Date: 14/11/2002
Source: Northern Cape Provincial Government
Title: Dipico: Year-end closing ceremony of the Northern Cape Legislature
ADDRESS BY NORTHERN CAPE PREMIER MANNE DIPICO AT THE CLOSURE OF THE 4th SESSION OF THE 2nd LEGISLATURE OF THE NORTHERN CAPE PROVINCIAL LEGISLATURE, Kimberley, 14 November 2002
Honourable Speaker,
Members of the Legislature,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Comrades and friends,
Today, Honourable Speaker, Deputy Speaker and Members of the Legislature, we will deliver the last speech from this stool on the occasion of the Fourth Session of the 2nd Legislature of the Northern Cape Province.
When I became Premier, I said this government would make every effort to listen to the people of the Northern Cape. With that in mind, we travelled some 50 000 km last year and the first half of this year on the "Cabinet Meets the People" programme - visiting over 100 communities and meeting with some 400,000 people in the process.
Towards the second half of this year, we continued to meet with hundreds more. We took those aspirations, those priorities and those dreams and worked to put them into action.
Our action plans based on the 12 themes across the board - on health care, social services, employment opportunities, arts and culture, infrastructure development, housing and local economic development demonstrates our commitment to listening.
We took all those aspirations and ideas from the public to forge a framework for a workable economic plan - a plan to create education and employment opportunities for our young people.
Let me add a word on some of the elements of that plan:
* We have committed ourselves to increase child grants,
* We will reconstruct and continue to expand our road infrastructure,
* We will encourage the speedy implementation of a rural revitalisation plan based on the Integrated Rural Development Strategy to achieve sustainable rural livelihoods,
* We will continue to work very hard to realise the Institute for Higher Education. Substantial progress has been made to date, what remains are legal and other matters which the MEC for Education will tackle vigorously,
* We will implement our hospital revamp and construction plan, and ensure quality health-care including working on improving the children's wards,
* We will significantly increase our housing delivery programme
* We will expand the programme to involve young people in productive initiatives, provide sporting facilities across the communities of the province to ensure there are no idle youth anywhere in the province.
Here in the Northern Cape we stand by our commitment to meet the province's immediate priorities and expand the economy and maintain sound fiscal management.
Honourable Speaker,
We're here today to celebrate the province we all proudly call home, and to close a chapter for us to open a new one full of possibilities and new opportunities. We shall be nomads no more. A new home is awaiting this House at the new legislature buildings.
Today celebrate the Northern Cape's considerable successes.
Not only will we make history, as the first province to occupy a legislature building which has no trappings of the past.
The intent with the new structure was to seek, among others, to act as a catalyst for development and to promote non-racialism and local economic development and help us to look to at our future with optimism. We are doing this now because these are not times to be modest and laid back. We have a great economic and social story to tell - We have a province that's more diversified than it has ever been.
A province where new businesses are starting and thriving and entire industries are expanding. A province where we have economic and social momentum and we head into our second decade of freedom and democracy full of exciting prospects and opportunities.
But in order to fully realize these exciting prospects, we need to do a better job of celebrating and telling who and what we are. Attitude is vital! It can help us build our economy. It can help us attract new investors and new people. It can speak to our own young people about the future, which is here for them.
The problem is we tend to be too laid-back about ourselves. We don't blow our horn as much as we ought to. Because we are modest, we tend to be surprised when our successes are pointed out to us.
We're surprised when we're told that we have one of the most competitive business climates in the nation, I urge you that we should continue to nurture it. We're surprised when we're told that we have potential for higher growth in productivity. We're surprised when we're told our potential in manufacturing investment could increase dramatically and job creation is on the upswing.
We could achieve even greater job creation possibilities if we manage these projects such as the Kalahari Kid (goat project) and others in the direction that yields the desired outcomes. We're even surprised sometimes by the beauty of our own province, the wealth of its resources and communities and people.
We're standing up for the Northern Cape because if we don't, then who will? If we don't believe in ourselves then who will?
People across the Northern Cape from the thousands who consulted with us on our economic plan to major business and community organizations have all said we need to celebrate our successes more, promote the province more, and foster more positive attitudes.
