
Young people and the less skilled have been worst affected. While the economy is beginning to recover, employment growth is likely to remain subdued for some time. Our own province has not been spared the scathing, shedding 57 000 jobs between the third quarter of 2008 and third quarter of 2009.
Given this situation, there is general agreement that South Africa requires novel and urgent measures to tackle unemployment and persistent poverty. These measures must include a well focussed strategy to create jobs, promote economic growth, and a more efficient public sector.
We are mentioning these facts to highlight two important things and that is firstly, our sound macroeconomic and fiscal policies as a country have helped us to weather this global economic storm. Secondly, to highlight the enormity of the challenges that still lie ahead, lest we take our eyes off the ball.
Honourable Mr Speaker, our budget and policy determinations today are tabled within the context of these critical global changes.
2. Recapturing our 2009/10 commitments
A mere nine months ago we stood here and committed to do work on the following priority areas:
2.1 Custodianship of immovable assets
Under this focus area, we indicated that we would double our efforts of consolidating a credible asset register, review the disposal policy to be compliant with other pieces of legislation. We are pleased to report that significant milestones have been achieved in this regard, and these include the following:
- 20 unemployed graduates have been appointed to assist in the verification processes and in conducting physical land audits.
- As part of the property rates and taxes project, we have provided a hands-on approach in assisting municipalities to reconcile and invoice or bill on the assets owned by the provincial government. The outcome of this exercise would be a much more enhanced asset registers both for the municipalities and the provincial government.
- We have established a Government-wide Immovable Asset Management (GIAMA) forum which involves all government departments as a platform to collectively contribute towards a credible Asset Register. This Forum is required to provide regular reports to the executive council.
- On the advice of the house, we have now forged a closer working relationship with the Deeds Offices especially in Umtata to assist in ensuring that all the government properties in the former Transkei are fully accounted for.
- The disposal policy has been reviewed and now ready to be taken through the necessary processes including appropriate Cabinet committees.
2.2 Leading transformation and development in the property and construction sectors
Honourable members of the house, as you may be aware that one of the key mandates of the department is to provide strategic leadership to the transformation and development of both the property and construction sector informed and guided by the spirit and content of both the Property and Construction Charters respectively.
There is no doubt members, that these two sectors have been adversely affected by the depressing global crisis I have sketched at the beginning of my speech, as both sectors are generally prone to slump and stagnation during economic recessions. On the construction front, we have made a major breakthrough in forging closer working relationship with key players in the industry, namely; contractors, materials suppliers, consultants, etc.
We convened a Provincial Contractor’s Forum which, as you know, has now become an annual event in the calendar of our department to take stock of the resolutions of the previous conference. Amongst the critical resolution of last year’s conference was to establish a forum where all the associations of contractors interface with the provincial government in between the annual conferences.
The ultimate objective of the department is to provide assistance to these associations that will become a common platform to forge unity and cohesion of emerging contractors as a critical force in the construction industry.
The other major resolution of the conference was to facilitate a dialogue with Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) to deal with some of the challenges facing the emerging contractors which relate to grading and downgrading. I must say honourable members; these are National issues which are currently being dealt within our national MINMEC.
In partnership with CIDB provincial office, we have hosted a CIDB provincial stakeholders’ forum on 12 March 2010 which provided an opportunity to all key stakeholders in the industry to participate in finding lasting solutions to these complex issues facing the industry.
We also convened a Property Summit in December 2009 which was a culmination of regional summits where stakeholders in the industry had a robust engagement with the Department and key policy makers across the industry on the vexing question of how, on one hand, to transform the property sector whilst on the other hand, intensify our efforts of creating a growing and sustainable industry.
Amongst the resolutions adopted by this conference, is that consistent with the principles of Black Economic Empowerment (BEE), there will be no leases either new or renewed that will be facilitated by the department without the involvement of suitable emerging previously disadvantaged property entrepreneurs. Consequently, the department has since revised its lease policy in order to ensure it is compliant with this imperative.
