Honourable Speaker and Deputy Speaker
Honourable Premier Mme Hazel Jenkins
Members of the Executive Council
Members of the Provincial Legislature
Lieutenant-General J Basson
All Major-Generals
Veterans of the Movement
Members of MKMVA
Dikgosi
Distinguished guests
Comrades and friends
Ladies and gentleman
Introduction
Tribute to fallen cadres
We pay tribute to our struggle veteran the late Henry “Squire” Makgothi, a former Deputy Secretary-General to the late cde Alfred Nzo. A humble servant of the people a revolutionary, a gallant fighter, a dedicated cadre of the movement, who made a supreme sacrifice for the liberation of our country. We also pay tribute to the late Refilwe Olopeng, who died on Tuesday after a short illness. She was also a selfless servant of the people, who was always willing to go the extra mile just for the good of the community. We will surely miss her contributions in the African National Congress (ANC) Provincial Executive Committee, as well as in the communities she served.
The fundamental aim of our government is to build a society where all law abiding citizens will enjoy dignified and safe lives. However, the acts of criminality including rapes of women and children, house robberies, assault, and other forms of crime, stand in direct opposite of the achievement of this goal. The ruling party recommits itself to the pledge of ensuring that people in South Africa are and feel safe.
In our conviction to root out crime in our society, we will continue to work hard to realise our dream whereby the mere sight of a police officer should signal stress and instill fear to those heartless criminals, while at the same time signifying hope to those who are victims of crime. The National Executive Committee of the African National Congress, under the stewardship of President Jacob Zuma at its 99th Anniversary reaffirmed its stance on one of the priorities it had set for itself in the Election Manifesto of 2009 and that priority is the Fight against Crime and Corruption.
The Northern Cape province has made strides in this priority area, and we are continuing to work hard on this important priority of Government. The African National Congress has also directed in its 99th 8 January statement that the added responsibility to the work of this priority should be the speeding up of the regulations of the Private Security Industry which often has access to more dangerous weaponry than it is necessary. This is a matter that the department will look into and will play a vital role in the development of such regulations in whatever way determined by government.
The Constitution of our country asserts the right of our people to be safe and we dare not fail them on this aspect. We are well on course to ensure that the people of our province are and feel safe in the communities in which they live. The recent successful convictions of perpetrators of heinous crimes by our courts in the province bears testimony to the work government is doing, such as the sentencing in the case of Mma Wapad, who was murdered at the ABC Cemetery; Aunt Hettie Thuys who was murdered in the West End Cemetery, just to mention a few.
However work still needs to be done with the current challenges such as the rape of the three year old girl in Upington, the ten year old in Douglas, the 12 year old in Greenpoint, the murder of women, armed robberies and murder of business people, the two Hussein brothers in Barkly Road who through their businesses created much needed jobs and service to the local communities in Barkly Road, Number two and surrounding areas in Galeshewe because of their competitive prices.
The police are also working tirelessly in resolving all cases of murder, rape, assault, robberies including the missing two girls Rihanna Moshoeshoe and Kegomoditswe Maseo. The ANC led government has heard the people's concerns around crime in the province through our regular interactions with our communities i.e. the EXCO Outreach programmes, Community Imbizos and other government engagements. We appreciate the frustrations and share the demand of the Freedom Charter” There shall be peace and security”.
Through the experience of government and working with communities we have continuously learned what policies are working and where change is needed. We will continue to mobilise the communities in the fight against crime and corruption. To be true to reality, we concede that there have been challenges as well as triumphs in this warfare on crime, however the success of the South African Police Service (SAPS) must now be judged according to the number of successful convictions we have made. The harsher sentences imposed upon criminals must be influenced by the kind of detective work conducted by the police. Do we believe this can be achieved? Without doubt we do and as a matter of fact we firmly believe it can become the benchmark of our policing approach across the organisation.
We shall continue the work of transforming the police force to ensure that it becomes a true servant and protector of all law abiding citizens. Our programme over the next three years consists of ensuring a transformed and service delivery orientated force that is able to deal a decisive blow to criminal elements who seek to undermine and disrupt our democracy.
The recent discovery of arms caches in Sutherland and Kimberley were not random occurrences or pure coincidences. These successes were achieved through coordinated efforts. Our relevant law enforcement agencies plan properly, they execute those plans with precision and smartness. As government we are succeeding because we have the resolve and support of our communities. The successful hosting of 2010 FIFA World Cup activities, such as the 50 day countdown, graced by the Honourable President, Ministers and other dignitaries, the recent festive season operation duty calls police operations, handling of the public sector strike, where we prevented massive damage to properties and the disruption of services at the Kimberley Hospital, Clinics etc demonstrate our capacity to make significant impact on Safety and Security.
Our key task is to sustain the momentum and turn the tide against crime and corruption, to make the entire province save and secure through working together with all partners, the CPF, Youth against Crime, Women against Crime, Eye on the Child, Religious Leaders, Traditional Leaders, Organised Business and others.
Not withstanding the above, it is therefore important to reflect my concerns as follows:
Certain sections within SAPS remain untransformed in terms of race and gender. It therefore becomes necessary to focus our attention in addressing this matter without compromising or weakening the tough stance in fighting crime. The transformation must therefore speak to the type of police force we want to create; a police force that is steeped in the values enshrined in our constitution inspires the confidence of the ordinary person on the street.
