Honourable Speaker
Honourable Premier
Colleagues in the Executive Council
Honourable Members of the Legislature
Executive Mayors, Mayors and Councilors 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
Ladies and gentlemen
Comrades
Honourable Speaker
Three days from today we will be commemorating the 55th Anniversary of the brutal history of the Apartheid of the Sharpeville Massacre, where our liberation heroes and heroines were brutally murdered by Apartheid colonialists, who embraced our shores in the form of Drommedaris, Reiger and Goodehoop in 1652 right here in beloved country of our forefathers and foremothers. The reason why we will not forget the painful history, it is because the social, psychological and geographic elements of apartheid continue to shape the outlook of the people of the Free State and the country in general. We will forgive but not forget.
Honourable Speaker our hearts were filled with joy and our eyes with tears when the mortal remains of the longest serving General Secretary of the South African Communist Party, Comrade Moses Kotane, were reburied in his birth village of Pella in the North West province. On the 22 March 2015 a day before what would have been comrade JB Marks's birthday, comrade JB Marks 's remains will be reburied at his hometown.
Once again the country has lost a gallant fighter, a revolutionary, a leader a minister of Public Service and Administration Comrade Collins Chabane. Let their souls rest in peace, the struggle will continue. The department of Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation will continue to use Sport Arts Culture and Recreation to spearhead the struggle for fundamental political, social and economic change.
Honourable Speaker 2015 is the year in which we celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Freedom Charter. Throughout all our programs we will continue to be guided by the spirit of and letter of this revolutionary document of our movement.
The 2015/16 Budget of R 679 605 00 will fund the following programs:
1) Administration and Financial Management: R77 041 000
2) Cultural Affairs: R125 182 000
3) Library and Archives Services: R238 182 000
4) Sport and Recreation: R239 944 000
Full speech.....