We're building on the foundation laid during the past few years, including the many discussions and debates we had in these premises. Today, we announce a new 'Campaign Northern Cape
Source: Northern Cape Provincial Government
Title: Dipico: Year-end closing ceremony of the Northern Cape Legislature
ADDRESS BY NORTHERN CAPE PREMIER MANNE DIPICO AT THE CLOSURE OF THE 4th SESSION OF THE 2nd LEGISLATURE OF THE NORTHERN CAPE PROVINCIAL LEGISLATURE, Kimberley, 14 November 2002
Honourable Speaker,
Members of the Legislature,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Comrades and friends,
Today, Honourable Speaker, Deputy Speaker and Members of the Legislature, we will deliver the last speech from this stool on the occasion of the Fourth Session of the 2nd Legislature of the Northern Cape Province.
When I became Premier, I said this government would make every effort to listen to the people of the Northern Cape. With that in mind, we travelled some 50 000 km last year and the first half of this year on the "Cabinet Meets the People" programme - visiting over 100 communities and meeting with some 400,000 people in the process.
Towards the second half of this year, we continued to meet with hundreds more. We took those aspirations, those priorities and those dreams and worked to put them into action.
Our action plans based on the 12 themes across the board - on health care, social services, employment opportunities, arts and culture, infrastructure development, housing and local economic development demonstrates our commitment to listening.
We took all those aspirations and ideas from the public to forge a framework for a workable economic plan - a plan to create education and employment opportunities for our young people.
Let me add a word on some of the elements of that plan:
* We have committed ourselves to increase child grants,
* We will reconstruct and continue to expand our road infrastructure,
* We will encourage the speedy implementation of a rural revitalisation plan based on the Integrated Rural Development Strategy to achieve sustainable rural livelihoods,
* We will continue to work very hard to realise the Institute for Higher Education. Substantial progress has been made to date, what remains are legal and other matters which the MEC for Education will tackle vigorously,
* We will implement our hospital revamp and construction plan, and ensure quality health-care including working on improving the children's wards,
* We will significantly increase our housing delivery programme
* We will expand the programme to involve young people in productive initiatives, provide sporting facilities across the communities of the province to ensure there are no idle youth anywhere in the province.
Here in the Northern Cape we stand by our commitment to meet the province's immediate priorities and expand the economy and maintain sound fiscal management.
Honourable Speaker,
We're here today to celebrate the province we all proudly call home, and to close a chapter for us to open a new one full of possibilities and new opportunities. We shall be nomads no more. A new home is awaiting this House at the new legislature buildings.
Today celebrate the Northern Cape's considerable successes.
Not only will we make history, as the first province to occupy a legislature building which has no trappings of the past.
The intent with the new structure was to seek, among others, to act as a catalyst for development and to promote non-racialism and local economic development and help us to look to at our future with optimism. We are doing this now because these are not times to be modest and laid back. We have a great economic and social story to tell - We have a province that's more diversified than it has ever been.
A province where new businesses are starting and thriving and entire industries are expanding. A province where we have economic and social momentum and we head into our second decade of freedom and democracy full of exciting prospects and opportunities.
But in order to fully realize these exciting prospects, we need to do a better job of celebrating and telling who and what we are. Attitude is vital! It can help us build our economy. It can help us attract new investors and new people. It can speak to our own young people about the future, which is here for them.
The problem is we tend to be too laid-back about ourselves. We don't blow our horn as much as we ought to. Because we are modest, we tend to be surprised when our successes are pointed out to us.
We're surprised when we're told that we have one of the most competitive business climates in the nation, I urge you that we should continue to nurture it. We're surprised when we're told that we have potential for higher growth in productivity. We're surprised when we're told our potential in manufacturing investment could increase dramatically and job creation is on the upswing.
We could achieve even greater job creation possibilities if we manage these projects such as the Kalahari Kid (goat project) and others in the direction that yields the desired outcomes. We're even surprised sometimes by the beauty of our own province, the wealth of its resources and communities and people.
We're standing up for the Northern Cape because if we don't, then who will? If we don't believe in ourselves then who will?
People across the Northern Cape from the thousands who consulted with us on our economic plan to major business and community organizations have all said we need to celebrate our successes more, promote the province more, and foster more positive attitudes.
We're building on the foundation laid during the past few years, including the many discussions and debates we had in these premises. Today, we announce a new 'Campaign Northern Cape
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