That is why part of command and control must address how members are managed. Officers must be disciplined at all times. Management must be accountable. Police stations must be effective, efficient and service delivery is improved on an ongoing basis. However work still needs to be done with the current challenges such as the rape of the three (3) year old girl in Upington, the murder of women, armed robbery and murder of business people. The police are also working tirelessly in resolving the cases of the missing girls Rihanna Moshoeshoe and Kegomoditswe Maseo. Mmuso wa Kapa Bokone o kopa baagi botlhe go leka ka bojotlhe go itlhokemela, bana ba banye ba seka ba letlelelwa go tsamaya ba le nosi mo mebileng ya rona.
Re tshwanetse go netehatsa gore ka metlha yotlhe re a itse gore bana ba rona ba bua le
bo mang mo megaleng ya letheka. Re kopa ka tswetswe gore bana ba seka ba palama
mo dijanageng tse bas a di itsing.
Ons kinders is kosbaar dit is om hierdie rede dat ek alle ouers vra om hulle kinders op te pas. Klein kinders mag nooit alleen gelaat word nie. Ons moet ook weet met wie ouer kinders elektronies kommunikeer. Kinders moet nie met vreemdelinge praat nie en ook nie saam met vreemdelinge in motors klim nie.
In our fight against crime we have forged partnerships with the private sector and an example of this was the donation from SA Breweries of R2 million for two alcohol centres in Upington and Kimberley as well as Jules Katz for their three bed roomed corrugated house for the young girl who was brutally raped and stabbed in Greenpoint.
Financial outlook for 2011/12
The revenue projection for motor vehicle licenses was estimated based on the live vehicle population data as obtained from the eNaTIS which shown an average increase of 0.3%. The department reviewed its tariffs for the 2009/10 financial year with an average increase of 6% over themedium term expenditure framework (MTEF) period. The fact that registering authorities who have signed Service Level Agreements (SLA) are entitled to an increase from 10% to 12% agency fees was also considered during the projection. It is envisaged that all Registering Authorities would have signed the SLA by 1 April 2010 resulting in an average 2% less collection due to the increased agency fee.
The national roll out of Administration of Road Traffic Offences (AARTO) Act, 1998, implementation of the National Land Transport Act, 2009 with specific reference to the introduction of public transport operator subsidies as well as preparations and execution of the 2011 Local Government Elections will all have a significant impact on the budget of all the line function programmes. It is important to note that the Administration of Road Traffic Offences (AARTO) Act, No. 46 of 1998, will be implemented from 1 April 2011, which should have significant pressures on budget decisions.
Departmental allocation for 2011/14 – R553 361 Million
The MTEF baseline allocations for the period 2011/12 to 2013/14
Financial Year 2011/12: R171 998 million
Financial Year 2012/13: R184 001 million
Financial Year 2013/14: R197 362 million
The salary increases for the MTEF are 5.3% for 2010/11, 5.5% for 2011/12 and 5% for 2012/13. The revised inflation projections (CPIX) are as follows: 6.4% for 2010/11, 5.9 % for 2011/12 and 5.7 % for 2012/13.
Compensation of employees is the department's major cost driver and constitutes 48% of the department's total budget allocation. Goods and services constitute 45%, which is followed by the upgrading of taxi ranks, transfers to taxi council and machinery and equipment. Goods and services includes an amount of R30 370 Million as conditional grants for bus subsidies. The revenue projection for motor vehicle licenses was estimated based on the live vehicle population data as obtained from the eNaTIS which shown an average increase of 0.3%. The department reviewed its tariffs for the 2009/10 financial year with an average increase of 6% over the MTEF period. The fact that registering authorities who have signed Service Level Agreements are entitled to an increase from 10% to 12% agency fees was also considered during the projection. It is envisaged that all Registering Authorities would have signed the SLA by 01 April 2010 resulting in an average 2% less collection due to the increased agency fee.
The projection for traffic fines and abnormal loads were because the Road Traffic Management Corporation has confirmed the national roll out of AARTO from 2010/11. The effect of the implementation of AARTO is that if a traffic fine were settled within 30 days of date of issue, a 50% of the total fine would be written off. This step, coupled with the intensified visibility of traffic officials on the roads, which may result in a reduction in the number of transgressions, will reduce revenue from traffic fines.
The marginal nominal growth in the department's budget will continue to be a challenge and it does not provide for improvement of capacity in terms of staffing and logistical resources, as well as the expansion of services to match our ever-increasing demand accelerated qualitative and quantitative improvement of services to address community and road safety as well as transport needs.
The projection for traffic fines and abnormal loads were because the Road Traffic Management Corporation has confirmed the national roll out of AARTO from 2010/11. The effect of the implementation of AARTO is that if a traffic fine were settled within 30 days of date of issue, a 50% of the total fine would be written off. This step, coupled with the intensified visibility of traffic officials on the roads, which may result in a reduction in the number of transgressions, will reduce revenue from traffic fines.
The marginal nominal growth in the department's budget will continue to be a challenge and it does not provide for improvement of capacity in terms of staffing and logistical resources, as well as the expansion of services to match our ever-increasing demand accelerated qualitative and quantitative improvement of services to address community and road safety as well as transport needs.
The national roll out of AARTO Act, 1998, implementation of the National Land Transport Act, 2009 with specific reference to the introduction of public transport operator subsidies as well as preparations and execution of the 2011 Local Government Elections will all have a significant impact on the budget of all the line function programmes. It is important to note that the Administration of Road Traffic Offences (AARTO) Act, No. 46 of 1998, will be implemented from 1 April 2011, which should have significant pressures on budget decisions and reprioritisations.
