Remarks upon receiving the Torch of Peace from the Minister of Transport by the Acting MEC for Education Martha Barbara Bartlett, Tetlanyo High
Honourable Minister of Transport, Mme Dipuo Peters
MEC for Police, Roads and Transport in the Free State, Mr Butana Nkompela
Executive Mayor of the District, Ms Khadi Moloi
Councillor Vaughn Settley
Officials from Department of Basic Education as well as Transport, Safety and Liaison
Religious leaders
Our learners and teachers
Members of the media
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen
Honourable Minister, I want thank you very much for inviting me to this important ceremony – the handover of the Torch of Peace. It is encouraging to receive the symbolic torch at a critical time when government is hard at work to reduce the number of precious lives we loose on our roads.
Encouraging also, is the fact that the literacy level of our people are increasing, a fact that I believe favours the overall effort to raise awareness around this important matter of safety. To the growing number of educated and enlightened South Africans, the basic education system has systemically increased the number of learners who passed grade 12.
Minister Peters, you were right to say, most road fatalities are caused by irresponsible human behaviour, accounting for more deaths on the country’s roads during the festive season. I agree with you that this fact highlights the need to educate communities about road safety.
The Torch of Peace has evolved to represent a rallying call for the creation of a more caring, humane and safer South Africa. Accordingly, I would like to commend the Department of Transport for the energy and effort expended towards the broader campaign of making our roads safer.
The Make Roads Safe Campaign is making a difference in our lives. Most importantly, it is aligned to the United Nation’s Decade of Action against Road Deaths. However, let’s be reminded that road safety is our collective responsibility. It should not be seen as a task of the Department of Transport alone.
As Department of Basic Education, we are in partnership with the Department of Transport to step-up provision of scholar patrols in our schools. The partnership involves key stakeholders and we have committed to safer school transport for learners across the country.
We appeal to parents and all guardians to consider the types of cars they allow their children to be ferried-in. There’s no point in crying foul, saying schools don’t care, when we watch every morning our children being shoved into ‘smoking’ and steaming ‘bakkies’, at times packed to the roof.
Ladies and gentlemen,
The Torch of Peace should at all times remind us of the importance of school safety and of the benefits of acting responsibly.
Learning in a safer and child-friendly environment will boost learner confidence, and thus help improve learning outcomes. Such a climate will help us prepare learners to be responsible, law-abiding citizens in the future.
I want to make a special plea to all parents, caregivers and teachers to inculcate positive values of respect, honesty and responsibility in the young. We, as adults, are role models for future generations, and should act as such.
Children learn more from our actions rather than from what we say. A child accustomed to a parent who buckles up before driving, will take no excuse for any other driver who doesn’t put on a seat belt.
Children will know their rights and responsibilities to the extent that we teach them to do so and to the extent that we create a climate that is conducive for learning and growing. Our national curriculum includes the importance of rights and responsibilities.
We all must understand that freedom and rights come with corresponding responsibilities.
We all need to put our heads together to strengthen relations between schools, communities and our local South African Police Services (SAPS) to reduce violence in our schools and our communities.
This torch is a symbol of hope. It reflects government’s resolve to instil a strong sense of humanity, to preserve lives and to eliminate violence and crime in all their forms. In 2016, we will use the Torch of Peace campaign to support the road safety programme, by implementing awareness programmes on road safety in all our schools.
We should work together as government, education stakeholders and partners, business and broader society, to reduce road fatalities.
The Torch of Peace brings to mind memories of all those in and outside education that have fallen victim to crime and violence. We will reflect on the impact of existing programmes for building safer schools and fighting gender-based violence and sexual harassment.
I am committing my department to work for road safety and builder safer schools to ensure that education is provided under a much safer environment.
Working together we can do more to create safer roads and safer communities. Together, let’s move South Africa forward.
I thank you!
