I want to share the outcome of a search for excellence in Cape Town. According to a Cape newspaper city traffic officials went on an early morning search of Cape Town’s most courteous drivers last week. They ended up fining 41 motorists for various transgressions instead! Only three motorists were spotted, wearing their seat belts, using their indicators and giving way to fellow motorists. We don’t know what the outcome in Pietermaritzburg would be, I am positive that we have more courteous drivers! But the fact of the matter is that courtesy is not as abundant as one would have hoped it to be, especially on the eve of the 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup.
Like our country needs courteous drivers, it also needs exceptional public institutions to help lead the way. Our people deserve public institutions that are committed to excellence and to the highest ethical and professional values.
Excellence always starts with the individual, the man or woman who goes beyond the call of duty to meet the challenges facing them in their daily tasks. But what is the make up of people who excel? What do they have in common?
According to Chris Widener, a United State of America specialist in helping individuals and organisations turn their potential into performance, we would find the following genes in the “Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)” of top achievers:
* A predisposition to setting high, lofty goals
These people cannot settle for the status quo. They continually look for ways to stretch themselves, to get better, to do better, and to be better. A better example than Helen Keller, the deaf blind woman who became a role model for millions of people, is hard to find. Helen believed that “one can never consent to creep when one feels an impulse to soar”.
* An ability to focus intently upon reaching their desired destination
Top achievers do not get sidetracked. They stay focused and know where they are going.
* The willingness to personally sacrifice in order to get their goal
They don’t quit when the going gets tough and persevere through any personal pain.
* A predisposition to tenacity
* The ability to see available resources and to use them accordingly.
* A desire to help others achieve more for themselves as well.
Top achievers know that they can make a difference for others by becoming top achievers. They know that their efforts can feed the hungry; that they can open a door for someone who may not normally get a chance. True top achievers help people and do not trample them!
The “DNA” of top achievers is at the core and fibre of their beings. It is clear that excellence is an attitude, not a skill.
Rewarding top achievers
I am a strong believer that excellence should be rewarded. Not only does a competitive environment give achievers and additional sense of fulfilment and achievement but it also inspires and encourages other individuals, teams and units to deliver enhanced service delivery by upholding the ethos and beliefs of that organisation.
Batho Pele principles
This brings us to the Batho Pele principles. Each of the recipients, receiving awards today, is an example of the calibre of our public service as envisaged by the Batho Pele principles. I commend you for your excellence and commitment to serve our people. Our public service employees do not often get the public recognition they deserve. It is easy to point fingers when things go wrong, but we forget to thank those who have made a difference.
More winners
Unfortunately our competition only awards a handful of people. But there are more “winners” in this department and we also need to recognise them for their commitment. Too many managers, at all levels, hold the misconception that the only factor that motivates the workforce is money. In many cases, a simple, sincere pat on the back, a written note or a heartfelt “well done” will accomplish more positive benefits than one thinks. It is not the monetary value, but the sincere recognition of a job well done that brings lasting, positive motivation. This ceremony also gives me the opportunity to say thank you for your contribution to making our policies a reality.
Performing in trying economic times
We are performing in trying economic times. While the downturn is levelling off there is no real growth yet. Consumer price inflation has exceeded the target range of three to six percent. We expect Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation to average 6.3 percent next year and six percent in 2011. Government also expects to collect R70 billion less in tax this fiscal year than forecast in February. This, I am told, would be the highest fiscal deficit since at least 1961. We don’t have any room to manoeuvre. Spending on budget is the ONLY option.
The financial situation in our province is serious. Reprioritisation will “save” us R2,06 billion. But even after that our projected over-expenditure for this fiscal year is R1,7 billion. All eyes are on Treasury to get the province out of this predicament. The only way to do it is to be bold. Therefore Cabinet approved 21 cost-cutting measures with immediate effect until further notice. These measures are additional to the R2,06 billion that we will save through reprioritisation.
All departments also have to take immediate steps to eradicate fraud and corruption, which continues to be a drain on the provincial fiscus. It is human to spend more when the going is good. But now we have to do our business differently. What you have read in the media about the Christmas parties, in-house training and travelling are true. We are not scaling down on excellence but on the “nice to haves.” Maybe we should also bring in a “value for money” category to encourage innovative thinking of how to deliver excellence by ensuring the best value for money. I strongly believe that we learn some valuable lessons during times of hardship, lessons that we can apply to improve service delivery and the lives of our people.
We live in a province and a country where poverty remains our biggest enemy.
Mahatma Gandhi described poverty as “the worst form of violence.” We are acutely aware that we have to intensify the fight against poverty to improve the lives of all our people. During President Jacob Zuma’s inauguration ceremony we said to the world that “we shall not rest, and we dare not falter, in our drive to eradicate poverty”.
Government’s long-term vision for South Africa and our beloved province is to build a fair society with a strong and prosperous economy with opportunities for all. While the recession has slowed down our pace it has certainly not changed our direction. As the Provincial Treasury we have a critical role to play in ensuring that all elements of this vision are achieved. It is not enough to understand and comment on the challenges facing our country; we must use our skills and knowledge to contribute towards solutions.
I want to leave you with the real story of 16 year old Babar Ali, whose contribution to transforming the lives of hundreds of poor children, is a true example of “being the change you want to see in others.” This is a story of the youngest headmaster in the world, a remarkable tale of desire, not only to learn amid dire poverty but to open the doors for others as well.
Babar Ali’s day starts early. He wakes, pitches in with the household chores, and then jumps on an auto-rickshaw which takes him part of the 10 kilometre ride to the Raj Govinda School. The last couple of kilometres he has to walk. The school is the best in this part of West Bengal. The classrooms are neat but bare. But there are desks, chairs, a blackboard, and the teachers are all dedicated and well qualified.
Babar Ali is a model student and the first member of his family ever to get a proper education. While his school is free, his parents still have to find 1 800 rupees a year to pay for his uniform, his books and the rickshaw ride to get there. In this part of West Bengal that is a lot of money. Many poor families simply cannot afford to send their children to school, even when it is free.
Thanks to Babar Ali hundreds of children are now getting education. The minute his lessons are over, he doesn’t stop to play. He heads off to share what he’s learnt with other children from his village. At four o’clock every afternoon after Babar Ali gets back to his family home a bell summons children to his house. They flood through the gate into the yard behind his house, where Babar Ali now acts as headmaster of his own, unofficial school.
Lined up in his back yard the children sing the national anthem. Standing on a podium, Babar Ali lectures them about discipline, and then study begins. Babar Ali was just nine when he began teaching a few friends as a game. Now his afternoon school has 800 students, all from poor families, all taught for free. Most of the girls come here after working as domestic helps in the village, and the boys after they have finished their day's work labouring in the fields.
Including Babar Ali there are now 10 teachers at the school, all, like him are students at school or college, who give their time voluntarily. Babar Ali doesn’t charge for anything, even books and food are given free, funded by donations. It means even the poorest can come to him.
The poverty that Babar Ali and his community experience is not unique. We don’t have to go far to find similar circumstances around us in KwaZulu-Natal.
But what Babar Ali and others like him are doing is unquantifiable. We can all be that little ray of light in the lives of those around us.
I thank you.
Issued by: Provincial Treasury, KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government
12 November 2009
Source: Provincial Treasury, KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government
(http://www.kzntreasury.gov.za/)
