INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER FOR ORAL REPLY
1. Hon J M Mthembu, ANC Chief Whip to ask the Premier
Hon Premier, in the State of the Province Address, you made a commitment “to turn our Provincial Government into an Economic Administration of Excellence and Efficiency”. In pursuit of the above, you undertook to conduct a skills audit of all departments across the board in order to identify the gaps and shortfalls.
1.1 Has such an audit been conducted in all provincial departments?
A task team consisting of Human Resource Managers from the HR Forum has been
established under the leadership of Dr. Mlondo, Head of Human Resources, in the
Office of the Premier. A plan has been agreed to by the Executive Council to
split the project into two parts. The first will involve the auditing of Senior
Managers from Deputy Director upwards. The second part will be the auditing of
the levels from Assistant Director and below, which will be conducted in house.
Tenders have been advertised and received. We will soon finalize the process of
procuring service providers for both tenders MTB 3671 A and MTB 3671 B.
1.2 If yes, what gaps and shortfalls have been identified in each department?
This is not applicable.
1.3 What measures have been put in place to plug the gaps and shortfalls?
This is not applicable and there will be no public statement in the interim.
2. Hon J M Mthembu, ANC Chief Whip to the Premier
Hon Premier, in both your state of the Province Address and your Budget Speech you emphasised the need to promote professionalism, high levels of integrity and respect for the resources of the needy public among our civic servants.
2.1 Did the July month partner-seeking summit in this regard take place, with the Public Sector Unions?
Yes. The Public Sector Summit took place from the 22nd to the 23rd of July
2004 at Loskop Dam Aventura.
2.2 If yes, what concrete resolutions were taken at the summit to promote a civil service that is professional, full of integrity and respect for the resources of the Public?
The resolutions are as follows:
· Infrastructure Development and Maintenance
· Provision of services to the marginalized groups
· IMPROVING COMPETETIVENESS OF THE PUBLIC SERVICE
· HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AND HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT.
· PARTNERSHIP IN PUBLIC SERVICE DELIVERY.
· Local Economic Development and Poverty Alleviation
· COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT WORKERS
A detailed report on the reports of the commissions, resolutions as well as the
declaration will be circulated.
2.3 If not, why was the summit not held as per your pronouncements and
what is the way forward on this matter?
The summit did take place.
2.4 Apart from the Public Sector Union Summit, are there any other measures and activities being undertaken by the Provincial Government to enforce implement of the Batho Pele principles as well as the development, management and creation of professional cadres of public servants in our Province?
Yes.
Public Transformation Unit in the Office of the Premier is currently involved with department in arranging training programmes for civil servants on the Batho Pele principles.
3. Hon B J Nobunga, ANC MPL to ask the Premier
Hon Premier, earlier in the year you publicly instructed all provincial departments “to establish partnerships with research centres, including those in institutions of higher learning and policy institutes, to augment our capacities”.
3.1 & 3.2 Have such research partnerships been established?
To augment our capacities, the following partnerships have been established with the research, policy institutes and institutes of higher learning :
· The Office of the Premier established partnerships with
(a) University of Cape Town
(b) Trade and Industrial Policy Survey
(c) Council for Scientific and Industrial Research
(d) Development Bank of Southern Africa
(e) Tshwane University of Technology
· Department of Agriculture and Land Administration
(a) Agricultural Research Council
(b) Boran Breeders
· Department of Health and Social Services
(a) University of Pretoria
(b) Medunsa
(c) Medical Research Council and University of Cape Town
(d) Medical Research Council U.S. Centre for Disease Control, Havard
University
3.3 If not, what processes are in place to ensure establishment of such research partnership?
This is not applicable.
3.4 Has the research directorate in your office been able to enhance its capacity to conduct research in all aspects of governance in the province?
Yes, there is currently a one-year research course that is being conducted by
the Tshwane University of Technology in addressing the capacity shortfalls. We
are also involve in the process of restructuring the Office of the Premier and
the unit will also be capacitated through that process as we seek to redefine
its mandate.
