Speech of the MEC for Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation, ms. Limakatso Patricia Mahasa, on the tabling of the Budget Vote – 12 of the Department of Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation, 29 March 2022, 4th Raadsaal, Bloemfontein
Honourable Speaker Honourable Premier
Colleagues in the Executive Council Honourable Members of the Legislature
Executive Mayors, Mayors and Councillors present Representatives of House of Traditional Leaders
Representatives of Sport Federations as well as Arts and Culture Councils
Management and Officials of the Department Baahi ba Foreistata
Bomme le Bontate Comrades
When addressing the Laureus World Sports Awards in 2000, Nelson Mandela said “Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else can. Sport can awaken
hope where there was previously only despair.” These words of wisdom were further corroborated by Jacob Zuma when he said “In the dark days of our countries history we found that sport had the power to change the world in a manner that little else can. Sport transcends racial, cultural and ethnic barriers in a manner that defies all reason.”
Honourable Speaker, it is almost two years that our country and the rest of the world was subjected to COVID-19 pandemic. Many of our people has since perished and many of our children are left as orphans. The President of the country His Excellency Cyril Ramaphosa was forced to place the country under lockdown and as a result halting all the major mass based participation programmes. Our department like many others was compelled to operate in what is generally referred to as ‘new normal’. The pandemic has also reminded us of the words of Karl Marx when he said “Men make their own history, but they do not make it as they please; they do not make it under self-selected circumstances, but under circumstances existing already, given and transmitted from the past.” This words of a forward thinking revolutionary socialist, Karl Marx, continue to be prophetic today as they were over the two centuries ago.
The COVID pandemic has dictated the circumstances that we had to operate in the last two years. For the first time in history the humans had to practice social distancing and disengaged in activities that would normally allow us to play together, pray together, sing together and celebrate our heritage together. The pandemic was also adding to challenges of the fourth industrial revolution where the human element is drastically reduced in our work places as well as the old social interaction. The department of Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation must contend with this new normal and still deliver on its mandate of active nation. Nonetheless, despite the daunting challenges presented by the circumstances inherited from this past history, we have a mandate and we will not blink until it is achieved.
Honourable Speaker, in this Budget Vote we will outline many of the milestones that the department has recorded despite the enormous challenges that we continue to confront under these trying and difficult circumstances. First and foremost, it is incumbent on me to briefly outline the two main and major challenges that we are confronted with in the department. On many occasions the department is under criticism from the social media for not being reaching out to all its constituencies and stakeholders. The criticism cannot be dismissed as mere polemics because indeed the department is highly underfunded and is trying to do more with less resources and as a result the gap is widening.
Firstly, it is important to note that the budget allocation of the department is skewed towards compensation of employees more than service delivery programmes. This is a common challenge across government in general and it is a challenge that the provincial government is seized with. For example, out of the total budget allocation of 665 million 733 thousand rands, 384 million 311 thousand rands is allocated to compensation of employees. This means that only 57.3% of the department’s budget is dedicated to programmes and infrastructure projects. The department relies heavily on Conditional Grants and these grants are continuously being reduced on an annual basis.
Secondly, it is a given fact that we also need human resources to carry out our mandate. While we have pointed out that 57.3 % of the budget goes to compensation of employees, the department is still not anywhere near towards a full complement of its staff establishment. The vacancy rate stands at about 137 funded vacant posts in terms of the current structure. The practical implications of this staff shortages are that, for example, sport officials who are supposed to implement programmes in our various local municipalities, towns and wards are over-stretched. The same applies to arts and culture officials who are supposed to ensure that arts and culture activities take place.
Honourable Speaker, these are unfortunate realities that we have to adjust and adapt to and under which we would have to continue to do our level best to deliver on our mandate. Doing more with less is going to be the clarion call and a mantra for our department. As we pointed out earlier, we have indeed rolled up our sleeves to ensure that this happens despite stated challenges. It is befitting to bow our heads in honour of our officials who held the ford during the challenging and demanding times in the department.
PROGRAMME 1: ADMINISTRATION AND FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT
The Department has received an allocation of 107 million 646 thousand rand for Administration. This is a 2.8% decrease from the previous allocation. In terms of Human Resource Management, to address the challenges of staffing, the department is busy with the third phase of the organizational structure review process. The macro structure is currently under review with the objective of aligning our structure to the available budget as well as with the strategic objectives of the department. It is anticipated that this process will be complete by the beginning of the new Financial Year.
