Community members from the Mier Municipal area in the Siyanda District were given an opportunity to interact with the Acting Premier, Ms Grizelda Cjiekella and the Provincial Executive on issues affecting their lives during a two-day Cabinet outreach programme to this area that ended yesterday. Cabinet went door to door in the hot sweltering Kalahari heat in the towns of Noenieput, Askham, Andriesvale, Rietfontein, Loubos, Groot Mier and Klein Mier.
The Cabinet 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 service delivery to this area as well as focus on service delivery challenges that still face this area.
Members of the Provincial Executive were accompanied by councilors and officials from the Siyanda Municipality which has an oversight and support role to play to municipalities that fall under its jurisdiction, as well as the local municipality and senior officials from all spheres of government.
The Mier Municipality is plagued by high levels of unemployment and poverty and also extensive water shortages because it is located in the heart of the desert. It is also an area where the greatest atrocities of the Native Land Act of 1913 can be observed that resulted in people’s land being dispossessed making them mere labourers on the land and dumping them in extreme poverty. It is for this reason that Cabinet decided to prioritise a visit to this area as we are commemorating the centenary of the Native Land Act of 1913 and also to see what much-needed and immediate relief can be brought in the form of job creation to this area.
A highlight of the visit was the launch of a R2.5 million job creation project by the Department of Roads and Public Works under Government’s Operation Khotso Pula Nala programme for town revitalization; that will see the creation of a total of 235 job opportunities. The Mier Municipality was also give a further R2 million for a water purification and renewal project. The Acting Premier and the MEC for Roads and Public Works handed over a water truck, grader and bakkie to the Municipality to expedite service delivery to the community. These job opportunities are aimed at providing immediate relief to the residents of this poverty-stricken area whilst Government is looking into iniatitives that will provide long term sustainable employment in this area.
Ms Cjiekella and the MEC for Health, Mr. Sokatsha, paid a visit to a woman who recently gave birth to a healthy baby boy. It was recently reported in the media that the mother gave birth after refused assistance by medical staff at the clinic. During the visit however it was discovered and verified that the baby was born late at night when the clinic was closed. It should be mentioned that the clinic operates between 7h30 and 16h00. The mother however indicated that she did receive assistance from the clinic sister when the child was born. The birth went without any incident or danger to both mother and child. The Acting Premier and MEC committed to the community to immediately relook health services both in terms of the operating times of the clinic and staff and resources.
Human Settlements remain one of the challenges and this was also highlighted by the community. For this reason the Department of Co-operative Governance escalated town planning in Rietfontein, Noeniput and Groot Mier. The rectification of flood damaged houses will also receive high priority.
The Acting Premier also committed to send back a team from the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development to assist the Mier Municipality in addressing the concerns raised by small scale farmers.
The message was very clear that the Provincial Government will prioritise areas in the Mier Municipality for accelerated service delivery. Cabinet is planning further visits to other areas throughout the Province too gain first-hand experience and information of the challenges faced by communities and these visits will yield results in service delivery. As they are the first line of service delivery; Municipalities will also be visited to ensure that they deliver on their mandate to provide services to communities in their jurisdiction. This is an issue the Acting Premier takes very seriously. The entire Cabinet is geared towards achieving this goal to ensure that significant progress will be shown in improving the lives of the people of the entire Northern Cape.
Released on behalf of the Provincial Cabinet
Contact person:
Bronwyn Thomas-Abrahams
083 447 6586