Picture: The president of Republic of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa

By CYRIL RAMAPHOSA

Last Thursday, the 31st of August, we woke to the news that a building in downtown Johannesburg was on fire with many of its inhabitants still trapped inside.  

As emergency services worked at the scene, we heard harrowing accounts of people being forced to jump out of windows, of those who lost all their meagre possessions, and of mothers losing contact with their children as they tried to escape the inferno. Seventy-six lives have been lost. Twelve of the deceased were children. Scores were badly injured. 

There are few words that can convey the immensity of this tragedy. Our hearts are heavy.   

At such a time, we embrace our common humanity. 

It does not matter what the nationalities of the inhabitants were. It does not matter if they were or were not documented. What matters is that, as a people of empathy and compassion, we rally around the survivors who have lost everything, and who are struggling to come to terms with what has happened to them.  

I commend the firefighters who responded so swiftly to put out the fire. I further commend the relief organisations, municipal officials, national departments, embassies, civil society groups and members of the public who have come to the aid of those who lost loved ones and are supporting those left destitute. 

In the aftermath of this tragedy, serious questions must be asked about how some 200 people were occupying a building that was not built for housing, was unsafe and had no basic services. 

Serious questions must be asked about why by-laws are not being enforced across vast swathes of certain cities, resulting in them becoming run-down. These areas are attracting crime, further compounding the problem.

Serious questions must be asked about how the laws and regulations designed to protect tenants from arbitrary eviction have been used by unscrupulous and criminal ‘slumlords’ to prey on society’s most vulnerable. 

Serious questions must be asked about the responsibility of owners and landlords of inner-city buildings in Johannesburg and major cities around the country that have either been abandoned or fallen into ruin. These owners include private property developers and the state itself. 

South Africa has progressive laws and policies with respect to housing, including the Emergency Housing Programme. There are landmark court judgments on the rights of tenants and the responsibilities of the state to people facing eviction, regardless of their immigration status. We need to examine how our policies are being implemented and how they can be improved.

The victims of the Marshalltown fire weren’t only the poorest of the poor. Many were reportedly undocumented migrants, who were vulnerable to exploitation.

Dealing decisively with illegal immigration is a priority because regularising the immigration status of all those who have the legal right to be in our country helps to protect them from exploitation.

There are complaints about employers who flout the law and hire illegal immigrants so they can pay them less. There are also corrupt individuals in the state working with criminal syndicates to get fraudulent documents for those desperate to remain in the country.

This tragedy has brought to the fore the need to resolve the challenge of housing in our cities. Even though millions of houses have been built since the advent of democracy, providing decent homes for over 14 million people, the demand for housing continues to grow. The movement of large numbers of people into our major centres is fuelling the growth of informal settlements and placing further strain on infrastructure and services.   

As a starting point, municipal authorities across the country dealing with inner-city decay need to redouble their efforts to revitalise these areas, use regulatory and legislative provisions to safeguard human life, and hold landlords whose premises have become headquarters of criminal activity accountable.  

We have heard about progress in some areas. It was reported that last year, for example, the City of Johannesburg managed to return some 47 ‘hijacked’ buildings to their lawful owners. Once rehabilitated, these buildings could provide safe and decent low-cost housing for the poor.

There needs to be greater cooperation between municipal officials and inner-city property owners and developers.

We need clean, safe, liveable and vibrant inner cities that attract people to live, work or study. We want our inner cities to attract businesses and investment. We cannot allow certain parts of our cities to suffer chronic neglect and become ‘no-go areas’ because of rampant criminal activity.  

As such, let us come together as government and the private sector, as individuals, as communities and as civil society organisations. 

We have to obey the law and observe regulations that exist for our safety and for the safety of others. We need to work with officials seeking to strike a balance between the rights of tenants and regard for their safety and well-being. Above all, we need to report acts of criminality and not be party to them. 

Like all of us, the people living in that building and in similar conditions elsewhere want a decent quality of life. They want a safe place to live close to work opportunities and services. 

We have a shared responsibility, as government, business and civil society, to do everything we can to provide support and protection. Let us work with, and not against, each other. 

Let this tragedy compel us to work much harder to give effect to the human dignity that is the right of us all. 

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Picture: The newly-appointed Head of Department for North West Community Safety and Transport Management/Dr Hans Kekana/Supplied

By OBAKENG MAJE

North West MEC for Community Safety and Transport Management, Sello Lehari has welcomed popular House DJ, Dr Hans Kekana as the new Head of Department. Lehari said the position became vacant when the contract of the former HOD, Botlhale Mofokeng came to an end in April 2022.

