PREMIER'S REMARKS
Programe Director
Distinguished guests
Delegates
Ladies and gentlemen,
On behalf of our provincial government and the people of Mpumalanga, I am happy to welcome you to Nelspruit and to the province of the Rising Sun. We are most honoured that you elected to hold this important national conference of the Institute of Local Government Management of South Africa, in our province.
On Environment Day.
I hope and trust that at the end of this conference we will all be enriched by your deliberations. We are pleased that you are here because we count you as a critical component in our drive to speed up change. The people of our province will therefore expect that out of this extraordinary gathering will come a message and a programme that will indeed give impetus to our call for a better life for all our people.
Over the next few days you will, I am told, help define the challenges facing local government and to assist in finding solutions for the benefit of local governance as a whole. That's how it should be. It is important that one plans in meticulous detail before undertaking any task. You will agree with me that good governance and changing the lives of our people remain two of our biggest challenges.
Programme director, if we are to succeed in governance, we need to bring up large segments of our populations from poverty. We must, as government at all levels, set ourselves the necessary task of intensifying our campaign against poverty and underdevelopment.
It is my belief that if poverty is indeed to be eradicated and truly sustainable development is to be achieved, we need to be united in action towards change. Change to make resources like water and energy accessible to the poorest of the poor.
The biggest question, therefore, is how do you direct resources at your disposal to meet the needs of the majority, especially the poor?
Our other challenge is to promote accountability and transparency in decision making. As servants of the people we should be accountable to the people, and the citizenry must be well informed of various views and issues for them to make rational choices.
Decision-making should be predictable, transparent and participatory. The participation of civil society groups in public affairs must be enhanced if not institutionalised.
These democratic processes are valuable in promoting government efficiency and responsiveness. It is true that the basis on which to judge progress we have made would be to note the extent to which we have managed to improve the lives of our people. But then also the basis on which to judge the liberation of any country is to note the extent to which its women are free.
When we speak of freedom, social, political and social, we are talking about equal access to resources, employment and so forth. Human rights are women's rights. They can't be privileges to be handed out when they are deemed to be appropriate.
Comrade Samora Machel was right when he said: "The emancipation of women is not an act of charity, the result of a humanitarian or compassionate attitude. "The liberation of women is a fundamental necessity for the Revolution, the guarantee of its continuity and the precondition for its victory.
"The main objective of the Revolution is to destroy the system of exploitation and build a new society, which releases the potentialities of human beings. .This is the context within which women's emancipation arises."
I am glad that the matter of women managers in a male-dominated work environment will become a subject of this conference together with issues like transformation, the role of the private sector in service delivery. There MUST be great debate and concern about women and the disabled in government.
I hope this gathering will be able to engage with some of these challenges not just as part of fashionable sloganeering, but will be able to pay particular attention to detail and then come up with innovative ways of truly good governance.
I am sure you will agree with me that one of the greatest threats to our democracy is corruption. Programme director, our nation is experiencing a deep moral crisis.
There is general agreement that the cost of corruption to the public sector and society is devastating and adversely impacts on our capacity to deliver social services. It contaminates democratic political institutions and good governance.
That is why I always say to the men and women I lead in the Mpumalanga government that it is important to us to always execute our duties with honesty and with integrity.
Let no-one challenge you when you say you are incorruptible.
I also tell them that if you think it is going to be really difficult for you to refuse any gift that could be regarded as an attempt to exert undue influence on you, then you don't belong in government.
Adhere to the principles of openness and transparency in everyday business practice, policy-making and communication, and see to it that your own conduct is always above reproach.
Have respect for government assets and property, and use all resources sparingly and with honesty. Challenge others if they are acting in an unethical way, report behaviour in conflict with good governance.
Our motto should be ZERO TOLERANCE to corruption and bribery. We must get this out of our minds that government funds are there for the taking. Let us be frugal in spending public money. Lavish lifestyles are not for us.
Programme director, let us be transparent in your decisions and actions, ensuring that at all times you act justly, promoting the culture of respect for the law. Act in a way that will promote respect for all people regardless of their beliefs.
Our people look to us as men and women who will give our people the possibility to say that, at last and permanently, we have emerged from the valley of darkness.
Millions look to us for compassion, for understanding, and for honest purpose. That is why it is critical for you to always remember that you are there to serve the people and not the other way round.
Our people need nothing less than a strong, efficient, developmental and truly democratic local government able to ensure an open and accountable system.
Finally, Thank you very much for giving us the opportunity to be with you this morning.
If nothing else, this gives us the possibility to wish the conference success and genuinely to say that I would be most interested to hear the outcome of your discussions.
May I take this opportunity to wish your conference well. Let me conclude by inviting those who come from outside Mpumalanga to use your time in the province to boost our economy. For health reasons and to minimise stress levels, avoid just making this a working visit. Go to the slot machines.
We need the revenue.
I thank you.