Departmental allocations for 2011/12: R171 998 Million
The allocation for the Department of Transport, Safety and Liaison for the 2011/12 financial year amounts to R171 998 Million. The following pressures of the department will consume the allocations.
Administration: R32, 161 million
The programme comprises of the:
- Office of the MEC
- Office of the HOD
- Financial Management Services and
- Corporate Services.
For the financial year 2009/10, the department received an unqualified audit report. In the 2010/11 financial year, the department awarded 59 bursaries to staff members for skills and career development. As our contribution to the sustainable economic development in our province, the department commits to settle its creditors within 30 days from the date of receipt of the tax invoice.
I made a commitment on the development of a legislation to regulate or outlaw the carrying of dangerous weapons as part of our work of striving for a crime free Northern Cape province. I am pleased to report to this house that the department has done tremendous work and I have interacted with the office of the Minister of Police, Mr Nathi Mthethwa. This matter is receiving the necessary attention and hopefully in the not distant future major announcements will be made.
Civilian oversight: R10 865 million
The budget for this programme has increased by 0.89 percent from the adjusted budget of 2010/11 compared to the 2011/12 financial year (R10 865 million). The increase is mainly due to the improvement in conditions of services. Section 206 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa provides the Executive Council with the responsibility to monitor and oversee police conduct and to promote and assess good relations between the police and communities. Our analysis of the crime statistics indicate that the province has recorded a significant decrease in contact crimes during 2009/10 and 6 of the 7 contact crimes showed a decrease.
The Festive season operation Duty Call was successfully implemented by the SAPS where a number of integrated crime prevention activities were conducted. The department has conducted accountability meetings at police stations in the five regions. The purpose of these meetings between the communities and the police were geared to facilitate good community police relations as well as to create a platform to address tensions between them and to receive community inputs for informed and proper planning of operations.
The SAPS is currently training a number of new entry experts placed at the Local Criminal Record Centre. Substantial progress has been made in the SAPS to ensure police stations has victim friendly facilities, e.g. Greenpoint, Hopetown, Pella, Vosburg, Kagisho, Loeriesfontein and upgrading was done at Galeshewe and Kimberley.
A number of community perception surveys have been conducted and released to relevant communities i.e. Hondeklipbaai, Sunrise and Modderrivier, Victoria West and Upington. The programme will further intensify our effort of monitoring and oversight of the South African Police Services through our focused and outcome approach. We will also engage in the aspects of relocating police resources and functions to where the crime is prevalent. For example, the police station is situated in Modderrivier where almost no crime occurs, whereby crime is high in the Motswedimosa residential area, which is ± seven (7) kilometres away and that makes policing services difficult for the community.
There is slow progress in implementation of Sector Policing but the department is consistently engaging in order to fast track implementation of Sector Policing; The National Secretariat is currently busy with the development of a policy on implementing community safety forums.
Intensifying the fight against Fraud and Corruption: The National Secretariat Bill and Independent Complaints Directorate(ICD) Bill have been tabled and will have enormous implications on the workload of the department in General as it will come with added responsibilities for instance some of the work that has been done by the ICD will henceforth be done by the department. In addition to this, we are faced with a challenge of having to take full responsibility for the community police relations.
In line with our theme “working together to do more for our communities”, we commit the Department of Transport, Safety and Liaison to formalise our relationship with the Private Security Companies in the Northern Cape province as per the Directive of the Ruling party in its January 8 statement which encourages all of us in the Safety and Security sector to formalise the relationships and to ensure that the Private Securities also play a more meaningful role in the fight against crime and corruption.
We will continue to work hard to ensure that our people are safe and they feel safe where ever they are in the Northern Cape Province and this we will be able to achieve by working closely with all the law enforcement agencies including the Private Securities.
Social crime prevention and community police relations: R6,264 million
The budget for this programme has increased by 11.76 percent from the adjusted budget of 2010/11 compared to the 2011/12 financial year (R6,264 Million). The Provincial Crime Prevention Strategy is about to be complete and will be launched before the end of the financial year 2011/12. This strategy will become a public document once it has passed the appropriate governance structures. The Weekend of Sobriety project has contributed to a 25 % decrease in contact crimes in comparison to previous year. Liquor Traders were mobilised to support initiatives in the fight against alcohol misuse, as a contributing factor towards crime.
Community Police Forum (CPF) Clusters have been established in the different regions in order to mobilise communities to participate in the fight against crime - both police and communities are currently executing crime prevention programmes to address the root causes of crime.
Together with chaplains, the department visited a number of households as part of our support provided to victims of crime. The department has conducted 72 Public Education and Awareness projects focusing on alcohol abuse, domestic violence and school safety. Programmes that were conducted on the 16 days campaign included a rally of “Men Against Crime” with all stakeholders.
The rescue of public spaces programme was intensified by reclaiming back public spaces in Nababeep, Carolusberg, De Aar, Mothibistad and Barkly West as places where families and children can play and bond in a safe and crime-free environment. An intensive and visible zero tolerance campaign will be undertaken to ensure the fight against crime. To achieve this, we will have a provincial launch followed by regional launches. Reflective vests will be issued to communities in the province, zero tolerance to crime.