“The process led by the Office of the Premier was embarked upon and the position was duly advertised. After all the processes were gone through, it was HK as Kekana is popularly known, who emerged as the successful candidate. Kekana has 27 years’ experience cumulatively in both public and private sectors with eight of those at senior level in government.

“As a strategic thinker and a proponent for good governance, Kekana will be a perfect fit for the department. As a way of introducing Kekana, we did this on the sidelines of the department’s Thuntsha Lerole programme in Tswaing on Friday,” he said.

Lehari further said Kekana was conferred with a Doctorate by the North West University (Mafikeng campus) last year, his alma mater from which he also received a Master’s Degree several years earlier. 

Kekana said: “It is my singular honour and an absolute privilege to be given an opportunity to serve. Public service comes not only with pressure but also with an opportunity to change the lives of the citizens.

Our key performance area is to ensure deliverables as pronounced by Lehari in a policy speech,” he added.

However, the Democratic Alliance (DA) spokesperson on North West Community Safety and Transport Management, Freddy Sonakile said they will submit the Promotion of Access to Information (PAIA) application on the appointment process of Kekana.

Sonakile said they are concerned by allegations of political manipulation in the appointment process Kekana.

“The HOD position has been vacant since April 2022. The position was only advertised in February 2023 and later re-advertised. Interviews were held early in July and an interview report with the results was sent to the acting North West Premier, Nono Maloyi, who has since signed off on the appointment of Kekana.  

“According to information received by the DA, it is alleged that the ranking of the two candidates on the interview list has been switched to benefit a candidate who is allegedly closely aligned with Lehari,” said Sonakile.

He said it appears that, the results may not have favoured the candidate that Lehari preferred, and the process may have been manipulated to make provision for appointing an individual who will be more amenable to the ANC.

Meanwhile, the North West Provincial Government (NWPG) spokesperson, Brian Setswambung refuted the allegations and described them as ludicrous.

“The post was advertised both internally and externally in the North West Provincial Government Intranet, Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) Circular 03 of 2022 and National Publications.

“The initial shortlisting session was held on 6 April 2023 in Rustenburg and the panel resolved that the post be re-advertised as it had the potential to exclude many competent potential candidates. The candidate that has been recommended and approved for appointment is expected to assume duty on 01 September 2023,” he said.

Setswambung said they are not aware of any manipulation of the process to favour the recommended candidate. He said all candidates were subjected to a fair selection process i.e. interview, competency assessment and pre-employment verification process.

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Picture: The chairperson of NWPL’s Portfolio Committee on Health and Social Development, Gavin Edwards/Supplied

By OBAKENG MAJE

Most Non-Profit Organisations (NPOs) in North West alleged that the North West Social Development is failing in its fiduciary duties. This comes after many NPOs raised various challenges during the oversight visits conducted by the North West Provincial Legislature’s Portfolio Committee on Health and Social Development last week.

According to some NPO managers, they are struggling to get funding from the North West Social Development due to unnecessary delays caused by ‘certain’ officials within the department. The Silwer Jare Old Age Home Manager informed the committee that, they would not be allowed to repay the loan it borrowed from the bank through the subsidies that are often paid late by officials in the department.

“It costs us R6 million a year to run operations at the centre. The centre houses 52 elderly patients, 22 are self-funded and 30 are subsided by the State,” she said.

The chairperson of NWPL’s Portfolio Committee on Health and Social Development, Gavin Edwards resolved to make a swift call to the North West MEC for Social Development, Lazarus Mokgosi to intervene in assisting NPOs that are struggling to get funding due to unnecessary delays.

“The program is aimed at strengthening oversight and public participation and to promote accountability and transparency in government. We have informed Mokgosi about all three old age centres that we visited.

“They posed similar challenges of having Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and Business Plans that are not signed in time, which delays payment on their grants. The grants are paid late resulting in NPOs borrowing a lot of money from the bank just to keep the facility going.

“Most of the facilities house more state elderly patients than private elderly patients, who pay way more than the state to keep the NPOs running. This causes serious frustration for the old age homes, meant to work hand in hand with the department to solve the social ills of this province,” he said.

Edwards further said officials from the North West Social Development department have chosen to be bullies towards NPOs, instead of assisting and willingly aiding places meant to alleviate lives of many social ills and making their work easier, they have added more burden to the current existing dire situation.

