Modern, Growing, Successful Province

Launch of Operation Pula-Nala

Address by the Premier of the Northern Cape Province, Mrs. Hazel Jenkins, on the occasion of the official launch of Operation Pula-Nala in De Aar, Pixley ka Seme district, on Monday, 28 March 2011.

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Programme Director
The Mayor of Pixley Ka Seme District Municipality
Municipal Councillors
Community Members
Government Officials
Members of the Media
Invited Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen

It is indeed an honour for me, on behalf of the Northern Cape Provincial Government, to preside over the official launch of Operation Pula-Nala in my home town of De Aar.

Before I give you the finer details of this unique project, Ladies and Gentlemen, kindly allow me to furnish you with a brief outline of the factors which informed the Provincial Government to embark on this project for the entire district of Pixley Ka Seme.

As your elected public representatives, we are cognisant of the fact that largely through the efforts of the Governing Party, the African National Congress, our country has become more prosperous since the dawn of democracy on 27 April 1994.

Since 1994, Government as a whole has built millions of homes, provided water and electricity, quality education and better health care. More jobs have been created, social grants have been provided to the poor, and various opportunities have been created that were not there before. In spite of these achievements within 17 years, we sincerely acknowledge that there is much, much more we need to do.

However, it is important to acknowledge the following achievements:

• The number of households living in brick houses has increased from 5.7 million to 10.4 million – an 80% hike between 1996 and 2009;

• The number of households using electricity increased by 120% over the same period;

• At least 130% more households were using electricity to cook in 2009 than in 1996; and

• In the same period, the number of households with access to piped water rose to 71%.

Therefore, Ladies and Gentlemen, the Executive Council is unequivocally committed to address developmental challenges in our home province in the most structured and practical manner possible. To this end, both Government and the Ruling Party have unconditionally acknowledged the crucial role that local government has to play, in accordance with its constitutional mandate, to advance the standard of living of our people.

Taking all the developmental factors into account and within the parameters of our official political obligations, we, as the elected public representatives constituting the Executive Council of the Northern Cape Provincial Government, are justifiably proud to launch our unique provincial government campaign termed “Operation Pula-Nala”. In essence, “Pula” and “Nala”, words derived from the Sotho language, mean “rain” and “prosperity” respectively.

Operation Pula-Nala will in the main, endeavour to expedite our township revitalisation and rural development initiatives. It will accord a thorough assessment of the objectives and functions of the municipalities both within their current and our historical contexts. Development and the work associated therewith must be balanced and coherent, thus Operation Pula-Nala will examine the extent of development in our townships and rural areas in an effort to tilt the scale to address major service delivery and related backlogs.

Operation Pula-Nala is about interfacing, assisting and enhancing the capabilities and capacity of local municipalities to make a positive difference and deliver the necessary services to our people.

While acknowledging the fact that the central factor underpinning the task and responsibilities of government at all spheres is not service delivery and service delivery alone, we as the Provincial Government under the disciplined custodianship of the ANC will not allow poverty and underdevelopment to persist. Operation Pula-Nala both as a concept and a working instrument is about creating the necessary conditions for improving the quality of life for all our people in the Northern Cape. This noble campaign’s conceptualisation was informed by current conditions that necessitate a unique interventionist programme and a thorough thought process that evolved to arrive at what is best to respond to the special circumstances of our people.

In the South African context and in the Northern Cape in particular, positive endeavours by government provide the basis for an effective service delivery machinery thereby advancing human, economic and infrastructure development within our province.

Operation Pula-Nala will under the auspices of this particular Provincial Government, create the conditions necessary for the improvement of the quality of life for all the people in our beloved Province.

Ladies and Gentlemen, a municipality is obliged, in accordance with its constitutional mandate, to strive within its financial and administrative capacity to achieve the objectives assigned to it and deliver quality and efficient basic services to its inhabitants. Therefore a municipality must, by its very nature, structure and manage its administration, budgeting and planning processes to give priority to the basic needs of the community it serves and to the advancement of social and economic development within its jurisdiction. Consequently it is incumbent of both National and Provincial government programmes to find expression at the local level in order to improve the lives of our people.

Given the above, the Northern Cape Provincial Government, in collaboration and co-operation with municipalities and organised local government, initiated a programme that is aimed at addressing wide-ranging township revitalisation and rural development projects.

The following broad eight point plan, while not being exhaustive, will inform the objectives of Operation Pula-Nala:

• To foster greater co-operation among all spheres of government for better service delivery;

• To build changing and developing communities;

• To set the province on a sustainable growth path;

• To create work, expand jobs and fight poverty;

• To foster community participation in the affairs of local government;

• To compile a basket of community projects that needs to be monitored on an ongoing basis;

• To develop checks and balances for sustainable community development and track the progress thereof; and

• To provide social protection, fight against crime and corruption.