Youth in sports against crime campaigns
As part of social crime prevention, the department will roll out youth in sports against crime campaigns throughout the province in close cooperation with sister departments such as sports arts and culture, education, Social Development and other stakeholders, organised youth formations, sports bodies and business. We will roll out a consultative programme with all the stakeholders to give effect to our vision of youth in sports against crime in the province during this financial year.
The following sporting codes, soccer, chess, Volley Ball, Table Tennis, Netball and indigenous games will take place. These codes are not the only sporting codes considered. Inputs and proposals regarding other codes will be appreciated. It is our considered view that this initiative will promote peace, good neighbourhoods, cohesive communities as well as better relations between the communities and the police. We therefore call on business to partner with us in this noble project. Furthermore the department will host the following activities: A Liquor Traders indaba as well as Women in Crime Prevention summit in an endeavour to fight alcohol abuse and violence against women and children.
Transport operations: R57 710 Million
Honourable Speaker,
Let me take this opportunity to give an overview of the national transport perspective, which he provincial transport agenda has aligned itself to. In whatever we do as a sector of transport in the province, we take cognisance of the fact that, there are key Ministerial priorities for transport as a sector, which are the following:
- Rural Access and Mobility interventions
- Public Transport;
- Transport Safety and Security
- Freight and Logistics, and
- Labour Intensive Programmes
In relation to these Ministerial Priorities for transport as a sector, the following has been achieved:
Establishment of the Northern Cape Rail Steering Committee:
The committee's mandate is to deal with all the challenges facing the provincial rail infrastructure and operations and to provide solutions to these challenges. To date an intensive process has begun in interrogating the provincial rail plans of the two major rail operators in the Country and the province, which is Transnet and Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa ( PRASA) which constitutes the freight and passenger rail operators respectively. The analysis we are currently undertaking jointly with these operators should enable us to make a determination on what the provincial railway outlook should be in relation to infrastructure and operations as well as the transport interventions needed to deal with these challenges.
Honourable Speaker,
Our view as a province is based in the belief that, this process would be incomplete without the dealing specifically with issues of job creation and investments in relation to Sishen–Saldanha Rail investments, secondly jointly with Transnet, a process is also underway to deal with the revitalisation of Belmont-Douglas branch line.
Our firm view in this regard is that the Belmont-Douglas railway branch line should form part of the three key lines to be identified and piloted by December 2011 as per the programme as concluded by the infrastructure development cluster delivery agreement with the presidency.
Parallel to the Transnet engagements I indicated above, we are also in the process of identifying specific passenger rail projects jointly with PRASA as a source of intervention on the revival and frequency of the Kimberley to Mafikeng and Kimberley to Bloemfontein rail operations. A progress report and a programme in this regard would be forwarded to Premier and EXCO after the adoption by the Northern Cape Rail Infrastructure Steering Committee.
Honourable Speaker,
In relation to the Cargo Hub at the Upington Airport, We as a province have made a submission at the recently held Transport Lekgotla in Cape Town, that Upington Airport should be adopted as a strategic transport infrastructure/ facility for the Country in terms of it playing an air cargo Hub role in order for it to begin a process of off loading the constrained currently experienced by the OR Tambo International Airport in this regard.
Currently we are looking into updating the current business case in relation to this matter and beginning to concretise the potential that the Upington Airport has to play. This project as well has been submitted to be part of the recent Transport Lekgotla resolutions for implementation. During the 2010 World Cup the Upington Airport was utilised by other airlines as a parking bay for other airlines that could not be accommodated at other airports in the country.
Honourable Speaker,
In relation to road public transport, we as a provincial department have begun a process of re-visiting the current Northern Cape Bus Subsidy framework and implementation thereof. Jointly with the National Department of Transport we have deemed it fit that the current model needs to open up opportunities for local emerging potential bus operators. We therefore have begun a process empowering local emerging operators in this regard. A provincial position has been put through the Transport Lakota processes that, these subsidies needs to be expanded to Siyanda, Namakwa, Pixel Ka Seme District Municipalities and hopefully this would enable a bigger allocation from the National Department of Transport in this regard. Soon we would be undertaking an intensive Northern Cape Transport Assessment process, which would enable us to have a holistic picture of the Transport outlook in the province and would culminate into a blue print document for the province.
Non-motorised and scholar transport
Honourable Speaker,
As mentioned above that, rural access and mobility is part of the Ministerial Priorities, the province jointly with the National Department of Transport have begun a process of promoting non-motorised transport as well as the Transfer of Scholar transport from the Department of Education to the Department of Transport, Safety and Liaison.
The projection for traffic fines and abnormal loads were because the Road TRAFFIC Management Corporation has confirmed the national roll out of AARTO from 2010/11. The effect of the implementation of AARTO is that if a traffic fine were settled within 30 days of date of issue, a 50% of the total fine would be written off. This step, coupled with the intensified visibility of traffic officials on the roads, which may result in a reduction in the number of transgressions, will reduce revenue from traffic fines. The marginal nominal growth in the department's budget will continue to be a challenge and it does not provide for improvement of capacity in terms of staffing and logistical resources, as well as the expansion of services to match our ever-increasing demand accelerated qualitative and quantitative improvement of services to address community and road safety as well as transport needs.
