PREMIER'S ADDRESS
Ladies and gentlemen
Let me from the outset express my delight at being allowed to be part of this important occasion. We are gathered here today to share views and ideas on how we can best fulfil our shared commitment to ensure access to information by the citizens of our province and our country.
Allow me to share with you my thoughts on the significance of this occasion.Today's event marks a start of a mutually beneficial partnership between the provincial government and the private sector. it is the beginning of an effort to understand the challenges facing us as far as communication is concerned.
The communication revolution - the information superhighway needs to be harnessed and utilised if we are to be part of the global community. It presents us with developmental opponunities which, when fully exploited, will without doubt meet the aspirations of the millions of our people who on June 2 gave us a clear mandate.
If we are to build a better life for all, particularly the poorest of the poor - in line with the overwhelming mandate we received with humility and a determination to do better - then we must harness the opportunities offered by modern technology. Failure to do so would be a betrayal of the mandate we were given by our people - black and white.
As we deliberate here today, we should not lose sight of the harsh realities that our people, particularly in the rural areas, are faced with in terms of access to developmental information. We have a common duty, therefore to support and strengthen all the initiatives that are aimed at ensuring universal access and service to information and communications technologies.
Government has a constitutional obligation to disseminate information to all its citizens, while the private sector has the creative and technical talent that is key to a two-way information dissemination. It is thus vital that we combine our different responsibilities and roles while moving in the same direction.
Telecommunications is a medium for information and communication that is generally accepted as a tool for sustainable development. There is therefore a need to integrate the telecommunication roll-out strategy with govemment's integrated rural development strategy.
Ladies and gentlemen let me unashamedly admit to you that the provincial government has adopted an integrated development strategy that is biased towards the poverty pockets of our province. We have no choice but to be biased in favour of, among others, areas in the former "bantustans" of KwaNdebele and KaNgwane. This approach requires of us to forge strategic alliances between government and other development agents in the province, such as Telkom.
I am honestly impressed by the interest that institutions such as SASOL and the University of Pretoria have shown in assisting us in our efforts to improve communication between government and the citizens of our country. I am thrilled that we will have the privilege to listen and learn from your experiences. At the same time, I wish to assure the resource people who will be making presentations here that you are not coming into a province that has a communications vacuum.
The Mpumalanga Provincial Government has been involved in the various processes aimed at improving communication between the government and the people of our country.
When the COMTASK processes were initiated by the then Deputy President, Thabo Mbeki, Mpumalanga was one of the first provinces that took up the challenge that lay ahead. Our inputs helped a great deal to those processes, leading to the formation of the Government Communication and Information Systems (GCIS). I can say without doubt that you will also learn a lot from the wealth of knowledge and skills of our communication cadres that we have honed and nurtured over the years.
The province has addressed some of the frameworks that are necessary to carry out our responsibilities, such as the communication policy and the communication strategy document. We have a bigger challenge, however, to change some of the media stereotypes that have been developed, justifiably and unjustifiably, on our lovely province. As you go into your deliberations later today and tomorrow, there are a few things I want us to discuss.
Even with limited resources, we managed, in the past five years to provide houses, water,electricity, better education and other services to our people.
- Have these achievements been accurately and timeously communicated to the masses out there?
- When we communicated have we always done so in an honest and human way using plain, clear language; avoiding jargon and double speak?
- Can we honestly say our voice has not been patronising - a voice of bureaucracy?
These are hard questions that need honest answers.
- When we communicated was our intention to speak to all the people of Mpumalanga regardless of their position in society or level of education?
- Did we make a special effort to communicate with those who may have been marginalised in the past, especially those who do not have access to English, the non-literate and people with disabilities?
- More importantly did we, before we communicated, listened to what the people in Mpumalanga were saying about us?
- Did we as government allocate adequate resources to the people whose task it was to communicate?
- Did we take communications seriously?
If we are true patriots, imbued with the true revolutionary spirit of telling no lies and claiming no easy victories, we will not shy away from these questions, painful as they may be.
On behalf of the Mpumalanga Provincial Government, I welcome all our visitors and I am confident that today's initiative will assist all the government communicators and other participants to sharpen their communication skills and knowledge for the benefit of the entire public.
Let me conclude by saying, as President Thabo Mbeki commanded us into battle shortly after we won the elections: As we enter the new millennium, South Afiica must become a beehive of activity: a nation at work to build a better life.
Let the work begin.
I thank you