4. Hon B J Nobunga, ANC MPL to ask the Premier
Hon Premier, the Public Service Commission, in keeping with the spirit of our democracy, enjoins all Government Departments through out the country to have in their employment a minimum of 30% of women and 2% of people with disabilities in decision making structures, i.e. senior management structures.
4.1 Could you please indicate the levels of adherence to the Employment Equity Act prescript?
The profile of the provincial administration with regard to the
representation of women and disabled persons in senior management, is as follows
:-
OFFICE OF THE PREMIER |
||||
GENDER |
NOT DISABLED |
TOTAL |
% |
|
FEMALE |
8 |
8 |
27.6 |
|
MALE |
21 |
21 |
72.4 |
|
Grand Total |
29 |
29 |
100 |
|
DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE |
||||
GENDER |
NOT DISABLED |
TOTAL |
% |
|
FEMALE |
2 |
2 |
20 |
|
MALE |
8 |
8 |
80 |
|
Grand Total |
10 |
10 |
100 |
|
EDUCATION |
||||
GENDER |
NOT DISABLED |
TOTAL |
% |
|
FEMALE |
3 |
3 |
14.3 |
|
MALE |
18 |
18 |
85.7 |
|
Grand Total |
21 |
21 |
100 |
AGRICULTURE CONSERVATION AND ENVIRON |
||||
GENDER |
NOT DISABLED |
TOTAL |
% |
|
FEMALE |
5 |
5 |
33.3 |
|
MALE |
10 |
10 |
66.7 |
|
Grand Total |
15 |
15 |
100 |
|
PUBLIC WORKS |
||||
GENDER |
NOT DISABLED |
TOTAL |
% |
|
FEMALE |
7 |
7 |
41.2 |
|
MALE |
10 |
10 |
58.8 |
|
Grand Total |
17 |
17 |
100 |
|
SAFETY AND SECURITY |
||||
GENDER |
NOT DISABLED |
TOTAL |
% |
|
FEMALE |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
MALE |
4 |
4 |
100 |
|
Grand Total |
4 |
4 |
100 |
HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES |
||||
GENDER |
NOT DISABLED |
TOTAL |
% |
|
FEMALE |
16 |
16 |
47.1 |
|
MALE |
18 |
18 |
52.9 |
|
Grand Total |
34 |
34 |
100 |
|
LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND HOUSING |
||||
GENDER |
NOT DISABLED |
TOTAL |
% |
|
FEMALE |
2 |
2 |
14.3 |
|
MALE |
12 |
12 |
85.7 |
|
Grand Total |
14 |
14 |
100 |
|
SPORT, RECREATION, ARTS & CULTURE |
||||
GENDER |
NOT DISABLED |
TOTAL |
% |
|
FEMALE |
1 |
1 |
16.7 |
|
MALE |
5 |
5 |
83.3 |
|
Grand Total |
6 |
6 |
100 |
|
PROVINCIAL LEGISLATURE |
||||
GENDER |
NOT DISABLED |
TOTAL |
% |
|
FEMALE |
1 |
1 |
12.5 |
|
MALE |
7 |
7 |
87.5 |
|
Grand Total |
8 |
8 |
100 |
|
ROADS AND TRANSPORT |
||||
GENDER |
NOT DISABLED |
TOTAL |
% |
|
FEMALE |
1 |
1 |
20 |
|
MALE |
3 |
3 |
80 |
|
Grand Total |
3 |
3 |
100 |
|
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND PLANNING |
||||
GENDER |
NOT DISABLED |
TOTAL |
% |
|
FEMALE |
2 |
2 |
33.3 |
|
MALE |
4 |
4 |
66.7 |
|
Grand Total |
6 |
6 |
100 |
|
MPUMALANGA PROVINCIALGOVERNMENT |
||||
GENDER |
NOT DISABLED |
TOTAL |
% |
|
FEMALE |
47 |
47 |
28.1 |
|
MALE |
120 |
120 |
71.9 |
|
Grand Total |
167 |
167 |
100.0 |
|
4.1 Could you please indicate the adherence on average to this principle by the Mpumalanga Provincial Government as a whole?