The budget for this programme has increased by 9.48 percent from the adjusted budget of 2010/11 financial year compared to the 2011/12 financial year (R57 710 Million). For 2010/11 has increased by 8.5% from the adjusted appropriation budget of 2009/10. The significant increase can be attributed to increase in conditional grant allocation. Our mandate for providing an accessible and affordable public transport system is derived from schedule 4 and 5 of the Constitution as well as sections 9 and 11 of the National Land Transport Act. This mandate gives us the responsibility to, amongst others, ensure that the planning and implementation of the transport activities in the province is integrated and coordinated and that capacity is build in our municipalities to perform the transport activities within their areas.
Whilst we are reflecting on the one year that the transport function is part of this department, we have identified the gap that transport has not yet come to its fullest in the province and we have been tasked by the Executive Council to propel the transport function to its rightful position as being the “Heartbeat of the Economy”. The Transport Coordinating Structure was established to ensure the coordination and integration of all transport activities in the Northern Cape and to ensure that municipalities are properly capacitated to perform the transport functions within their areas of jurisdiction. The department is also in the process of establishing the Integrated Transport Forums in all district and local municipalities as part of the capacity building for municipalities on the transport function.
The rendering of assistance to all district municipalities for the development of their Integrated Transport Plan's (ITPs) and the Terms of Reference for the Implementation Protocol with the Frances Baard and Namakwa regions have already been finalised. Strategic Priority 2 (Outcome 6), specific reference to Output 3: To ensure the maintenance and strategic expansion of our rail network, and the operational efficiency, capacity and competitiveness of our seaports. Which is aimed at accelerating investment in social and economic infrastructure to increase access, quality and reliability of public transport and other services, in an attempt to increase access to efficient and safe transport.
In giving effect to this priority and the call by the Minister of Transport to put strategies in place to divert road freight to rail, we have temporarily employed 81 Data Collectors and three Data Capturers as contract workers on the Road Freight Data Collection Project as part of the drive to make input into the Freight Logistics Strategy. We are currently managing three bus contracts in the Frances Baard and John Taolo Gaetsewe areas to ensure an affordable transport system for commuters. The department is in the process to further roll out Bus Subsidies in the areas of Namakwa and Frances Baard and will assist the Pixley ka Seme and Siyanda District municipalities to complete their Integrated Transport Plans so that we could ensure a service for the March and area in Siyanda and the Fraserburg, Williston area in Pixley ka Seme, in addition to the existing services;
Processes to commission a study that would look into the viability of the Port Nolloth Harbour and how to integrate the Upington Cargo Hub, with specific reference to the viability of the Port Nolloth Harbour as an export hub, De Aar Warehouse, and the revitalisation of the De Aar rail line into a freight corridor. Based on this, stringent efforts and measures will be put in place to look at the finalisation of this issue. The establishment of the Rail and Infrastructure Operations Steering Committee is to ensure that the above processes are streamlined and as part of the work of this Committee we are looking into the reopening of the Kimberley – Mahikeng rail line with PRASA, the concessioning of rail by TRANSNET with specific reference to the Belmont – Douglas rail line.
As part of the Rural Transport Strategy, the department handed over 30 bicycles to a school in the John Taolo Gaetsewe Region as part of Shova Kalula Project and also handed over a further 100 bicycles in Calvinia in the Namakwa area in cooperation with the Department of Education. Plans are underway to procure and distribute 1000 bicycles to learners and to expand the project to farm and domestic workers. We also plan, during the 2011/12 financial year to refurbish a number of animal drawn carts and coordinate with Transport Regulations on the safety aspects/specifications for the carts.
A feasibility study has been commissioned to investigate the viability of establishing an intra-provincial air service, mainly to assist the Department of Health with the emergency medical evacuations and time-efficient transportation of medical specialists as well as for Executive Council outreach programmes to remote areas. We have engaged with the South African Networking Women in Transport with a view to creating an enabling environment for the empowerment of women in the Transport Sector.
Assistance will be provided by establishing cooperatives for the said structure. The department will intensify engagements with Department of Education to ensure the smooth transition of the learner transport function from the Department of Education to this department based on policy direction and on the agreement at national level. During Transport Month last year we had a “Car Free Day” with the view to promote the use of public transport and we rolled out the functions of the Operating Licence Board to the regions.
The department has trained Traffic Officers as Transport Inspectors with a view of establishing the Transport Inspectorate to clamp down mainly on illegal operations in the transport industry. Since the establishment of this unit in February 2011, 140 illegal operators were issued with summonses. We want to take this opportunity to warn all illegal operators out there that they will face the full might of the law. The partnership between the department and SANTACO will be concretised with in the launch of their project called project “TLHOKOMELA” which will also assist in the roll out of AARTO.
Transport regulations (Traffic matters) – R64 998 million
We will engage other airlines such as the SAA, SA Express, Mango and the newly launched VELVET Airlines with a view to provide additional flight services in the province to offset the current limited flights. We are also committed to engage a private pilot training service providers to explore the possibility of training students from the province as pilots. During this financial year we will also host a provincial transport summit with all key stakeholders with the objective to take transport to a higher level in the province.
The budget for this programme has increased by 5.22 percent from the adjusted budget of 2010/11 compared to the 2011/12 financial year (R64 998 Million). There was an increase of 10,5% in the revenue collection when compared to the previous financial year and 15 service level agreements were signed with registering authorities. The upgrading of provincial traffic inspectors in line with Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) advice and guidelines on the implementation of benchmark job descriptions have been successfully implemented. The increase in the compensation of employees is because of funding received for the upgrading of traffic officers and an allocation in lieu of resolution 1 of 2000, which was overtime for traffic officers.