2.3 Upscale job opportunities through Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP)
As the honourable premier indicated in her speech on 19 February 2010 that through the Expanded Public Works Programme, the province has created more than 78 800 job opportunities; this is in excess of the provincial target of 60 000. These have been largely created through the Household Contractor programme which mainly benefits women headed households.
Whilst the EPWP work opportunities are generally criticized for being short-term, the same cannot entirely be said of this programme. These female headed households are engaged in the maintenance of access rural roads where each household is allocated a portion of the road to maintain.
Any member of the household is entitled to come to work if the other member is unable to report for work. In this programme, participants where it is properly structured, are managed and effectively monitored. They can be engaged in meaningful, productive work for two to three days a week for the whole year, and this equals to below or above 100 days of work a year on an ongoing basis.
On the recommendation of the department, the executive council has recently approved a proposal to upscale this programme and others which have a potential for mass job creation, particularly in our rural communities.
2.4 Infrastructure delivery
Our emphasis here has been to position Department of Public Works to play a central role in coordinating infrastructure delivery in the province. Indeed a lot of work has been done; however, we will deal extensively with this issue later in the speech.
2.5 Transfer of the roads function
Honourable Speaker and members, we believe that we are on course with transferring this function back to public work. All teams are functioning well and diligently and we are confident that, come 1 April 2010 the roads component will be ready to be fully integrated to the Department of Public Works.
We also wish to take this opportunity to thank all those who have made this enormous task a reality, particularly the organised labour, that immediately understood the government’s objective of streamlining and synergising the common efforts of ensuring seamless infrastructure delivery in the province.
3 Breathing life into the ‘year of action’
Honourable Speaker
Inspired by the work and the foundation we have laid we are renewing our determination to build on the successes that we have recorded so far. As we do that we will tap into our collective wisdom and experiences yet candid about our weaknesses in our quest to yield better results.
Over the coming medium term expenditure framework (MTEF) we will refocus our energies and resources in order to ensure that we work harder to fulfil our objectives faster. We will thus employ smarter and strategic approaches in tackling the work that still lie ahead of us. That will help us keep the momentum already built on the following areas.
3.1 Infrastructure coordination (creating a nerve centre for infrastructure delivery)
As we indicated in the last financial year that, the executive council had decided that, in the longer term, the Department of Roads and Public
Works will be transformed into the Centre for Public Infrastructure Delivery. This centre will be accountable and responsible for the coordination of planning, procurement and delivery of all infrastructure delivered as part of the provincial mandate.
Such infrastructure includes roads infrastructure, social infrastructure (education, health and social facilities) and provincial government offices and facilities. Our conception is that this approach does not preclude the authority and accountability of the individual provincial line departments to still prioritise projects that make up their capital budgets, but it seeks to centralise the capital programme management process within a single consolidated unit which would be responsible for the horizontal and vertical coordination of implementation (procurement and project management) of all infrastructure projects.
This will not only ensure better integration of infrastructure delivery programmes and initiatives by optimising the resources and capacity at the disposal of the province, but also ensure that government benefits from the cost efficiency and economies of scale. This will ultimately help realise maximum benefit and value of public investment in infrastructure.
Honourable members
A lot of work has already gone into realising this objective. This includes convening sessions with various stakeholders in order to deepen our understanding of this responsibility.
Going forward, the following steps will be taken to realise the full extent of this huge mandate:
Step one: Establish an oversight management steering committee which shall coordinate and oversee the planning and establishment of the Centre for Public Infrastructure Delivery. The committee is convened by the Eastern Cape Department of Roads and Public Works. This will include all infrastructure related departments, national, local municipalities, State entities, and donor funders
Step two: Formulate a strategic framework for the Centre for Public
Infrastructure Delivery; which will set out explicitly the intentions of the centre as well as key objectives and result areas that must be achieved for the Centre to effectively achieve its intent
Step three: Assess existing infrastructure development capacity in the Eastern Cape province. On the basis of the strategic framework formulated, an assessment of the infrastructure institutional capacity of the province will be undertaken. Such an assessment would review the human resource capacities as well as the existing systems and processes that are being used to deliver infrastructure in the province.