On women we are at 28.1%
To date in terms of the June 2004 audit the Mpumalanga Provincial Government appoints less than 100 people with disabilities of which the majority are at junior level. The audit reveals that there is only 1 Director, 3 Deputy Directors, 2 Assistant Directors and the rest are in low positions. It is important to indicate that the director referred to was appointed being an able bodied person; he only got disabled at a later stage of his employment.
The province is not in any way near even achieving a 1% of employment of
people with disabilities. We have impressed on our departments in particular to
the MEC’s, HOD’s and senior managers to work towards implementing the policy
framework if we are to achieving the said targets by December 2005.
4.2 What are the measures, if any, that have been put by the Provincial Government to enforce adherence to this prescript?
(a) The departments have been directed to draft their equity plans as required by the law.
(b) The Gender Focal Persons in departments will monitor the implementations of such plans.
(c) The monitoring structures in the Office of the Premier i.e. Office on the
Status of Women and Office on the Status of Disable People will continue with
the overall monitoring of performance in all departments.
4.3 Does the Province have a monitoring and an evaluating tool for the implementation of equity policies by Government Department?
The Transformation Unit in the Office of the Premier is the section which
carries this mandate. However, in its design and function it does not lend
itself to monitoring and evaluating employment equity policies in government
departments. This anormally has been identified and will be addressed in the
pending changes to parts of the structure of the Premier’s Office. This
undertaking will be realised soon pending the tabling of the report by GTZ. The
question as to what tool is employed to monitor our employment equity policies
will be best handled once this fundamental plan is resolved.
5. * Hon. SN Sikhosana, ANC MPL to ask the Premier:
Hon Premier, given the importance of the Provincial Growth and Development Strategy (PGDS).
5.1 Has the Provincial Government finalised the revision of the PGDS?
Macro-Policy and the Department of Economic Development and Planning in consultation with Local Governments are working to review the PGDS and we are envisaging that the process will be completed on the 12 of November 2004. This work together with the sector summits which are being convened is part of the preparations for the PGDS summit that will be held at the beginning of next year.
Questions (a), (b) and (c) are not applicable.
6. * Hon. SN Sikhosana, ANC MPL to ask the Premier:
Hon Premier, in your Budget Speech, you made a commitment to finalise the process and acquire the Provincial Monitoring and Evaluation System, which will effectively be implemented in order to track all Government projects.
6.1 How far is the process of acquiring such a Provincial Monitoring and Evaluation System?
A Project Steering Committee comprising of the Department of Finance, Treasurer, Department of Local Government and Housing and the Premier’s Office has been established.
A need has further been identified to beef the human resources in the
planning and project management units in all departments. Workstudy
investigations have been completed and the process of filling those posts will
be embarked upon in due course.
6.2 Will this system and tool also assist the Province in tracking how far we are doing as a Province in terms of creating jobs and fighting poverty, amongst others?
The specifications of the system will allow us to track all projects including their allocated budget and has in it an early warning system that will alert us if we are not meeting our objectives. Chairperson this system will be customised to be able to track issues of poverty and employment linking each and every area of our province through the Geographic Information System (GIS). We will be able to show members on maps all developmental programmes taking place in our province and all poverty pockets that will need serious intervention.
6.3 Is the Premier likely to make a public statement in the near future on this matter?
Yes.
7. * Hon. PC Ngwenya, ANC MPL to ask the Premier:
7.1 Whether there is progress made by the Premier in achieving the targets set in the State of the Province Address and what is the success rate in the following?
(i) Maximising benefits on the Maputo corridor project?
Work on the Maputo Corridor project has been limited at this stage. This is
due to corporate memory loss suffered as a result of a slump in activity over
the last few years. The organisational structures around this project will be
re-established in order to give this initiative new impetus. My office has been
furnished with the blue print documents of the Maputo Corridor Initiative and
the briefing on the status quo was received. Some of the Maputo Corridor
Projects will be picked up again in the context of the deliberations of the
recent Dullstroom Industrial Summit.