He added that the committee was met with a similar exhausting situation at Ipopeng Old Age Home, where certain officials within the department demanded the Centre Manager, Esther Seleko to pay back R70 000 of the subsidy into an unknown separate account.

“We have resolved to call in a meeting with Mokgosi, stakeholders of NGOs and NPOs including officials of the department to resolve matters raised during the oversight visits,” he said.

Meanwhile, Seleko said: “Reasons for this were never clear and were only informed that they had to return the money back to Treasury, as it was not used in the financial year it was meant for. The centre was met with threats made to them if they refused to pay all monies requested back.

“We were threatened with the Hawks and Special Investigation Units (SIU) that would be sent to investigate us and arrest us for refusing to pay back the R70 000 allegedly owed to the department.”

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Picture: The chairperson of North West Provincial Legislature (NWPL) Portfolio Committee on Health and Social Development, Gavin Edwards during an oversight visit at Manthe Community Health Centre in Taung

By OBAKENG MAJE

The Manthe Community Health Centre (CHC) continues to operate under severe pressure. This glaring picture was painted by a professional nurse, Mosetsanagape Mongale during the North West Provincial Legislature (NWPL) Portfolio Committee on Health and Social Development’s oversight visit on Thursday.

Mongale said the CHC is operating under severe constraints with less space. She further said due to space constraints, the screening area is located in the patients’ waiting area demarcated by a simple linen partition, which compromises patients’ confidentiality and privacy.

“Besides the space challenge, we are also faced with a water crisis leading to the facility only attending to emergency cases and sending all admissions to Taung District Hospital. Maternity cases are also referred to Taung District Hospital due to the water crisis.

“We are also understaffed at the health centre, which puts excessive pressure on the current personnel. So, due to the challenges faced by the health centre, we have allocated different weekdays for different ailments like chronic diseases, unless there is an emergency,” she said.

Mongale added that the CHC is supposed to assist with baby deliveries, but they refer patients to Taung District Hospital because the facility does not have running water and can only assist during emergencies.

She said water is very critical in the operation of the CHC and it also reduces the chances of infections as the nurses need to wash their hands after attending to each and every patient.

The chairperson of the Portfolio Committee, Gavin Edwards said: “We conducted oversight visits at Manthe Community Health Care Centre and Pudimoe Community Health Care Centre in Taung. The programme is aimed at strengthening oversight, public participation, accountability and transparency in government.

“We acknowledged challenges at the two CHCs and suggested a meeting with the North West Department of Health to check how they are going to mitigate the water crisis. The committee will engage with the department to check if there are any future plans of building proper health care facilities, which meet the norms and standards of health care facilities, adequately accommodating staff and community.”

In Pudimoe, the committee was welcomed by the Facility Manager, Victoria Tlharesengwe. She told the committee that the CHC is operating 365 days, despite daily challenges.

“We have space issues where we ended up dividing our consultation rooms into two using small mobile partitioned curtains. The privacy of the patients is compromised as the discussions between the sister and the patient can be heard by the person sitting in the other makeshift consultation room.

“Those consultation rooms are very narrow making patient observation and treatment a serious challenge. The administration staff does not have office space. Three data capturers are working from the facility manager’s office while the facility manager is working from the maternity room,” said Tlharesengwe.

She said when there is a water outage, they are forced to go and get water from the Jojo tank outside even at night. Tlharesengwe said it is difficult for the facility manager to get at least 80% of her administrative tasks as she is often forced to relieve and assist nurses when required.

“We have allocated one of the nurses to work full time with the centre doctor in order to assist with translation, which has created a shortage of nurses,” she said.

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Picture: The deceased, Lefentse “Tsantsu” Mabilo/Supplied

By OBAKENG MAJE

The North West police said they have launched a probe into the death of a boy at Mooks Plaasie near Dryharts village, in Taung. This comes after Lefentse “Tsantsu” Mabilo (17) died in a swimming pool on Sunday morning.

According to allegations, Mabilo who attended the All White Picnic Party event at Mooks Plassie on Saturday night, was intoxicated and jumped into a pool, but landed with his head. He suffered fatal injuries to his skull.

Now, the North West police spokesperson in Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati cluster, Warrant Officer Tryphosa van Rooyen said the investigations are underway.

“Yes, the police have opened an inquest case for further investigation. There is no foul play suspected in the matter,” she said.

