• Home
• About us
  • Coat of Arms
  • Vision & Mission
  • Structure
• Structure
  • Program 1
  • Program 2
  • Program 3
  • The Premier
  • Organogram
• Newsroom
  • SoPA
  • Budget Speeches
  • Cabinet Statements
  • Media Statements
  • Speeches
  • Archived Speeches
• Resource Centre
  • Downloads/Documents
  • Newsletters & Publications
  • Annual Reports
• Events calendar
• Contact Us
• Search

PREMIER TSP MAKWETLA'S ADDRESS AT THE CONFERENCE OF AMAKHOSI OF MPUMALANGA
White River, Monday, 27 September 2004

Master of Ceremonies
Honourable Chairperson of the House of Traditional leaders Kgoshi Mashile
Your Majesties, the Kings of our people;
Tinkosi, Magoshi nezingwenyama
Members of the House of Traditional leaders
Honourable members of the Legislature.
Honourable MECs
Honourable Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

I feel truly humbled to officially open the first conference of Mpumalanga's House of Traditional Leaders.

Let me from the outset thank all traditional leaders in our province for the deep concern they have displayed for the development of our people and their communities.

The reason why we have gathered here this evening, is because we are convinced that all of us can do more to create a better life for all our people, and that all of us should be actively and directly involved in forging a people's contract to create work and fight poverty.

This evening we gather here to continue our journey on the road to the reconstruction and development of our province and country.
Over the past decade, we have made concerted efforts to redress poverty and inequality through a substantial redirection of public spending towards key social and economic needs. But as we celebrate 10 years of freedom we recognise that the pace of economic growth has to be accelerated.
We still maintain that investment in industry and infrastructure and the resultant expansion of job opportunities, are critical challenges if we are to raise this province from the legacy of the past. The mammoth task we face is to provide more people with incomes
The legacy of many policies of the apartheid order still live with us today. It was by design that the overwhelming population of this province still lives within the former homelands. It lived on 10 percent of Mpumalanga's surface area without jobs and land, and with huge infrastructural needs. The Expanded Public Works Programme in the province, which we launched in Ntoane recently, will create work where the people are. This will simultaneously have the effect of addressing the family dislocation revisited on our people by the culture of migrant labour.

The Extended Public Works Programme will not only restore stability in many families, it will also mark the beginning of a long-term goal of providing the critical community infrastructure which must see us tackle the legendary struggle against rural oppression imposed by the urban-rural dichotomy.

Your Majesties, honourable leaders, we are told you will have the opportunity, over the next two days, to discuss other issues including health in your communities. As government we are more than determined to intensify our fight against HIV and AIDS, TB, malaria, diabetes, hypertension, malnutrition and other illnesses.

On Friday we celebrated Heritage day. It was on this day that we were reminded that fundamental to our unity is the mutual respect for the rich variety of our languages and cultures.

In the coming months we hope to have a lively constructive dialogue in the province on how our elected structures of local government and traditional leaders can work together for the good of their communities. This is a crucial area for reconstruction and development. The resolution of outstanding differences of perspective is of the greatest importance.

To this end, the National Framework Act on the Institution of Traditional Leadership is a valuable guide.
Programme Director, the vexing question in some people's minds is whether thoroughgoing democracy is inherently inimical to traditional institutions.
Without venturing any answer to this question, it is true that consultation, transparency and equity were the corner-stones of the early communal African societies from which many of our cultural practices are embedded. We must also emphasise that on matters such as gender equality, tradition cannot be seen as static.
Our view on all these and other issues is that old and new mores are accepted by communities as such, because they regulate relations of their times. Tradition and culture are seen not as a sentimental attachment to the past, but as a dynamic force relevant to present-day realities.
I am certain that these and other matters will be resolved in a balanced manner always guided by what is in the future interest of our people and country.

May I take this opportunity to urge members of the House of Traditional Leaders to promote a vibrant debate within the constituencies they represent, such that the widest section of our traditional leaders are accorded the opportunity to be heard and also to be exposed to the dictums of the law of the land.

Ladies and gentlemen, we believe that our traditional leaders are going to be occupied by the Traditional Leadership and Governance Framework Act, 2003 (Act No. 41 of 2003).

This Act provides a National framework as well as norms and standards that will inform and guide more detailed Provincial legislation dealing with the institution of Traditional Leadership and its role in the Governance processes.

The Province will prepare two Bills in order to address the requirements of the National Framework Act.

The first of these Bills will be the Mpumalanga Provincial House and Local Houses of Traditional Leaders Bill, which Bill will provide for the continuation of the existing Mpumalanga House of Traditional Leaders as well as the establishment of Local Houses of Traditional Leaders within the District Municipalities in the Province.

Traditional Leaders will, with due regard to the National Framework Act, be duly consulted in respect of the exact constitution and membership of each of the said Local Houses, where the seats of such Local Houses will be, the powers and functions of such Local Houses, the representation of members of a Local House in the Provincial House of Traditional Leaders and the interrelationship between the various Local Houses itself and the interaction between the various Local Houses and the Provincial House of Traditional Leaders.