In addition, existing support initiatives (such as Infrastructure Delivery Improvement Programme) will also be assessed so that an understanding of their mandates and capacity can be factored into the plans for the Centre.
Step four: Formulate an implementation plan that will set out and scope the phases that will be implemented to give effect to provincial executive decision to establish a Centre for Public Infrastructure Delivery.
In addition, as part of the development of the implementation plan, sector wide procurement strategies will be developed for each sector as well as assessing and securing the benefits of further coordination of these procurement strategies across sectors.
Step five: Introduce a performance management process, which will scope the overall business process for the delivery of provincial infrastructure (including the processes within the client departments) as well as the milestones to be met in establishing the Centre.
Linked to the performance management process should be a system for the collection and processing of data and the ability to produce appropriate and consistent reports to the steering committee as well as other management structures.
In addition to the previous steps, the following will be considered:
- Emulate other best practices:
While noting that some current best practices are being implemented in the province, for example Infrastructure Delivery Improvement Programme (IDIP), other best practices should also be explored and considered in finalising the plans for the Centre for Public Infrastructure Delivery.
- Contract management capacity including implementing agents:
In order to achieve provincial targets, we will also mobilise capacity outside of the provincial government. Consequently the plans for the centre shall include explicit recognition of such additional capacity as well as how it will be mobilised and held accountable for delivery to agreed standards. We are in negotiations with Coega and IDT to formalise our cooperation.
- Pursue required generic skills and human resource capacity:
A key success factor for the Centre will be the quality of human resources it is able to attract and retain. In this regard, a realistic human resource strategy will be adopted, and appropriate measures will be put in place to supplement the centre’s capacity where necessary.
The centre will also support the development of designated generic skills related to public infrastructure in the province (technical, developmental, procurement, etc). This, honourable Speaker, is our roadmap to ground this responsibility. However we will continue with other infrastructure works that have been planned already. Such works include:
3.2 Roads infrastructure provision
The overall thrust of our roads infrastructure strategy for 2010/11 and beyond is twofold. Firstly, to maintain a 60/40 funding split in favour of roads maintenance, and secondly to drive the rural development (80/20) strategy through the inaccessible roads and alternative surfacing programmes.
The Inaccessible and Impassable Roads programme and the Alternative
Surfacing Technologies programme are closely linked. As some of the roads are made accessible, they will also be surfaced so that a more sustainable solution is attained to our vast gravel network. The integration of the two programmes gives effect and content to the department’s strategic objective of surfacing 80percent of the gravel roads in terms of the 80/20 Strategy by year 2030.
Honourable members
The following alternative surfacing projects will be in the design phase: Ngqamakwe to Tsomo River, Centane to Kei Mouth, N6 to Zwartwater, DR 08288 and DR 08033 and DR 08289 Mvezo Great Place and Museum, each with a budget of R1 million.
There are many more Alternative Surfacing projects that will be undergoing construction during 2010/11, these are:
- MR 00605 N9 to Nieu Bethsda divisional Road 08041 Comfimvaba to Lady Frere (eight kilometres class one) on budget of R13 million
- Ngqeleni to Mthatha Mouth: R10.4 million
- Lady Frere to Mkhapuis or Macubeni: R10 million
- DR 0802 and DR 08149 to Magwa Tea Plnatation: R9.1 million
- DR 08313 to Canzibe hospital: R8 million
- Ramatsilos Nek: R8 million
- DR 08017 to Cedarville to Mount Frere: R7.9 million
- Road to Dwesa Nature Reserve (The Haven): R7.3 million
- N6 to Wriggleswaide (Amathole berries): R7 million
- Tarkastad to Kommandodrift: R5.2 million
- Dr08170 to Lutana Clinic: R5.2 million
- N2 to DR 08335 (Collywables: R5 million and
- Katberg Road: R4 million
As part of the Rural Transport Programme the department has identified various roads for upgrades over the next three years. These roads include, but not limited to:
T125 phase one and two: N2 to Tabankulu via Siphetu hospital
T15: phase one, two and three, Mount Frere to R56 and the Wild Coast Meandor is the major project that will be designed next year.