Meanwhile, the Mooks Plaasie’s official Facebook Page said the incident took place on Sunday morning at around 9am.

“It is with great sadness that, we announce the death of our beloved patron, who sadly passed away this morning at around 9am. The patron died after a freaky accident in the pool and it is important to note that, our event was scheduled to end at 5am this morning.

“At the time of the sad incident, the official medical personnel have already vacated the venue. It is our responsibility to ensure the safety of our patrons, but we can only do as much. Our event is a celebration of life,” the statement reads.

It says, as the host, it is in the new season which is spring that brings new beginnings and celebrates their wins of the year whether big or small. Mooks Plaasie said is looking forward to a prosperous festive season.

“Our heartfelt condolences are with the family and everyone affected by this unfortunate and sad tragedy. He will forever be in our hearts and thoughts. As this is an annual event, we will continue to celebrate his life.

“Let’s allow his family time to face loss and raise our glass to celebrate his colourful life. To his family, we are deeply sorry and we will be working closely with the police and take a painful lesson from this tragedy.”

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Picture: The police confiscated an illegal firearm during a search/Supplied

By KEDIBONE MOLAETSI

Two foreigners were arrested for being in possession of an illegal firearm in Keimos. The Northern Cape police spokesperson, Lieutenant Col Sergio Kock said they have also arrested two suspects in Galeshewe and Roodepan respectively after the Kimberley K9 unit, Crime Prevention and Crime Intelligence received a tip-off.

Kock said the police confiscated Mandrax, Tik, and Dagga worth R18 000 and R15 000 at the two respective houses. He further said another man was arrested in Bothitong village, near Kuruman after police found him in possession of 26 litres of alleged stolen petrol and diesel, a laptop, and a flat-screen television.

“The disruptive actions were executed from 28 August until 3 September 2023. Operation Shanela comprised of stop and searches, vehicle checkpoints, cordons, and searches, high visibility patrols, compliance inspections at liquor outlets, tracing operations by detectives, and visits to businesses, and second-hand goods dealers.

“The police across the province also conducted routine visits at ATMs, business premises, National Key Points, Post Offices and tuckshops. Operation Shanela remains intentional in clamping down on crime in the province, which netted 244 arrests,” said Kock.

He added that, the police across the province conducted numerous actions, which included 11 roadblocks, 48 VCPs during which 3003 vehicles and 7281 persons were searched and numerous fines issued for contravention of the law.

Kock said these actions were also enhanced by 1474 high visibility blue light patrols and hundreds of foot patrols throughout the province.

“A multitude of disruptive actions included 448 stop and searches, cordon and searches at taxi ranks, visibility in shopping malls and complexes and other hotspot areas.

“In total, 20 844 actions were executed comprising of compliance inspections were conducted at second-hand dealers, scrapyards, shebeens, taverns, liquor outlets, firearm dealers, farms and informal businesses,” said Kock.

He said all the arrested suspects will appear in the respective courts soon.

Meanwhile, the Northern Cape Police Commissioner, Lieutenant Gen Koliswa Otola, reiterated that during this past week, several successful actions, including Operation Basadi was executed in the five districts.

Otola said the police also celebrated a multitude of positive convictions, especially connected to GBV&F in celebration of the closure of Women’s Month.

“The September month focuses on police safety and our police must ensure that they are operational ready at all times whether on or off duty,” she said.

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Picture: The head-on collision claims six lives on R503 road between Mahikeng and Lichtenburg/Supplied

By OBAKENG MAJE

North West MEC for Community Safety and Transport Management, Sello Lehari urges motorists to be cautious on the roads across the province. This comes after six people lost their lives in a head-on collision between a minibus taxi and a bakkie on R503 road between Lichtenburg and Mahikeng on Sunday afternoon.

“The road was cleared and opened for traffic at 21:30 in the evening. We send our heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families and wish a speedy recovery to the hospitalised and injured. The collision happened at around 7:15pm on Sunday afternoon leading to road closure for about five hours.

“It is alleged that a minibus taxi that was from Mahikeng driving eastwards, collided with a bakkie that was overtaking another vehicle coming from the Lichtenburg direction. The deceased are four men including the driver and two women and are all from the taxi. Several other seriously injured passengers were taken to General Delarey Hospital in Lichtenburg and Mahikeng Provincial Hospital,” he said.