In our endeavour to fight against crime and corruption, three Driving Licence Examiners from the Magareng Municipality Driver's and Learner's Testing Centres (DLTC) were arrested on allegations of fraud following inspections and investigation by our Inspectorate and the Special Investigating unit. One examiner was dismissed due to fraud at the Magareng Municipality. It is important to note that other cases from the SAPS and the Independent Complaints Directorate (ICD) are not included in the above analysis, but follow ups will be conducted.
In releasing the statistics of road fatalities the minister of Transport, Honourable Sb'u Ndebele, indicated that the Northern Cape has the least road fatalities recorded. This reduction can be attributed to the 212 Road safety education programmes which were implemented, that included school holiday programmes and the endeavours of the department to stop and inspect one (1) million vehicles as part of the National rolling enforcement plan.
To address the carnage on our roads the United Nations General Assembly has proclaim the period 2011-2020 as the “Decade of Action for Road Safety” with the goal to stabilise and then reduce the forecast level of road traffic fatalities by increasing activities at local, regional and national level. We met with all driving schools and towing services to forge a working partnership. As a result of this engagement some driving schools took the initiative to make use of unutilised land to open driving schools. We are therefore calling on the municipalities to formalise the use of the land by the driving schools.
Road Safety focused on driver education through heavy vehicle and Taxi Driver competitions which were conducted Regional, Provincial, National and finally on International level. At the International level, which was held in Austria, the Northern Cape Province was represented by Mr. Isaaks. Twenty (20) additional operators were trained for the effective utilisation of the weighbridges. As a result of this, 7 150 trucks were weighed across the province. Building on this success the department is investigating the possibility of setting up a weighbridge in the J.T. Gaetsewe district. Two new school-based Road Safety Projects were introduced namely Debating and Participatory Education Technique (PET) competitions. Ten school learners, represented the province in Cape Town, in the debating competition.
Thirteen (13) new additional scholar patrols were established, as follows: 1 John Taolo Gaetsewe Region; 4 Pixley Ka Seme Region; 4 Frances Baard Region; 2 Namakwa Region and 2 Siyanda Region. Local Road Safety Council structures have been established in the following regions: Francis Baard, Pixley Ka Seme, J.T. Gaetsewe, Namakwa and Siyanda. As part of ensuring that our roads are used by people who are legally certified to drive on our roads, we have conducted 41 861 learners licence and 22 410 drivers licence tests, which is a significant increase compare to the previous year.
Two heavy vehicle drivers will be competing against the world's best in South Africa in 2012. The department is in the process of finalising the establishment of the Community Road Safety Councils, which will assist in Road Safety Education Programmes, e.g. the Road Accident Fund Claims to communities. Seven (7) Driver's and Learner's Testing Centres (DLTC's), i.e. Windsorton, Delportshoop, Heuningsvlei, Rietfontein, Hanover, Richmond and Victoria West are operational in the Province to facilitate service delivery and to ensure that people do not travel long distances. Another two DLTC's, Aggeneys and Alexander Bay, are planned to be opened during this financial year. Adjudication Administration of Road Traffic Offences (AARTO) role out still pose a challenge because communities are not perceiving it well (department is engaging on the awareness campaigns); As a way of contributing to lifeskills and empowerment of the youth, we will train them free-of-charge, learner drivers license and drivers license across the five regions in the province.
Launching the 2011 Easter provincial rolling enforcement plan
National Intervention Unit (NIU)
On 29 March 2011, the Minister of Transport Honourable S'bu Ndebele unveiled the National Intervention Unit (NIU), at the passing out parade for members of the national traffic police intervention unit, this is the first of its kind in the history of traffic policing system in our country. The traffic officers have undergone specialised training.
Our office will also benefit from the expertise in the form of joint operations of members of NIU with our provincial traffic officers, SAPS and other law enforcement agencies in the province. We must expect to see this unit very soon at roadsides, checkpoints, roadblocks, high impact visibility patrols, in accident hot spots in our province.
Honourable Speaker,
Easter Weekend is approaching, this is a period where a lot of people use the roads to travel to different destinations in the country. The period is also known for high road accident rates. It was during this period when eight people from Windsorton travelling from their church sermon as part of the Easter Weekend sermon met their untimely death due to a road accident between Christiana and Warrenton. In order to avoid such tragedies during the 2011 Easter Long Weekend random operations will continue on various routes and at various times by traffic officers and other law enforcement agents throughout the province.
Our traffic officers together with our partners in law enforcement will also conduct special blitzes through out the province to minimise road accidents. We appeal to the public, all road users, motorists and pedestrians to contribute positively towards the reduction of road fatalities. All must take the necessary precaution without any exception. However the shortage of traffic officers and road safety officers/examiners of driving licenses remain a challenge.
In order to address the current road carnage in the province, the department will facilitate a process where speed cameras are installed across the province without any delay through collaboration with the Public Private Partnerships. A provincial Road Safety conference with all key stakeholders will take place during this financial year.
South African Police Service matters in the province
The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa enjoins the South African Police Service with the responsibility to prevent, combat, investigate crime and maintain public order. To further this mandate, 246 vehicles were purchased to the tune of R48, 484 million rands and 466 entry level constables were recruited to enhance the work of SAPS in the province.
As part of taking government services to the people, SAPS also ensured that the premises which are used by the broader public, are geared towards serving our people in the Northern Cape for example the major improvements of the 10111 centre and the installation of CCTV cameras in Kimberley, but more of this work will be phased in at other major towns in the province.