Ugie Langeni (new road) is one of the major roads and phase three has an allocation of R67 million, which will be carried out in the 2010/11 financial year. The Coffee Bay Road will also be rehabilitated during this financial year.
In enhancing our efforts of ensuring better access to school, clinics and hospitals we have established a Rural Bridge programme which will be intensified during this financial year. We will finalise detailed design and commence with construction during this year. The department will also intensify the support and efforts in maintaining the existing Bridges as identified by the road asset management system.
Honourable Mr Speaker
As part of our plans to ensure that the entire wild coast is accessible to promote tourism and other economic activities, we will upgrade the R61 from Port St John’s to Mzamba. This was identified as part of the high impact priority projects and as part of the provincial growth development plan.
The Wild Coast Meander programme which stretches the coastline from Mooiplaas to Tombo near Port St John’s will be intensified during this year.
The feasibility study was extended not only to deal with the meander, but all the collector roads leading towards the coast from the national road N2. To this end the department is working on producing detailed designs of the section of the road from Coffee Bay to Zithulele. This 281 kilometres road is part of our contractor development programme which will be over a period of five years.
This will also be done utilising labour intensive methods of construction to ensure maximum job opportunities along this route during the construction phase. The road will be divided into approximately nine sections of 30 kilometres each and these will be further packaged for different levels of small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs).
We have also been focusing on the R63 as a provincial growth development plan and high impact priority project over the years and during this year; we will pay special attention on the section between Bhisho and Komga Junction to N2. The designs are currently underway and a contractor will commence with phase one of upgrades to the R63, N6 to Bisho.
The R72 tolling strategy social impact study (completed in May 2009) highlighted all the key environmental, social and economic issues in the areas along this road. This study has concluded that the road can be tolled and the impact would be manageable.
As part of the Tolling programme the department will, during this year, continue with the upgrade of the Nanaga to Fonteinskloof section for completion in June 2011 and prelim designs of the Alexandria to Port Alfred section of the road.
Honourable Speaker
The department has recently introduced the route based maintenance contracts for the surfaced road network. This will ensure that surfaced road network condition is improved. The current area wide maintenance contracts are being phased out, this would be the last financial year utilising this approach of maintenance.
The department is currently looking for a more cost effective approach to the maintenance strategy in view of the current funding shortfalls. This would entail more utilisation of our internal capacity. We will be using route based maintenance contractors on key routes during the 2010/11 financial year.
This strategy forms part of our accelerated focus on maintenance and ensuring better road conditions and reaction time to defects. The roads that will benefit from this programme are follows:
- R72 Nanara to East London, Buffalo City area (302 kilometres)
- R102 and R346 Stutterheim to EL via KWT
- R75 PE (N2) to R63 Graff Reinet
- R62 Misgund to Humansdorp
- R63 Western Cape Boundary to N10
- NMB/Sundays River (348 kilometres) and Kouga 218km
- R67 Port Alfred to Queenstown
- R63 to N10 to N2 Komga
- R56 Indwe to Cedarville
- R56 Middleburg to Indwe
- Emalahleni/Sakhisizwe 242 kilometres and Ngcobo, Tsomo, Centani, * Willowvale 187 kilometres
- R61 Port Edward to Port St Johns
- KSD area 32 kilometres
- R58 Free State boundary to Lady Grey
- R58 Lady Grey to Ngcobo
While thriving towards ensuring access to the communities previously deprived through roads infrastructure, it is also pertinent to ensure sufficient and safe road infrastructure for the 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup. This will increase our maintenance intervals on certain roads to ensure that the support is provided to the host city in Nelson Mandela Bay municipality.
In pursuance of this goal, the department identified roads around the metro to upgrade and reseal. The contractors have commenced in January 2010 and will complete in May 2010. The department has developed partnerships with municipalities in support of cooperative governance. Service level agreements (SLAs) have been concluded with Port St John’s, Senqu and KSD municipalities in an effort to assist these municipalities.
Linked to the maintenance of roads is the maintenance of government buildings. In line with the national infrastructure maintenance strategy, we will be launching a process towards the completion of the provincial chapter of the strategy. This process will be anchored by “Operation Sebenza”, a programme to facelift the image of identified small towns through maintenance and renovations of government offices including schools, clinics and fixing potholes etc.