(ii) Ensuring the taking off the ground of the Platinum Corridor?
Platinum mining is growing in our Province, however we made no reference to the platinum corridor in our economic priorities.
(iii) The participation of SASOL in maximising economic development in the province?
We have met with SASOL (Synthetic Fuel) and can confidently say that there is
commitment on the side of SASOL to assist in the development of the people of
our province. We all agree that Sasol’s involvement should not be limited to
Secunda and its surrounding areas but should extend to other parts of the
province as well. We have decided to establish a permanent joint team to follow
up on a whole host of issues of mutual interest, including further expansion of
Sasol operations, down-streaming and the promotion of black participation.
7.2 If not, why not; if yes, what are the details?
However there are a number of challenges that we need to overcome in
relation to institutional support. We are presently working on strengthen the
structures that are presently driving the programmes, both in the Office of the
Premier and the Department of Economic Development and Planning.
8* Hon. PC Ngwenya, ANC MPL to ask the Premier:
8.1 Whether the twining agreements that the Province has are benefiting the people of the Province?
Chairperson one could confidently say that we have benefited from most of the agreements that we have with foreign countries especially around the area of the Public Service Improvement. The details of the benefits of these agreements to the people of the Province are as follows: -
The agreement that our Province has with state of North Rhine Westphalia of the Federal Republic of Germany has achieved the following: -
Promotion of investor conferences and economic sector exchange programmes.
The exchange of expertise in respect of Manufacturing and marketing of
agricultural goods.
Exchange of best practices in respect to workers and poverty alleviation, and
Promotion of the business chambers and local businesses.
The agreement with Sichuan Province, of the People Republic of China is focusing on the following programme: -
Poverty alleviation.
Housing programmes.
Sharing of experiences in the development of education systems.
Trade and investment as well as,
The promotion of tourism.
The Status of the Memorandum of Understanding with Republic of Mozambique is as follows: -
The joint Provincial committee of the two parties meet quarterly to discuss
matters arising from the areas of cooperation.
The Department of Health has many times visited Mozambique with an aim to
share best practices between Mpumalanga Province and Mozambique.
The Department of Sports, Arts and Recreation has also went to Mozambique on
several occasions to have an exchange programme on sports activities.
The relationship with the Province of Alberta, Canada and Mpumalanga has achieved the following: -
Improved leadership capacity in governance and programme implementation in
the Province.
Skills transfer focusing on process through structured interactions between
the delegations from Mpumalanga and their provincial counterparts in Alberta
Province.
Learning about best practices in the areas of financial management, corporate
communications, improved accessibility to government services, and performance
management, for implementation in the Mpumalanga context.
Leveraging donor funding to support provincial programmes intended to improve
service delivery to Mpumalanga citizens.
8.2 How many agreements do we currently have: -
We have four agreements:
(i) In Africa?
We have one agreement in our continent with the Republic of Mozambique.
(ii) Abroad?
Abroad we have three Memoranda of Understanding as Mpumalanga Province, with the following States: -
Sichuan Province, People’s Republic of China.
State of North Rhine Westphalia of the Federal Republic of Germany.
The Government of the Province of Alberta Canada.
8.3 Are all the agreements serviced?
Yes.
8.4 Are there any new agreements that the Province is planning
for the future?
Yes, we will be focusing our energy in looking at strengthening interaction within our continent and actively participate in the programmes driven by the NEPAD Secretariat. Presently we are working on establishing a relationship with Angola. Last we were previledged to host the ambassador of the People’s Republic of Angola. In our deliberations this desire was proposed by His Excellency Mr. Ndombashi. The was an agreement to explore this undertaking.
(i) If the answer to question number 3 is no, why not?
(ii) If yes, what are the details?
Subsidiary questions (i) and (ii) fall away.
9. * Hon. RC Mahlobogoane, ANC MPL to ask the Premier:
9.1 Whether the ongoing Imbizo Programme is managing to expose the
weakness in our system of government administration, and what intervention
mechanism is Government planning to jerk up its administration to be able to
deliver on the people’s contract to create work and fight poverty?
