Date: 12/08/2004
Source: North West Provincial Government
Title: E Molewa: Inauguration of House of Tradition Leaders
SPEECH BY NORTH WEST PREMIER MS EDNA MOLEWA ON THE OCCASION OF THE INAUGURATION OF THE PROVINCIAL HOUSE OF TRADITIONAL LEADERS, 12 August 2004
The Chairperson of the House of Traditional Leaders
Kgosi Maabe-Molopyane
Members of the Executive of the House of Traditional Leaders
Your Majesties and Royal Highnesses
Our beloved Traditional Leaders
Members of the Executive Council
Members of the Provincial Legislature
Distinguished Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen
On this important occasion of the inauguration of the North West Provincial House of Traditional Leaders, I wish to congratulate all those whom our people have chosen to be their voice in this august House.
Gathered here today, are representatives of the Institution of Traditional Leadership, an Institution that has and continues to play an important role in the development of our society.
As the embodiment of the way of life of our people and a custodian of our customs, traditions and values, the Institution of Traditional Leadership has earned for itself a special place in the hearts and minds of our people.
This Institution has distinguished itself as a willing and capable participant in the ongoing effort to improve the lives of our people.
It is therefore necessary that we remind those we are inaugurating today that; ahead of them lies the strategic task of using this House to reaffirm the Institution of Traditional Leadership as a progressive force for the betterment of the lives of our people, particularly those in rural areas.
Our people look upon this House to take forward, with even more vigour and determination, the struggle against poverty, disease and general want.
Correctly so, our people expect of those we are inaugurating today to be their voice in government and to ensure that the benefits of our liberation are deepened and expanded.
Our people are willing to work with Members of this House within the context of a people's contract in order to ensure that government policies and interventions have the maximum desired impact in the shortest possible time.
It is therefore important that as you prepare to take your seats in this august House, you are fully aware of the genuine expectations of our people whose fulfilment is not negotiable.
As the Provincial government we remain confident that; present in this House are South Africans of impeccable integrity who are ready and able to champion the interests of our people.
We are confident that Members of this House will work together with our people and the Provincial government to ensure that we reach the goals we have set for ourselves.
Building on the firm foundation laid by the former Premier of the North West Province Dr Popo Molefe, it is our intention to work with the Provincial House of Traditional Leaders towards tackling the common challenges we face.
We will continue to work hard to strengthen relations between ourselves as the Provincial government and the Institution of Traditional Leadership in our Province whose members are represented in this House.
This we will do because we are clear in our minds that it is only when we work with our Traditional Leaders that we will be able to guarantee sustainable development, particular in the rural parts of our Province.
Our experience over the years has taught us that it is mostly in those areas where there is cooperation between Traditional Authorities and government where the implementation of programmes aimed at improving the lives of our people is smooth and has maximum impact.
In this regard, we will continue to work towards improving relations between Traditional Leaders and our local government structures.
We envisage a situation where, at local government level, Traditional Leaders and democratically elected representatives of our people reinforce each other in order to bring development to those communities.
We wish to make the point that both democratically elected representatives of our people at local level and Traditional Leadership are important tenants of our democratic system. Both these institutions have a responsibility to work together in the interest of our people.
As the Provincial government we have confidence in those appointed to this House that they will do their part in ensuring that relations between local councils and Traditional Leadership is improved.
Specifically, we expect of them to use their influence in order to promote good working relations with local councils in areas falling under their jurisdiction.
We also expect this House to continue mobilising Traditional Leadership in our Province to take part in programmes such as HIV/AIDS awareness, the prevention of stock theft and general programmes aimed at building a better life for our people.
This House is also expected to pay serious and urgent attention to the process of drafting the provincial legislation on the role and functions of Traditional Leaders.
Naturally, this legislation must be in line with national legislation governing the role and functions of Traditional Leaders and give meaning to our Constitution.
Furthermore, we are aware that certain sections of the founding Act of this House need to be amended so as to enhance the work of this House. We will again look to Members of this House to make inputs in order to ensure that this process proceeds smoothly.
Chairperson, during our state of the Province Address, we committed ourselves as government to improve the stature of the Provincial House of Traditional Leaders. We also committed ourselves to improve infrastructure for our Dikgosi in order to enable them to perform their duties in our communities.
Coupled with these commitments we made in our State of the Province Address is the need for us to pay attention to capacity building within the House of Traditional Leaders. This we will do in order to ensure that the House is adequately equipped to perform its duties effectively and efficiently.
We wish to reiterate the commitments we made to Dikgosi during our State of the Province Address. We wish to make the point that these are commitments we are serious about and that we will deliver on them.
Already, work has begun to improve the infrastructure for Dikgosi in certain parts of our province. We are also proceeding with plans to improve capacity within the Provincial House of Traditional Leaders.
We are doing all these things to demonstrate our commitment to the institution of Traditional Leadership whose work and importance in our society we take very seriously.
The things we are doing demonstrate our willingness to work with Traditional Leaders to build a better province. Indeed through the steps we are taking, we are extending a hand to our Traditional Leaders to join us as we make strides in reconstructing and developing our country.
We are confident that Traditional Leaders in our province will accept the hand we are extending to them and join the forward march towards a better life for all.
I thank you.