We will do this in partnership with municipalities to which these towns belong. This programme will ensure active utilisation of our in house capacity in the form of artisans, NYS corps, and rural women.
Honourable members would agree with us when we say that the programme to revitalise Bhisho has been talked about a long time ago. We now have resolved to start with the actual work in earnest. Plans and architectural impressions are in place. We believe that this will not only change the image of the seat of government, but also complement the province’s human resource and talent attraction and retention strategy.
3.3 Providing space for provincial governments
It is crystal clear to us, honourable members, that this is one of the complex areas of our work. As we indicated earlier, the short term solutions that we provide are unfortunately not sufficient as the demand for space is growing. Members would recall that we have long made a commitment to provide a long term solution through the construction of government offices by way of a public private partnership funding model in Bhisho and Mount Ayliff.
We wish to inform the house and the public that owing to the combined effects of recession, the construction explosion and other debilitating factors, resulting in the actual construction work through the public private partnership model becoming ludicrously exorbitant, these projects have therefore been delayed.
We have since realised that it would be irresponsible of us to proceed with something that we know would hit hard on the government’s fiscus. To this end, we are in negotiations with development finance institutions in pursuit of other possible funding options. We wish to restate the government’s commitment to continue with building these offices, and more work will be done in the new financial year.
In the meantime, we are continuing with providing accommodation through, primarily, leases. This is the aspect of our work that provides us with a leverage to transform the ownership patterns in the property market.
As we indicated earlier, we are no longer entering into new leases or renewing leases without due consideration to BEE principles; we believe that this is working and we will intensify it going forward. In line with the government’s objective of bringing services to the people, we are assessing the location of all government offices in proximity to the people.
In giving effect to the spirit of this objective we are exploring feasibility of opening government offices in Mdantsane which is the second biggest township in South Africa. It is therefore appropriate that as part of the Urban Renewal programme, government invests in this wonderful township. We are adopting the same approach in the Nelson Mandela Bay metropolitan municipality, while negotiations are advanced with the Lukhanji local municipality.
3.4 Small Town Revitalisation programme
This is the department’s flagship socio-economic and catalytic programme, which is aimed at facilitating economic development of small towns in the province using state owned properties and immovable assets. The programme has been piloted in the Nkonkobe municipality. Having examined the lessons and experiences from this pilot, we will now roll out to other selected towns. The selected towns include Alice, Mt Frere, Tsolo, Mbizana, Port St John’s, Cofimvaba, Engcobo and Peddie.
3.5 Up-scaling Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP)
Honourable members, we feel that we need to restate and refresh the understanding of members and the public of what EPWP is. We feel so because we realise everyday that EPWP is misconstrued and made to be what it is not.
The Expanded Public Works Programme is one of government’s arrays of programmes, aimed at providing poverty and income relief through temporary work for the unemployed to carry out socially useful activities. In the process people are provided with basic life skills. All EPWP programmes the world over, are not meant to create permanent jobs.
In assisting the province meet the 64 593 provincial target, we will strengthen our coordinating capacity in all spheres of government as well as in all departments within the province including state owned entities. We will also increase our efforts to provide technical support in all municipalities and government departments to ensure optimal utilisation of labour intensive methods and thus maximise job creation. Built into this support, will be strong monitoring, reporting and evaluation mechanisms.
In order to optimise the performance of house contractor’s programme we will develop our research and development capacity, to come up with innovative means of diversifying and sustaining the programme.
In implementing the National Youth Service programme, we will build on the work that we have already done. In this regard, we will recruit 500 more young people in the programme. In order to bring some meaning to this programme we will link it with other initiatives currently running in the department. These include the Accelerated Professional and Trade Competencies Development programme and the Contractor Incubator programme. These programmes will be synergised to complement one another in order to get better outputs.
3.6 Corporate support
The main objective of this programme will remain being to give support to the core programmes of the department. Focus will be directed at strengthening the office of the heads of department in order for it to drive and coordinate strategic and flagship programmes and these include establishing a fully functional Special Programmes unit, Small Town
Revitalisation programme, Anti Corruption campaign and other related programmes.