Yes, the programme is very helpful in exposing weaknesses especially within our local government structures.
We are presently working on strengthen the monitoring system between the
provincial government and the local sphere of government through the cluster
system and the monitoring and evaluation system that we are working on
procuring.
9.2 If yes, what are the main areas of concern raised by these
communities?
Central to our peoples concerns are issues around service delivery, unemployment, safety and security and their unpleasant relationship with some of our municipalities.
On the other hand programme has strengthened the relationship of our
government with our people; through these interactions we have been able to
share our successes and limitations from sides, our people and we as government.
9.3 What intervention plan has been put in place to correct the situation on: -
· Provincial competencies?
· National competencies?
· Local competencies?
There are ongoing discussions between the National department of Provincial and Local Government (DPLG) and our province to look at this particular issues.
9.4 What has been the response of other race groups on the
programme?
We still have a challenge of the other race groups attending our public meetings: -
(i) If positive, what issues are they raising?
Those that we have met are raising similar concerns of Safety and Security and unemployment, of course some complain about Affirmative Action.
(ii) If poor, what strategy have you put in place to improve the situation?
We are working on looking at means of attracting them to our public meetings.
10. * Hon. R C Mahlobogoane, ANC MPL to ask the Premier:10.1 Whether the envisaged provincial legislation on traditional leadership will be tabled by the department in this current session?
Yes, The Office of the Premier and the Department of Local Government and Housing will table the two Bills in question in this current session of the Legislature.
10.2 What are the issues that the envisaged legislation seeks to focus on?
The two Bills will address the issues that are provided for in the Traditional Leadership and Governance Framework Act, 2003 (Act No. 41 of 2003); which issues include the following: -
. Roles and functions of traditional leaders;
. Hierarchy of traditional leadership;
. Recognition and withdrawal of recognition of a Traditional Community;
. Recognition and withdrawal of recognition of a Senior Traditional Leader;
. Establishment of Traditional Councils;
. Establishment of Local Houses of Traditional Leaders for each of the
District Municipalities in the Province;
. Functions of Traditional Councils;
. Composition of the Traditional Council;
. Establishment of Partnerships between Traditional Councils and
Municipalities;
. Recognition and withdrawal of Regent or / and acting Senior Traditional
Leader;
. Code of Conduct for Traditional Leaders;
. Regulations;
. Implementation of the decisions of the Commission on Disputes and Claim
Repeal of Laws.
10.3 What are the currently outstanding conflict cases of installing new traditional leaders in the Province on the Institution of Traditional Leadership?
There are a number of outstanding cases of claims and disputes that have been received and some are still submitting claims wanting to be recognised as Senior Traditional Leaders which we are still considering and will act appropriately once we have our Provincial Legislation which will give us guidance on handling such matters. The applications that have been received and are still considered by the House of Traditional Leaders are as follows: -
. Recognition [New Applications for a Traditional Community and A Senior
Traditional Leader] – 12;
. Disputes and Conflicts [Claims on Chieftaincy, Traditional Boundaries and
Misconduct] – 08;
. Succession [Existing Chieftaincy where a successor must be appointed] – 01;
.Total number of applications – 21.
The previous administration of this Province took a policy decision last year that it will not consider any new Chieftainship and new Traditional Community pending the finalization of the Provincial Act. The other reason is that the National Act makes provision for the establishment of the Commission on claims and disputes of Traditional Leaders as such a number of disputes and claims will be referred to the said commission once established. As a Province, we could not recognise any new Chieftaincy only to disestablish it a few months down the line because of the legislative provisions and the decision of the commission. We are receiving applications almost on daily basis, some people think that by being born from a royal family automatically qualifies them to be recognised as a Senior Traditional Leader. There are those people who are turning Chieftaincy into a source of income or a job opportunity but I am happy because the House of Traditional Leaders is able to deal with these applications and discharge them accordingly.
(i) If there are any, is the envisaged legislation going to cover future mechanisms of resolving such cases speedily?