The department has also started with the process of filling vacancies that have been identified as priorities. We also anticipate to have filled these vacancies by the beginning of the new Financial Year following the approval from Provincial Treasury. It is our view that these two processes will go a long way in providing some stability with regard to personnel utilisation in the department.
Within the available budget, we will intensify our efforts with regard to other key Human Resource Management function such as Training and Development through provision of bursaries to officials and creating opportunities for internship and learnerships.
Revenue collection is an imperative as a way to augment the other mainstream sources of funding for the state. As we have reported in the past, our revenue streams have been affected by the closure of some of our facilities such as museums as well as the cancellation of events such as MACUFE due to COVID-19. With the easing of Lockdown restrictions, we expect our revenue collection to improve as these facilities with tourism value and events are opened and allowed to operate.
To mitigate against the loss of revenue streams, the department planned to implement programmes such as an Open-Air Outdoor Cinema and Outdoor Open-Air Musical and Cultural Festival as ticket events to generate revenue. As we have and will continue to point out in this budget vote, these plans were unfortunately failed by the COVID-19 Lockdown restrictions.
While the department continued to strive to exercise effective expenditure management so as to prevent fiscal risks such as authorized as well as over or under-expenditure, our expenditure trends were also affected by the above-mentioned restrictions. As at the end of January 2022 our budget expenditure was at 71%. Honourable Speaker the department has received qualified audit opinion in 2021/22 financial year. With all challenges we are duty bound to improve this finding and aim for unqualified audit opinion for 2022/2023 financial year.
Hounorable Speaker, in fighting the scourge of substance abuse and gender-based violence, the special programme will continue with the morale regeneration projects which will include Bua Ndoda and Nyaope must fall in all our districts.
PROGRAMME 2: CULTURAL AFFAIRS
Honourable Speaker, for the 2022/2023 Financial Year, Cultural Affairs programme receives an allocation of 132 million 501 thousand rand. This is a 5.5% decrease from the last allocation.
The easing of COVID-19 lockdown restrictions has to some extent enabled the implementation of our arts and culture as well as museum and heritage programmes under Cultural Affairs. As a clear demonstration of the gradual opening up of the space for implementation of programmes the honourable Premier, Mme Sefora Ntombela, has announced during her State of the Province Address (SOPA) that the MACUFE will be back this year. We are delighted that this flagship programme which is the heart and soul of Free Staters will be coming back, even though not to the full extent that we are used to. The department is working on the modalities around the implementation of the programme. While we are looking at modalities the following programmes will form an integral part of MACUFE: Macufe Boxing Day, Golf Day, Soccer, Gospel and DJ’s will also find prominence in the event. In order to keep the artistic atmosphere alive in the province, the department will support the Free State Music and Food Festival (Afrofeast) in November. Our success in implementing our commitments and plans around Cultural Affairs in the last Financial Year largely depended on the different COVID-19 alert levels.
As one of the measures to mitigate the impact of the cancellation of MACUFE, District Arts and Culture Festivals were staged in all districts. This was a successful programme whose objective was also to assist in cushioning local artist against the loss of income caused by the pandemic. The feedback around this programme from artists was extremely positive. After the staging of the Lejweleputswa leg of the Arts and Culture District Festival, Mr Pepesa Motaung who is one of the outstanding photographers in our province wrote as follows to the department, as paraphrased:
“On behalf of Lejweleputswa Local Organising Committee, we would like to thank the DSACR for having trusted us to organize a District Festival. We (Lejweleputswa Artists) have seen the other side of the department. We have learned a lot from the activity and we strongly believe that in future we will be in a position to deliver a more successful event than the one we have just delivered. Kind Regards, Pepesa Motaung, Lejweleputswa Local Organising Committee Chairperson”.
The Homebrew Development Programme will be used as the platform to cultivate and identify artists for MACUFE activations, it will also serve as a feeder to Districts Arts and Culture Festivals. These kinds of initiatives are an added boost to the work that the department has already undertaken and they will continue in this financial year. The department has managed to assist 691 artists who were paid 5 thousand rands (R5000) each amounting to a total of 4 million rands (R4 000 000) for COVID-19 Relief.
We have also made progress in the Cultural Affairs sector regarding the following programmes and projects:
- As part of the process towards the establishment of a Film Commission, progress has been made in this regard as the name of the commission was secured and will be known as the Free State Film Commission. The Free State should begin to tap into this sector not just as a creative and cultural platform but also an economic industry. Working with DESTEA and Provincial Treasury we should advance this goal to its logical conclusion.