Having appreciated the challenges that municipalities have in the disbursement of Rates and Taxes, we have now established a Municipal Finance unit which will focus on supporting municipalities to accelerate the implementation or disbursement of the rates and taxes grant. This will include accurate billing and other activities in the context of intergovernmental relations.
To strengthen our corporate governance we will continue to implement the Audit Intervention project to fully address the Auditor-General queries.
This will be supported by ensuring that internal audit recommendations are taken seriously and are implemented. This is in support of the clean audit campaign the country is moving towards.
The Risk Management unit is focusing on monitoring the risk registers that have been concluded alongside the strengthening of the fraud prevention strategy. The coming over of the roads function will certainly heighten the exposure of the Roads and Public Works Department and make it a high risk department.
Therefore, strengthening of risk management, fraud prevention, anti corruption strategies and plans will no longer be matters of compliance, but their effectiveness will resonate in every corner and life of every employee in the department.
In stabilising and strengthening the leadership of the organisation, we will complete the filling of all vacant posts at top management level.
3.7 Creating an agile and responsive organisation
Honourable Speaker
Our experience tells us that we will not succeed in all these endeavours if we have a flat and sluggish organisation. In response to the president’s call of creating a faster and smarter government, we will set processes to create an agile and responsive organisation. To do this, we are putting in place systems to create a culture and sense of urgency, swift response, and client or customer oriented organisation.
This we will achieve by improving our turn-around times, creating a highly motivated and dedicated staff. We are also putting in place mechanisms for creating a learning organisation by, among other things, not only organising mentoring and coaching programmes, but also creating an environment for these to work.
We are also in the process of revamping our Customer Care unit. This unit will be key to advancing our customer centric approach we are adopting. These efforts will be complemented by the establishment of the Customer Call Centre which will be launched at the end of July 2010
4. Budget breakdown
At this stage honourable Speaker, we wish to present to the house our budget allocation for the 2010/11 financial year.
Programmes
R’000
- Administration
2009/10 actual: R228,268
2009/10 estimated actual: R221,131
2010/11 voted: R248,631
Percentage difference from last financial year: nine percent
Monetary difference from last financial year: R20,363
- Public Works
2009/10 actual: R722,208
2009/10 estimated actual: R748,918
2010/11 voted: R791,006
Percentage difference from last financial year: 10 percent
Monetary difference from last financial year: R68,798
- Roads
2009/10 actual: R1,719,009
2009/10 estimated actual: R1,712,976
2010/11 voted: R1,663,661
Percentage difference from last financial year: minus three percent
Monetary difference from last financial year: (R55,348)
- Community based programme
2009/10 actual: R539,862
2009/10 estimated actual: R504,803
2010/11 voted: R428,426
Percentage difference from last financial year: minus 21 percent
Monetary difference from last financial year: (R111,436)
- Total
2009/10 actual: R3,209,347
2009/10 estimated actual: R3,187,724
2010/11 voted: R3,131,724
Percentage difference from last financial year: minus two percent
Monetary difference from last financial year: (R77,623)
Madam Speaker, the total allocation to the department for this financial year is R3,131 billion. This represents a decrease of two percent or R77,623 million in our current budget. The decrease is due to the provincial budget top slicing and internal reprioritisation.
Conclusion
Honourable Speaker and members, as we can see, the challenge before us is huge. However, we are confident that we are equal to it. We say this understanding that whilst the task is so enormous, the budget is limited. We are committed to work prudently within our financial means, and call on all our partners to join us in making the Eastern Cape Province a place to live, work and play.
Let me take this opportunity to thank the head of department and his management team for being patient with me when I push them too hard to get things done. They must really understand that sometimes that is the only way to do in order to yield better results.
Let me also thank my family for giving me support and allowing me to stay long hours and days away from home. Lastly, I wish to thank my colleagues in the executive council for their support and invaluable advice. We can only get better.
Source:
Department of Public Works, Eastern Cape Provincial Government