Yes, The envisaged Legislation will cover and even provide a broader scope of
dealing with conflicts, recognition, withdrawal and disciplinary procedures for
Traditional Leaders. Hon. Members must know that Chapter 6 of the Traditional
Leadership and Governance Framework Act, 2003 provides that the President will
establish a Commission on Traditional Leadership Disputes and Claims that will
have a life span of five years. As such, the commission will handle some
disputes and claims and the Province will only implement such decisions by the
Commission. The House of Traditional Leaders has finalized preparing all cases
of claims and disputes that were suspended to be handed to the said commission
after its establishment.
11. * Mr C W Hatch, DA MPL, to ask the Premier:
With reference to the termination of the contract with Rainbow Kwanda Communications, would the Premier please respond to the following: -
11.1 What projects have been completed by Rainbow Kwanda Communications for the Province since their appointment of 1 July 2003?
In responding to your questions, the agreement between Rainbow Kwanda and the Provincial Government revolved around the following under mentioned since their appointment of 1 July 2003.
· Familiarization and appreciation of the situation, which was done in terms of the agreement.
· Development of Marketing and Communication Strategies. This area was not
completed because of the delay in involving all the provincial stakeholders i.e.
provincial departments and parastatals. A draft strategy has been crafted and
the Communications Unit is finalizing the consultation on it.
· Newsletter production and distribution
This was achieved – i.e. the production of Inhlabamkhosi.
· Billboards
This area was achieved. Eleven Billboards were placed in the following places:
. Kwa Guqa - Willie Ackerman at Shopping Centre
Road
. Kwa Guqa - W A Botha Road at Engen Garage
. Kwa Guqa - Exit facing onto N4
. Nelspruit CBD - Nelspruit Plaza Taxi Rank
. Kanyamazane - Chris Hani Drive facing traffic to
Community Centre & Stadium
. Kanyamazane - Chris Hani Drive facing traffic to
Community Centre & post office to
Nelspruit
. Kanyamazane - Chris Hani Drive facing traffic to
Community Centre & post office
. Kanyamazane - Chris Hani Drive facing traffic to
Community Centre & post office
. Kabokweni - Bridge at entrance before Themba
Hospital (Love Life site)
. Matsulu - Exit to N4
. Matsulu - Entrance from N4
· Media in Transit
This activity was achieved. Seven taxis and fifteen buses were utilized for advertising.
· Print adverts (magazines and newspapers)
This was achieved – a breakdown of advertisements made was forwarded in reply
to an earlier question.
· Training and Capacity building
A workshop was held with all government communicators regarding general communication matters. A few Editors from print media were invited to address the workshop.
In view of the fact that training was aimed at capacitating of all the communicators, a skills audit was conducted in respect of each communicator. The process of identifying training needs for each communicator was being undertaken.
· Mpumalanga Achievers Award
This event did not take place because of a number of similar award ceremonies, which were held in the Province.
· Cultural festival (soccer, performing arts, music etc.)
This festival was held in collaboration with the then Department of Sports, Recreation and Culture. This is the Tjakalani/ Kusephuka Tidzindzi function that was held in October 2003 in Middelburg.
· Publication of the 1st Provincial Yearbook
A yearbook could not be published after an agreement was reached to divert the budget for the printing of the Ten Year Report.
· Publicizing of Provincial events
This was done on a regular basis.
· Day to day PR advice and assistance
This was done on a regular basis.
11.2 What was the cost of these projects?
R12 359 571,44.
11.3 Are there any projects that Rainbow Kwanda Communications have started on behalf of the Province that are incomplete?
There are no projects that Rainbow Kwanda is currently busy with.
11.4 Has the Province had to pay any penalties or compensation for terminating the contract early?
No, we have not incurred any expenses in terminating the contract.
12. * Mr C W Hatch, DA MPL, to ask the Premier:
12.1 Will the Honourable Premier confirm whether the water pipeline currently being constructed from Gauteng to the Kungwini Municipality also provide water to the communities of the Thembisile Municipality?
Yes.
1.1 If yes, which communities?
The project will augment the provision of water to the Western Highveld Region, which includes Thembisile Municipality.
THANK YOU