The following police stations are under repairs and renovations:
- Williston police station and house;
- Jan Kempdorp houses;
- Barkly West Police Station and houses;
- Marydale Fence;
- Kimberley Flats and
- Postmasburg police station and House.
The Department of Public Works has devolved the building and maintenance of some police stations to South African Police Service in our Province.
The following police stations are devolved to the Northern Cape:
- Delportshoop
- Olifantshoek
- Strydenburg;
- Victoria West
- Phillipstown
- Rietfontein and
- Loxton
A number of training interventions have been implemented by the SAPS to capacitate the detective services and Crime Intelligence Officers, which have been appointed at police stations. The priority capital projects in the Northern Cape for the financial year 2011/12 in order of preference, will be:
1) Riemvasmaak
2) Keimoes
3) Mothibistad
4) Boetsap and
5) Paballelo
The following police stations in the province will form part of the Comprehensive Rural Development Programme (CRDP) of the Northern Cape:
1) Tsineng
2) Bothitong
3) Heuningvlei;
4) Kuruman
5) Wrenchville
6) Mothibistad;
7) Batlharos
8) Deben
9) Dingleton
10) Kathu
11) Van Zylrus
12) Severn
13) Galeshewe
14) Kagisho
15) Roodepan
16) Modderivier and
17) Kimberley.
Minor repairs and renovations will be done at the following police stations:
- Hartswater
- Witdraai
- Niekershoop
- Poffader
- Noupoort
- Onseepkans
- Kuyasa
- Kathu
- Belmont
- Cambell
- Brandvlei
- Middelpos
- Port Nolloth and Vioolsdrift.
The priorities of the Northern Cape Province will further depend on the resource allocations by the South African Police Service, and these are as follows:
- Establishment of the stock theft unit in Kuruman, Calvinia and Springbok
- Establishment of organised crime units at Kuruman, Calvinia, Alexander Bay and De Aar
- Increase the capacity for detective court officers
- Establishment of a tracking team for wanted suspects
- Measuring the effectiveness of crime scenes management through the attendance and positive identification rates
- Capacitating the local criminal record centre
- Focus intelligence operations on recovery of firearms and addressing other priority crimes
- Random profiling of members working at areas where there is high vulnerability and chances for them to become corrupt
- Two new police stations will be built in Keimoes and Reimvasmaak respectively
- Address insufficient accommodation/dilapidated buildings (Cluster offices
- Kimberley Archives and Jan Kempdorp House
- Filling of all funded vacant posts in line with the approved structure
- Enforcing discipline and dealing extensively with corruption within the organisation
- To conduct extensive studies to ensure access of services by communities at rural areas
- Enlisting 10 interns for the year as part of SAPS's contribution to job creation.
All the above-mentioned priorities will assist in the fight against crime and corruption. However, we are regrettably noting the current unrest situation that has unfolded in the province between the communities and the South African Police Service.
The following incidences immediately come to mind:
- The beating of children by the police at the Springbok Police Station
- The death of a woman who was in the company of police officers in Kakamas and coupled with the beating of community members
- The unrest in Batlharos that was triggered by the beating of children by the police, etc.
The recent successful confiscation of arm caches and operations by the South African Police Service clearly demonstrates the vigilance and commitment of our police in the Northern Cape.
The 50 day count down towards the FIFA 2010 Soccer World was another successful story of the SAPS in the Northern Cape, they proved to South Africa and the world that we may have the smallest population but we are in a position to guarantee the safety of our people at big events.
Let me state it categorically that no member of the community will ever be assaulted by members of the South African Police Services in this province without decisive corrective action been taken. In the same breath members of the communities are called upon not to interfere during the operations of the South African Police Service.
With regard to the Easter festive weekend, our police officers will be ready to prevent crime and violence during this period and beyond. We will show zero tolerance approach especially towards the use and misuse of alcohol, drugs and the carrying of dangerous weapons. Serious and violent crimes such as murder, rape, assault, attempted murder, domestic violence and road accidents, in most cases, are caused by people who are under the influence of alcohol and drugs. Major operations will focus on drinking alcohol in public, driving under the influence of alcohol and being drunk in public. We want to issue out a strong warning that anyone found in possession of dangerous weapons such as knives, pangas and other sharp objects will be arrested and prosecuted. People are warned to keep away from swimming pools, dams and rivers, especially under the influence of alcohol.
Border Control Operational Coordinating Committee (BCOCC)
The Border Control Operational Coordinating Committee (BCOCC) is an agency established to managed the movement of people and goods and services in and out of the Northern Cape province. This structure further ensures that all the policies relating to border management are implemented. The structure is also responsible for the implementation of the National Integrated Border Management Strategy.
The BCOCC for 2011/12 financial year, intends to have a programme on the Integrated Health and Wellness for the border post communities in the province and the establishment of Bi-lateral forums at Regional or Provincial Level with border control officials in the Republic of Namibia and the Republic of Botswana to improve cross border relationships with the aim of effective and efficient border control. The entrance and exit including the safety of our people at the borders remains a challenge for to us in the Northern Cape and to this end we have ensured that we forge a close working relationship with the Border Control Operational Coordinating Committee in the province.