- The Choral Music Festival was staged in partnership with the Lengau Choral Music Association in QwaQwa. This was the much-anticipated event amongst choral music lovers who for over two years were not able to engage in choral music. For this reason, hundreds of choristers descended into Qwa Qwa for this event, also attracting participants from Lesotho and other provinces.
- We are delighted to report that Mama Albertina Sisulu 3 meters life size statue has been installed in Tweeling and it will be unveiled in due course. This important task of building statues in honour of liberation stalwarts and our heroes and heroines will continue unabated as part of the transformation of our heritage landscape which is non-negotiable.
- In line with our mission to rename the town of Brandfort after Mama Winnie Madikizela-Mandela we are delighted to report that this historical milestone has been accomplished. Brandfort is now called Winnie Mandela town and this need to sink-in in all of us as a historical mission accomplished in honour of this stalwart and heroin of our liberation struggle.
- Concerning the ongoing restoration work at Mama Winnie Madikizela-Mandela’s house in Winnie Mandela town, there will be an exhibition following its completion. The house will be handed over to the province by the National Department of Sports, Arts, Culture and Recreation and the house will be accessible as a museum for the exploration of the life and times of this stalwart in this town.
- Our literary stalwart, Doctor Khotso Pieter David Maphalla (who was popularly known as KPD) was honoured through a Memorial Lecture that was staged though our Language Services and Library Services components on 25 February 2022. Such and other forms of honours and celebrations of our literary giants, authors and publishers will continue to take place. Their publications, more specifically the Sesotho publications, will continue to be promoted through our libraries as well as Sesotho Literature Museum. Doctor Maphalla was recently awarded the Order of Ikhamanga in gold by His Excellency President Cyril Ramaphosa.
2022/2023 and MTEF Performance Targets:
Having made the above strides in the Cultural Affairs sector, the following outstanding tasks that could not be carried out as planned are still in the pipeline for the next Financial Year. Others have been planned for outer years of the MTEF period:
- The Statue of Mama Winnie Madikizela-Mandela procurement had to be halted as the national Department of Sport, Arts and Culture has come up with an idea to incorporate the statue as part of the memorialization of Mama Winnie Mandela in the same town.
- The commitment to rename Hoffman Square in Charlotte Maxeke Street to Charlotte Maxeke Park remains. We are working on ensuring that proper procedural and consultative processes as required by the relevant legislation take place. We have committed to ensure that the construction of the statue of Mama Charlotte Maxeke in the same Hoffman Square follows suit.
- Arts Centre Satellite Recording Studios in Fezile Dabi, Lejweleputswa and Mmabana will be completed in the next Financial Year.
Honourable Speaker, as part of our MTEF plans the department will ensure the realization of the following targets:
● Establishment of Performing Arts Forums to facilitate artists support and effective communication with the sector.
● Development of Leister Skhosana museum.
● Development of the Creative Arts Framework to guide the promotion and implementation of the creative sector in the province.
● Create 120 EPWP job opportunities in various arts and culture programmes.
● The department will continue their partnership with Lengau Choral Music Association.
● Supporting our very own home grown talent the department will be assisting Youth Ablaze music group which will be performing on the international stage. (London)
● To boost the morale of our employees, we will host inter- departmental choir competitions.
PROGRAMME 3: LIBRARY AND ARCHIVES SERVICES
Honourable Speaker, Library and Archives Services receives an allocation of 252 million 565 thousand rand in the 2022/2023 Financial Year. This is a decrease of 0.9% from last year’s allocation.
Library Services is one of the programmes that relies heavily on Conditional Grants. As we reported earlier and in the last Budget Vote speech, this programme has suffered huge cuts in its Conditional Grant allocations over the years, amounting to 36 million and 2 hundred thousand rand just in 2020/2021 Financial Year and 10 million rand during 2021/2022. This has resulted in the reduction and cancellation of programmes such as Reading Festivals, Procurement of Library Materials and so on.