In providing and delivering services to the inhabitants within its municipal boundaries, the following basic values and core principles must inform the work of all municipalities in the Northern Cape Province:

It is therefore incumbent on the administration of any municipality to:

• Be responsive to the needs of the local community;

• Facilitate a culture of public service and accountability amongst its staff;

• Take measures to prevent and fight corruption;

• Establish clear relationships, facilitate co-operation and communication between the municipality and the local community;

• Give members of the local community full and accurate information about the level and standard of municipal services they are entitled to receive; and

• Inform the local community how the municipality is managed, of the costs involved and the persons in charge.

In effecting the above functions in a caring and expeditious manner, Operation Pula-Nala will create the conditions necessary for the improvement of the quality of life for all our people in the Northern Cape. Operation Pula-Nala will, for all intents and purposes, adopt a two pronged approach. The first segment will incorporate the obligations municipalities must execute in accordance with their constitutional mandate and these include, but are not limited to the following:

• Refuse removal at illegal dumping sites in townships;

• Creation and strategic placing of communal waste bins in townships and rural communities;

• Keeping the streets clean;

• Maintaining township cemeteries in a clean and proper state;

• Fixing blocked drains in townships;

• Proper maintenance of street lighting and changing street bulbs to more eco- friendly and energy-saving ones;

• Creation and maintenance of sporting and other recreational facilities in townships and rural communities;

• Fixing of potholes and paving of streets;

• Demolition of unused structures that pose both a health and a crime risk;

• Clearing of open veld spaces; and

• Regular water and electricity meter reading.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I am pleased to announce that some of the Operation Pula-Nala projects that will be implemented in the Pixley Ka Seme District are as follows:




1. Siyathemba Municipality

Project Name: Replacement of VIP toilets in Marydale and provision of water in Niekerkshoop

This project entails the replacement of the collapsed VIP toilets, due to the heavy rain. The toilets amount to 28, but only 20 will be replaced with this project. The water provision in Niekerkshoop entails the connection to the main waterline and the erection of communal standpipes.

A contractor will have to be appointed for the construction of the septic tanks and only local labour will be employed. The daily rate payable will be R65 per person.

Project Cost Breakdown: R 221 000, 00

2. Emthanjeni Municipality

Project Name: Cleaning of streets

This project entails the cleaning of streets in Britstown and Hanover.

Forty (40) job opportunities will be created (20 people in Britstown and 20 people in Hanover. The daily rate payable will be R 65 per person and the employment period will be 50 days.

Project Cost: R 130 000, 00

3. Umsobomvu Municipality

Project Name: Cleaning Projects

This project entails the cleaning of streets, cemeteries and historical monuments and buildings in Norvalspond, Noupoort and Colesburg.

Forty (40) job opportunities will be created (15 people in Norvalspond, 15 people in Noupoort and 10 people in Colesburg). The daily rate payable will be R65 per person and the employment period will be 50 days.

Special consideration will be given to single-parent households, gender equity and youth.

Project Cost: R130 00, 00

4. Siyancuma Municipality

Project Name: Cleaning of stormwater canals and also flood damage repairs

This project entails the cleaning of streets, cleaning of stormwater canals and flood damage repairs to streets in Griekwastad and Campbell.

Thirty job opportunities will be created (15 people in Griekwastad and 15 people in Campbell). The daily payable rate will be R65 per person and the employment period will be 66 days.

Project Cost: R128 700, 00

Ladies and Gentlemen, since the local government elections of 2006, Government has consistently funded a number of key projects in communities to change them for the better. These projects range from: eradicating the bucket toilet system; paving and tarring of streets; upgrading of community sanitation systems; replacement of water supply pipes; supply of bulk water services; and construction of houses and multipurpose community centres.

Amongst the job creation initiatives, projects across districts were funded and these include waste recycling projects; development and upgrading of tourism information centres; and development of community vegetable gardens and a number of other local economic development projects.

In addition, our ANC-led government will invest the following amounts on current and future projects:

• Frances Baard - R54 042 470 Million
• Pixley Ka Seme - R79 835 385 Million
• Siyanda - R56 120 313 Million
• John Taolo Gaetsewe - R56 430 912 Million
• Namakwa - R69 881 340 Million

As the Northern Cape Provincial Government we will, together with government at large and other progressive forces, strive to consolidate people’s power for the manifestation of a national democratic society as we approach the celebration of 100 years of selfless people’s struggle.

With the launch of Operation Pula-Nala, we certainly will make a decisive shift to meaningful socio-economic transformation in the Northern Cape. Operation Pula-Nala will set in motion a very deliberate programme that will inevitably ensure that the benefits of our political liberation are shared, amongst all the Province’s people. We cannot and will not fail them in our collective goal to overcome poverty. To this end, the Northern Cape Provincial Government will strive to engage every role player in our provincial economy as it is our sincere hope that this Provincial Government leaves a lasting legacy for our people, thereby drastically altering the recent course of history.

I Thank You

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