The Border Control Operational Coordinating Committee (BCOCC) was involved in a number of operations and in some instances these operations were performed in conjunction with the South African Police Services. Amongst the successes of the BCOCC, was the:
- Arrest of five South Africans at the Vioolsdrift border post for outstanding warrants of arrest during the 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup;
- Twelve illegal immigrants were detained at Vioolsdrift;
- The commissioning of the New Vioolsdrift Border Post facility and the new staff accommodation at the border post;
These and other achievements or successes will ensure that the work of protecting our borders are enhanced. The work will be further enhanced by ensuring that there are more frequent joint operations with the South African Police Services, the Traffic Officers in the Northern Cape, neighbouring provinces and Countries including the Department Home Affair's border control officers. The department intends to deliver the following main services through the five programmes as described under paragraph 6 below. Details of quantities and quality of the services are reflected in paragraph 6.3. It is important to note that the focus remains only on the Core Programmes, i.e. Programmes 2 – 5 and not necessarily on Programme 1 – Administration. The core objectives of the department are based on the constitutional and other legislative mandates, functional mandates and the service delivery improvement programme.
Justice and Constitutional Development
The President of the Republic of South Africa, Mr Jacob Zuma in his state of the Nation Address said, “Our courts and the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development continue to function better and the backlog reduction programme at regional and district levels are proceeding well.” The Northern Cape Province is also on the right path to servicing its people and in ensuring that the service of the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development reach out to the farthest point in the province including rural areas.
To this end a magistrate court will be build in Garies to the tune of R11.6 million. In Springbok the amount of the building will be R84 million. The Magistrate court in Keimoes is estimated at an amount of R11.8 million. The estimated amount for the Jan Kempdorp Magistrate Court is R51.1 million. In addition to the above, the following courts will receive the additional accommodation over the three years commencing in the 2011/12 financial year:
1) Poffader: R3.5 million
2) Calvinia: R12 million
3) Fraserburg: R3.2 million
4) Hopetown: R6.2 million and
5) Kakamas: R4 million.
The Galeshewe Magistrate court is fully operational and there are already 700 cases on the court roll. It must be stated that the Galeshewe Court renders all Justice Services except civil cases, however discussions are still on-going in relation to civil cases as this relates to jurisdictional boundaries. In the John Taolo Gaetsewe District the Department will continue to provide periodic services to Heuningsvlei; Bothitong and Tsineng and it will also take over the court management of Kudumane Magistrate Court.
Job creation
In line with the pronouncement of the president of the Republic of South Africa the government committed itself to job creation as the key priority in this financial year. We would like not only to add our voice to the job creation challenge but we want to be counted amongst the departments in the province that has made a significant contribution towards job creation. The department will be hard at work to ensure that we put in place plans that are geared to creating decent jobs for the people of the Northern Cape Province in particular the poorest of the poor.
The following job opportunities will therefore be created:
- The construction of taxi ranks – 87
- Employment with regard to bus subsidised contracts and monitors – 63
- Operational support (Research, Admin assistance, Road Safety and Social Crime Prevention) - 70
- Justice and Constitutional development – 34
- Correctional Services – 200
- South African Police Service – 572
We are engaging the Department of Transport Education and training authority with regard to the training and appointment of 30 transport inspectors and 70 traffic officers.
Tabling of budget vote
Honourable Speaker,
Having outlined the broad plans and priorities of the department for the year, allow me now to take the opportunity to table budget vote 3. The Budget breakdown per programme for this financial year is as follows:
Programme
1. Administration R32, 161 million
2. Civilian Oversight R10, 865 million
3. Social crime prevention R6, 264 million
4. Transport Operations R57, 710 million
5. Transport Regulations (Traffic) R64, 998 million
Total budget allocation R171, 9987 million
Conclusion and acknowledgements
We would like to express our appreciation toward the generosity displayed by one of the sons of this province, Mr Monwabisi Vika who is the CEO of Jules Katz, for having assisted a family in Greenpoint by donating a three bedroom corrugated house. We would also like to thank the South African Breweries for the initiative in collaborating with the department in their endeavour to make a significant contribution in our province by sponsoring equipment and branding of the first two alcohol evidence centres at the Khara Hais and Sol Plaatje municipalities.
We will further engage SA Breweries for the establishment of the same centre in the Pixley Ka Seme District, thus making our partnership with big businesses a reality. Let me take this opportunity to thank the Senior Management and employees of the Department of Transport, Safety and Liaison; the staff in the Ministry; leadership of the South African Police Service; the Community Police Forum members; the Youth Against Crime; Women Against Crime; Religious Leaders and the faith based organisations as well as all other stakeholders for the work that they have done for all these years including the 2010/11 financial year.
My thanks and appreciation goes to the Head of Department of Transport, Safety and Liaison, Mr Steven Jonkers who started in the Department on the 1st of July 2010 and was ready to roll up his sleeves to work immediately and has shown his commitment to his work.
Honourable speaker,
Please allow me to extend my profound gratitude to the Premier of the Northern Cape, Honourable Hazel Jenkins, the Executive Council and the Members of the Portfolio Committee for Transport, Safety and Liaison for their guidance and support throughout the year. As the transport, Safety and Liaison team, under the abled, strategic and visionary leadership of Premier Mme Hazel Jenkins, her team, supported by the thousands of law abiding citizens in the province, we remain steadfast that we are going to win the battle against crime, we have the capacity, we have the strength and we have a clear vision.
Working together in new ways to speed up change.
It is therefore my pleasure to table budget vote 3 for the 2011/12 financial year.
Ke a Leboga
Baie Dankie
Enkosi
I thank you.
Source: Northern Cape Provincial Government