Issued by: Office of the Premier, North West Provincial Government
12 August 2004
Source: North West Provincial Government
Title: E Molewa: Inauguration of House of Tradition Leaders
SPEECH BY NORTH WEST PREMIER MS EDNA MOLEWA ON THE OCCASION OF THE INAUGURATION OF THE PROVINCIAL HOUSE OF TRADITIONAL LEADERS, 12 August 2004
The Chairperson of the House of Traditional Leaders
Kgosi Maabe-Molopyane
Members of the Executive of the House of Traditional Leaders
Your Majesties and Royal Highnesses
Our beloved Traditional Leaders
Members of the Executive Council
Members of the Provincial Legislature
Distinguished Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen
On this important occasion of the inauguration of the North West Provincial House of Traditional Leaders, I wish to congratulate all those whom our people have chosen to be their voice in this august House.
Gathered here today, are representatives of the Institution of Traditional Leadership, an Institution that has and continues to play an important role in the development of our society.
As the embodiment of the way of life of our people and a custodian of our customs, traditions and values, the Institution of Traditional Leadership has earned for itself a special place in the hearts and minds of our people.
This Institution has distinguished itself as a willing and capable participant in the ongoing effort to improve the lives of our people.
It is therefore necessary that we remind those we are inaugurating today that; ahead of them lies the strategic task of using this House to reaffirm the Institution of Traditional Leadership as a progressive force for the betterment of the lives of our people, particularly those in rural areas.
Our people look upon this House to take forward, with even more vigour and determination, the struggle against poverty, disease and general want.
Correctly so, our people expect of those we are inaugurating today to be their voice in government and to ensure that the benefits of our liberation are deepened and expanded.
Our people are willing to work with Members of this House within the context of a people's contract in order to ensure that government policies and interventions have the maximum desired impact in the shortest possible time.
It is therefore important that as you prepare to take your seats in this august House, you are fully aware of the genuine expectations of our people whose fulfilment is not negotiable.
As the Provincial government we remain confident that; present in this House are South Africans of impeccable integrity who are ready and able to champion the interests of our people.
We are confident that Members of this House will work together with our people and the Provincial government to ensure that we reach the goals we have set for ourselves.
Building on the firm foundation laid by the former Premier of the North West Province Dr Popo Molefe, it is our intention to work with the Provincial House of Traditional Leaders towards tackling the common challenges we face.
We will continue to work hard to strengthen relations between ourselves as the Provincial government and the Institution of Traditional Leadership in our Province whose members are represented in this House.
This we will do because we are clear in our minds that it is only when we work with our Traditional Leaders that we will be able to guarantee sustainable development, particular in the rural parts of our Province.
Our experience over the years has taught us that it is mostly in those areas where there is cooperation between Traditional Authorities and government where the implementation of programmes aimed at improving the lives of our people is smooth and has maximum impact.
In this regard, we will continue to work towards improving relations between Traditional Leaders and our local government structures.
We envisage a situation where, at local government level, Traditional Leaders and democratically elected representatives of our people reinforce each other in order to bring development to those communities.
We wish to make the point that both democratically elected representatives of our people at local level and Traditional Leadership are important tenants of our democratic system. Both these institutions have a responsibility to work together in the interest of our people.
As the Provincial government we have confidence in those appointed to this House that they will do their part in ensuring that relations between local councils and Traditional Leadership is improved.
Specifically, we expect of them to use their influence in order to promote good working relations with local councils in areas falling under their jurisdiction.
We also expect this House to continue mobilising Traditional Leadership in our Province to take part in programmes such as HIV/AIDS awareness, the prevention of stock theft and general programmes aimed at building a better life for our people.
This House is also expected to pay serious and urgent attention to the process of drafting the provincial legislation on the role and functions of Traditional Leaders.
Naturally, this legislation must be in line with national legislation governing the role and functions of Traditional Leaders and give meaning to our Constitution.
Furthermore, we are aware that certain sections of the founding Act of this House need to be amended so as to enhance the work of this House. We will again look to Members of this House to make inputs in order to ensure that this process proceeds smoothly.
Chairperson, during our state of the Province Address, we committed ourselves as government to improve the stature of the Provincial House of Traditional Leaders. We also committed ourselves to improve infrastructure for our Dikgosi in order to enable them to perform their duties in our communities.
Coupled with these commitments we made in our State of the Province Address is the need for us to pay attention to capacity building within the House of Traditional Leaders. This we will do in order to ensure that the House is adequately equipped to perform its duties effectively and efficiently.
We wish to reiterate the commitments we made to Dikgosi during our State of the Province Address. We wish to make the point that these are commitments we are serious about and that we will deliver on them.
Already, work has begun to improve the infrastructure for Dikgosi in certain parts of our province. We are also proceeding with plans to improve capacity within the Provincial House of Traditional Leaders.
We are doing all these things to demonstrate our commitment to the institution of Traditional Leadership whose work and importance in our society we take very seriously.
The things we are doing demonstrate our willingness to work with Traditional Leaders to build a better province. Indeed through the steps we are taking, we are extending a hand to our Traditional Leaders to join us as we make strides in reconstructing and developing our country.
We are confident that Traditional Leaders in our province will accept the hand we are extending to them and join the forward march towards a better life for all.
I thank you.
Issued by: Office of the Premier, North West Provincial Government
12 August 2004
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