It is our considered view that libraries play an important role in the advancement of priority number one (1) which is education. We have no doubt that the excellent performance of our province in the matric results partly has to do with the availability and accessibility of libraries in our province. More work still needs to be done around availability and accessibility of libraries for our communities, learners in particular, as part of the over 708 thousand library users
2021/2022 Milestones:
Despite all these budget cuts the department has still managed to deliver the following targets and to advance the goal of education in our province:
- During the week of 14 to 24 March 2022 we celebrated the South African Library Week which is an annual celebration highlighting the valuable role libraries and librarians contribute to communities. It also aims to promote the use and support of libraries. The South African Library Week was celebrated under the theme “Re-Imagine! Re-Purpose! Re-Discover Libraries!”. The call was to celebrate libraries again after many months of not using them to their full potential as a result of the COVID-19 lockdown regulations. Our libraries across the province engaged in a number of activities which included: A Library Tours; Story Time and Play On; Colouring Activities; Poetry Readings and several other activities.
- Library Services made online or e-services which were available to library members during the COVID-19 lockdown periods.
- Smithfield Library has been completed opened and renamed after (Clr. Morapelo) who passed on last year. May his revolutionary soul continue to rest in peace. Another library has been oped in Luckhoff in this same district of Xhariep.
- Equipment for visually impaired library users is in the process of procurement and will be unveiled as part of the opening of the Soutpan library before the end of next Financial Year.
- 64 reading clubs were established in 16 libraries.
- As part of support to emerging authors, 16 thousand 423 books were procured from local authors and book sellers.
The province successfully hosted the annual National Oral History Conference in a hybrid form in Clarens from the 13th to the 15th of October 2021. This conference included Traditional Leadership and placed emphasis on the need to preserve indigenous or traditional knowledges and histories.
Funds have also been secured for the department’s Archives Repository for the project to upgrade bandwidth infrastructure to the value of 4 hundred thousand rand. The bandwidth infrastructure upgrade, which will enable the loading of the newly acquired archival material to the National Archives website, will increase the number of researchers on the Free State Archives repository.
2022/2023 and MTEF Performance Targets:
In the next Financial Year and over the MTEF period library services will be advanced through the following:
● Soutpan and Van Standensrus libraries will be completed and opened in the next Financial Year.
● Construction of Community Libraries in Tumahole, Cornelia and Blugumbusch.
● Provincialization of six (6) libraries in line with the Constitutional mandate for libraries to be managed by the provincial government.
● ICT infrastructure and public internet access maintenance provision and maintenance in 176 libraries ensuring unlimited data in libraries.
● Provision of 15 library science bursaries annually to staff of the department as part of capacitation programme.
● Rendering of records management services to 34 public sector entities on an annual basis.
● National Archives Awareness Week will be rolled out. The schools in all the five districts will be visited.
● Support book suppliers with procurement of 21 thousand library materials to the total value of 3 million rand. 40% of the expenditure will be targeted towards women.
● Establishment of three (3) additional service points for the visually impaired in libraries.
● Reading festivals to continue to be hosted to promote the love of reading and life long learning amongst learners and adults.
PROGRAMME 4: SPORT AND RECREATION
Honourable Speaker, the Sport and Recreation programme is allocated a budget of 173 million 021 thousand rand in the 2022/2023 Financial Year.
The remaining restrictions on stadium attendance provides a clear illustration of the continuing impact that the pandemic has on the sport and recreation sector. The mass participation nature of sport and recreation has been a major factor in the prohibition of sporting activities. It must nonetheless continue to be emphasized that all these joys of life can only be possible if we all respond to government’s call for everyone to vaccinate so that a herd immunity is created against the virus.
2021/2022 Milestones:
Although we continue to celebrate the relief provided to the 342 athletes who were paid relief funds to the total value of 2,7 million rand, it is our firm view that much more still needs to be done for our athletes for as long as this pandemic is still with us. Providing opportunities for development, mass participation and competition to athletes through community sport, school sport and sport science has been the foundation of our programmes in the last Financial Year.
The following achievements were made in this sector in the last Financial Year:
Community Sport:
- In partnership with the national Department of Sport, Arts and Culture; Free State Department of Education and Love Life the 9th National Youth Camp was hosted in Qwa Qwa from 04 to 10 December 2021.
- 8 club development sport coordinators were appointed
- 40 clubs and 12 hubs were provided with Sport Equipment and Attire.
- Consultants have been appointed and Indoor Sport Centres are currently being constructed in Kroonstad; Smithfield and Frankfort.
- Fezile Dabi Stadium phase two (2) of infrastructure development is ongoing.
School Sport:
- 12 school sport coordinators were appointed
- 75 schools were provided with Sport Equipment and Attire.