The second Provincial Bill that will be prepared in order to address the requirements of the National Framework Act, will be the Mpumalanga Traditional Leadership and Institutions Bill. Without attempting to deal with all aspects that will be addressed in this Bill, I would like to highlight the following salient points that will be addressed in the Bill:

· Firstly, the Bill will provide for the recognition of Senior Traditional Leaders, Headmen and Headwomen.

Traditional Leaders will be duly consulted in respect of the applicable cultures, customs and traditions regarding the identification of the appropriate person as the rightful Senior Traditional Leader, Headman or Headwoman, as the case may be. Traditional Leaders will also be duly consulted regarding appropriate instances that may give rise to the withdrawal of the recognition of a person as Senior Traditional Leader.

· The Bill will also determine those functions that must be performed by Traditional Leaders.

Also in this regard, Traditional Leaders will be duly consulted when determining such functions, whilst having due regard to the cultures, customs, values and traditions of the Traditional Community concerned;

· Furthermore, the Bill will provide for the recognition of a community as a Traditional Community and for the withdrawal of the recognition of a community as a Traditional Community.

Likewise, the applicable cultures, customs, values and traditions will be taken in due consideration by means of a thorough consultation process. Vested rights and established practices will obviously play an important part in formulating the Provincial Legislation;

· In addition to the above-mentioned, the Bill will provide for the establishment and recognition of Traditional Councils, the withdrawal of recognition of Traditional Councils and the rendering of support to and the strengthening of capacity within the various Traditional Councils in order to enable Traditional Councils to duly fulfil their roles and functions.

Once again, Traditional Leaders will be consulted in this regard and your experience and knowledge will assist the Provincial Government greatly in formulating these provisions of the Bill and specifically on those areas in which support and the strengthening of capacity will be required;

· The Bill will furthermore provide for the regulation of the performance of functions by Traditional Councils.

We will, in this regard, consult with yourselves on various aspects pertaining to the keeping by Traditional Councils of proper records, the auditing of financial statements of Traditional Councils, how Traditional Leaders will have to disclose the receipt of gifts and adherence by Traditional Leaders to the applicable Code of Conduct;

· In addition, the Bill will provide for the promotion of partnerships between Municipalities and Traditional Councils.

As Traditional Leaders will be requested to guide the Provincial Government on what you envisage your specific role will be in respect of Intergovernmental relations with due regard to the structures and systems already established, which proposals will be taken into consideration in formulating the relevant provisions of the Bill;

· The Bill will also provide for a procedure to implement decisions of the National Commission on Traditional Leadership Disputes and Claims that has a bearing on the Province;

Also, in this regard, your valued inputs, by means of a proper consultative process, will be sought.

· Lastly, apart from the above-mentioned, the Provincial Bill may also prescribe a role for Traditional Councils or Traditional Leaders in respect of arts and culture, land administration, agriculture, health, welfare, the administration of justice, safety and security, the registration of births, deaths and customary marriages, economic development, environment, tourism, disaster management, the management of natural resources and the dissemination of information relating to Government policies and programmes.

Again, I would like to assure Traditional Leaders that, before the Provincial Government decides to what extent these matters will be addressed in the Provincial Bill, you will be duly and extensively consulted in this regard.

The Provincial Bills will ensure that the institution of Traditional Leadership is transformed in such a way that the basic values and elements of the institution will be retained, while the basic tenets of democracy will be introduced. The often-lighted criticism that the institution of traditional leadership is not an elected structure and that it discriminated against women must be grappled with.

The Provincial Bills will also seek to address the many developmental challenges facing the Province and its people. In this regard, the Provincial Bills will enjoin us to construct and formalize cooperation between the institution of Traditional Leadership and democratically instituted organs of State.

We hope to have the Bills before Cabinet in the next three weeks.

Our experience has shown that with goodwill and a commitment to the interests of the community as a whole, even the most difficult problems can be overcome and mutually beneficial solutions found.

We are mindful that the journey to where we are today has not been easy. But all of us persevered because we knew that what we had set out on was the right road.

Working together in a People's Contract to Create Work and Fight Poverty, we are confident of success. It is our belief that Mpumalanga has a firm foundation to realise a leap in our journey towards a region and a country where the cultural life of our people - material and otherwise - will meet the expectations of our people - ma better life for all.
We know we can do all these things and in the process creating more jobs, increase investments, empower those who in the past were excluded from the economy and develop the skills of our people. We have no doubt that all these things are formidable challenges, however, the resilience of our people in struggle will always serve as an inspiration.
It is now my pleasure and privilege to announce the first conference of the Amakhosi of Mpumalanga open.

I trust that your deliberations over the next two days will take place with due consideration to the above-mentioned undertakings and confirmations.

I THANK YOU