The Premier of the Northern Cape, Ms. Sylvia Lucas, and the Provincial Executive Council completed a successful four-day Cabinet outreach to the John Taolo Gaetsewe District this week.
The Executive outreach programme is aimed at strengthening intergovernmental relations and to improve the capacity of Government in implementing integrated service delivery programmes. This programme also places the Provincial Government in a position to assess the implementation of service delivery to the areas that are visited as well as focus on service delivery challenges facing the communities in these regions.
Members of the Provincial Executive were accompanied by the Director General, senior officials of Government, municipal Mayors and councilors as well as officials from the respective municipalities in the John Taolo Gaetsewe District. The Northern Cape Province is known for its vast distances and remote areas that are often not within easy reach of Government Departments, for this reason the Executive Council decided last year that the outreach would target mainly the most remote areas because everyone regardless of their location have a right to service delivery. This outreach saw the Executive council visiting areas such as van Zylsrus, Dithakong and Sedibeng.
The Outreach was three-fold in nature; firstly Ms. Lucas and the MEC for Co-operative Governance, Human Settlements and Traditional Affairs (COGHSTA), Mr. Alvin Botes, met with the Traditional leaders in the District because they are represented at the Provincial House as well as the local House of Traditional leaders. Traditional leaders have previously been solely responsible for service delivery in the areas that fall under their jurisdiction. Under this new dispensation, Government realises the importance of placing traditional leadership at the centre of development in these rural villages. “By involving and inviting the input of traditional authorities in service delivery, we are able to deliver services in a more co-ordinated and effective manner”, said the Premier at this meeting that signaled the start of the outreach.
Further to this, meetings were also held with all the councilors in the District. Ms. Lucas reminded these leaders of local government that regardless of political affiliation, everyone has a common responsibility to ensure that service delivery takes place. She went further to state that Local Government is a very important sphere of Government and is being prioritised by Government under the Back to basics Programme. Ms. Lucas stressed that, “Local Government is the coalface of government and where the needs of people should be addressed thus we must find a way to work together politically and administratively”.
A third leg of the outreach was allowing community members an opportunity to interact directly with Members of the Executive Council on service delivery challenges and to seek direct intervention from some of the Provincial Government departments. Service delivery departments also delivered services to community members, whilst MECs conducted unannounced visits to service delivery points. Early Childhood Development Centres and schools were supplied with much need educational toys and sporting equipment. Needy families were also supplied with food parcels. During a visit to the van Zylsrus Primary school, where there is a constant increase in the learner numbers, the Premier made a commitment that Government will start the planning process for the construction of extra classrooms and a hall.
Issues that caused concern to community members were largely water, road infrastructure, agriculture, electricity, health and employment. These concerns raised by the community members have been noted by the respective MEC’s who will return to the communities with tangible solutions to their concerns. On the issues of electricity, the Director General will engage Eskom to find a workable solution. The areas visited also stand to benefit from the R 18 billion Vaal Gamagara Water Scheme, that was launched last week and this will drastically improve water infrastructure to these areas.
Throughout the visit, Ms. Lucas stressed the need for Government to work with greater speed to address the challenges faced by the respective communities. The Premier also encouraged the community to assist Government with the shortages experienced in the health personnel by submitting names of qualifying students that can be trained as nurses and doctors so that they can plough back to the communities where they come from. The visit to Dithakong, where community members are questioning the legitimacy of their Chief, created an ideal opportunity for Ms. Lucas to once more explain to community members the comprehensive investigation and outcomes of the Nhlapo Commission that proclaimed Chief Motshwarakgole to be the rightful Kgosi of Dithakong.
The Premier will ensure that in all the areas of service delivery where commitments had been made that there is definite delivery on these. Taking from success of previous Executive council outreaches and future activities planned it bears testimony that the Premier and her Executive is committed to delivering services to the poorest in the Province and will continue to do so no matter the distance or conditions to reach these communities.
Released by the Spokesperson to the Premier
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