- From 24 to 27 March 2022, Free State province has sent 350 learners to participate in the National Schools Athletics Championships in Germiston, Gauteng province.
- The National Swimming Championships took place from 25 to 27 March 2022 in Hillcrest, Gauteng province.
- Both National Schools Athletics Championships and the National Swimming Championships have been preceded by district and provincial competitions that will select the learners that will represent the province at the various national championships.
- 300 Educators and volunteers were trained in sport specific coaching courses, sport administration and technical officiating.
- 16 School Sport Structures were supported to deliver the modified school sport programme.
- Even though our province did not qualify for the Pan- African Football Inter-School Tournament, we were afforded the opportunity to host this prestigious event.
Sport Science:
- Mr Tshilisi Ishmael Lephalla, from Mangaung Metro was provided with a triathlon cycle and triathlon attire.
- Through the Free State Sports academy Mathaithai soccer club was assisted to the tune of 510 thousands rand as part of preparation and participation in the Nedbank tournament.
2022/2023 and MTEF Performance Targets:
In the next Financial Year and over the MTEF period the following projects will be implemented:
Community Sport:
● Provision of community sport equipment and attire to 20 communities annually.
● Provision of club development sport equipment and attire to 50 clubs annually.
● Ensure that 60 000 people actively participate in organised sport and active recreation events annually.
● Host Indigenous Games annually to ensure 40 Indigenous Games Clubs participate in Indigenous Games Tournament.
● Host Rural Sport Games to ensure participation of 40 clubs in Rural Sport Development programme.
● Host Youth Camp for 100 learners.
● The department will also host district soccer tournament in all the districts. These tournaments will culminate in the provincial tournament.
School Sport:
● Ensure that 7 500 learners participate in school sport tournaments at a district level annually.
● Promote participation of 3000 learners in school sport tournament at a provincial level annually.
● Provision of school sport equipment and attire to 75 schools annually.
Sport Science Institute:
● 1 500 athletes will be assisted through High Performance programmes.
● Capacity building programmes that will include sport science newsletters and topics targeting youth, the disabled and women in sport will be staged and developed.
● Visual portal units will be installed at the Free State Sport Science Institute, Sport Focus Schools and all District Academies where athletes and coaches can register to become a member of the Sporty Science Support network.
Free State Academy of Sport:
● The Inter-Provincial Andrew Mlangeni Golf tournament will be hosted in partnership with Baleka
Mbethe foundation following the inaugural tournament in 2020.
● In preparation of the 2023 Netball World Cup the Academy will host the Under-19 Netball Leagues.
Free State Sport Confederation:
● The Free State Sport Confederation will continue to assist the Department in appointing sport coordinators in five (5) district for Siyadlala and Community Sport.
● Assisting the Department with coordination and hosting of Sport Awards.
● Through the Presidential Economic Stimulus Package (PESP) 190 people will be appointed as COVID-19 inspectors and compliance officers to the tune of 6 million rands.
CONCLUSION
Honourable Speaker, as I conclude, may I take this moment to extend our heartfelt condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of one of our officials who was brutally murdered reportedly by her partner at the beginning of this month. Ms Lettia Ntlhake-Modise, who was our official under the sport and recreation, became one of the most painful cases of Gender Based Violence taking place in our country. It is alleged that she was burnt alive in a car by her partner. We hope that the police will fully investigate this and other such cases and bring the perpetrators to justice. May her beautiful soul continue to rest eternal peace.
Let me take this opportunity to extend our gratitude to all our stakeholders, the creatives, athletes, and the broader community of the Free State for their understanding of the limitations that continue to hamper our ability to deliver fully on our mandates. I thank the members of this house, portfolio committees and other oversight bodies that continue to guide us in this difficult path.
Thanks to the honourable Premier, Mama Sisi Ntombela for entrusting me with this responsibility as well as Members of the Executive Council, “my colleagues”, for the team spirit. I would also like to thank the African National Congress for entrusting me with this humbling responsibility my personal word of gratitude to my husband and my children for always being there for me. Thanks to the Acting Head of the Department, Mme Zola Thamae as well as managers and officials of the department for continuing to be the pillar of strength in my quest to carry out my constitutional obligations.
Above all, all praises to the Almighty for His unwavering blessings and grace that He continues to shower all of us with.
Honourable Speaker, indeed “Man makes history, not according to circumstances chosen by himself, but according to circumstances inherited from the past”.
I thank you.
