Speech by Limpopo Premier Chupu Mathabatha during a Symbolic Handover of Vehicles to Magoshi at Bolivia Lodge
Program Director
MEC Mmakoma Makurupetje Our Kings
Chairperson of the House of Traditional Leader Kgoshi Malesela Dikgale
The Leadership of the National House of Traditional Leaders Makgoshi le Bakgomana
Ladies and gentlemen
Today is a special day in our province. Special as we come to fulfill and close a chapter of protracted negotiations of the past two years.
Our traditional leaders and in particular the leadership of the House of Traditional Leaders will know that since this administration took office about a year ago, we immediately embarked on a consultative mode with them.
I visited the length and breadth of our Province with our traditional leadership.
The main aim of these visits was to see for ourselves the challenges our leaders endure as and when they discharge their leadership duties within their communities.
It was during these visits that I was introduced to dilapidated offices, roads that are difficult to negotiate through and of course the lack of proper working tools for our leaders.
In my State of the Province Address and during various meetings I have held with traditional leaders I made a commitment that our government will do what it can to support the institution of traditional leadership.
We said this out of the realisation and appreciation of the unique yet very important role that our traditional leaders are mandated to do, both by the constitution and our customs.
Since then we have announced various measures that are aimed at supporting our traditional leaders and restoring the inherent dignity of this institution.
I announced in February that we had started rolling out medical aid benefits to traditional leaders in the province.
I said then that other tools of trade to help traditional leaders perform their function, was work in progress.
Program Director
Today, I stand here proud to announce and share with you yet another milestone in our continuing effort to provide better support to our traditional leaders.
The Executive Council, which I am proud to lead, has approved the request for vehicle support to our traditional leaders.
We have heard your concerns.
In our October budget adjustments, an additional R89 million was made available to Cogstha, and this amount was to procure enabling resources to qualifying traditional leaders and members of the houses of traditional leaders.
As we speak, the distribution of communication gadgets to all traditional leaders was started on 11 December.
Our Majesties, the Kings have been empowered with a vehicle each; which will definitely make their valued job easier.
Programme Director;
I cannot conclude before I speak about some disturbing tendency. It has become a fashionable trend that whenever we announce support to our traditional leaders we are accused to be buying votes and political support from traditional leaders.
As a democratic and people’s government, we will apologies for those things that we at times get wrong.
But we will never apologies for supporting an institution that has contributed so much for the defeat of the former oppressive regime.
Our democracy owes its genesis from the support we received from our traditional leaders.
To reduce our support to traditional leaders to support buying is to be ahistorical at best, and at worst is to insult this hallowed institution of our people.
We simply cannot accept the presupposition that our leaders are nothing but a bunch of unthinking bodies whose support is available for purchase.
On the same vein,I wish to plead to your leadership in preserving these tools.I don't expect the MEC,nor officials to visit your majesties because of any misuse of these tools. We also don't want to hear communities complaining that there's excessive indulgence. These vehicles and all other tools,are for easing your work burdens as leaders,take care of them.
Programme Director;
Let me not deviate from the spirit of the day.
Today we are supposed to be merry and joyful; after all, we are already in the festive mode.
In the same spirit I wish to extend my festive best wishes to all of you.
I wish you a merry Christmas and a much rewarding 2016.
I also wish to appeal to you our traditional leaders, to help us spread the necessary message of responsible behavior on our roads.
Our central message, which should go to all our children, remain unchanged; Arrive Alive, Don’t Drink and Drive.
I thank you!