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Picture: Mooks Plaasie near Dryharts village in Taung/Facebook

By OBAKENG MAJE

It ended in tears at Mooks Plaasie near Dryharts village, in Taung as one person died after drowning. According to Mooks Plaasie’s official Facebook Page, the incident took place on Sunday at around 9am.

“It is with great sadness that, we announce the death of our beloved patron, who sadly passed away this morning at around 9am. The patron died after a freaky accident in the pool and it is important to note that, our event was scheduled to end at 5am this morning.

“At the time of the sad incident, the official medical personnel have already vacated the venue. It is our responsibility to ensure the safety of our patrons, but we can only do as much. Our event is a celebration of life,” the statement reads.

It says, as the host, it is in the new season which is spring that brings new beginnings and celebrates their wins of the year whether big or small. Mooks Plaasie said is looking forward to a prosperous festive season.

“Our heartfelt condolences are with the family and everyone affected by this unfortunate and sad tragedy. He will forever be in our hearts and thoughts. As this is an annual event, we will continue to celebrate his life.

“Let’s allow his family time to face loss and raise our glass to celebrate his colourful life. To his family, we are deeply sorry and we will be working closely with the police and take a painful lesson from this tragedy.”

Meanwhile, the South African Police (SAPS) said: “The holiday season is upon us, and with the rising temperatures, the only thing on one’s mind is to go for a swim and cool off. This, unfortunately, often results in incidents of drowning.

“It is usually the police called in to rescue, search for, or recover the bodies of drowning or drowned victims. By preventing someone from drowning, we ensure that our police officials and the relatives of the victims do not have to suffer the trauma of someone having drowned.

The police further said that water safety is one of their functions. The Water Wing will be on standby and patrolling the waters to ensure that people adhere to the rules and regulations governing water activities.

“The organisers of water activities must ensure that appropriate equipment, such as reaching or throwing equipment, a cell phone, life jackets, and a first-aid kit are available, with the necessary emergency instructions.

“Knowing CPR is a skill that can mean the difference between survival and the death of a victim who almost drowned. Special care must be taken at isolated dams, rivers, and pools on farms and in rural areas, especially after heavy rain in the area. Even a small inflatable pool or bucket full of water is a potential danger for toddlers if they are not supervised.”

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By CYRIL RAMPHOSA

This week we released a progress report on the economic reforms we are implementing through Operation Vulindlela, our reforms initiative in the Presidency and National Treasury, working with the relevant government departments.

Since Operation Vulindlela was established, we have built significant momentum in economic reforms to create growth and jobs.

Through these reforms we are steadily laying the foundation for a revival of economic growth. By restructuring our network industries like energy, telecommunications, ports and rail, we are opening the space for investment and a renewal of our nation’s infrastructure.

This new report highlights a number of key milestones that have been reached during the past quarter.

The first of our reform milestones was the digital migration process we have implemented by switching off analogue transmission for all frequencies above 694 MHz on 31 July 2023. This marks a significant step in migration from analogue to digital signal. This means that radio frequencies that were being used for television broadcasting can now be used for mobile telecommunications, which will make network communications more accessible and increase the speed and reduce the cost of data. The implementation of this reform will bring new investment in the telecommunications sector.

Work is underway to implement necessary reforms in our logistics sector to address the challenges that have held back the growth of South African exports. The lack of investment and the increased cost of doing business have added to the many challenges that we need to address.

A key milestone was reached with the selection of an international terminal operator to partner with Transnet at the Durban Pier 2 container terminal. This terminal handles close to half of South Africa’s port traffic.

This partnership will increase investment for upgrading equipment and expanding terminal capacity. A key aspect of this partnership is that port infrastructure will remain state-owned and all jobs will be protected.

This month, two critical pieces of legislation were tabled in Parliament that will advance economic reform.

The Electricity Regulation Amendment Bill will support the restructuring of Eskom into three separate companies owned and controlled by Eskom Holdings, including an independent grid operator. Through this bill we will introduce competition in electricity generation, enabling a number of independent generators, alongside Eskom, to produce electricity to meet our country’s demand. This reform will fundamentally transform, modernise and improve South Africa’s energy sector to ensure energy security into the future.

Meanwhile, the reforms we have implemented through the Energy Action Plan have unlocked new investment in renewable energy sources, both to end load shedding and to use our unique wind and solar resources to power economic growth.

One of key reforms we have prioritised is in the water sector. We have introduced the South African National Water Resources Infrastructure Bill to establish a dedicated national water agency to design, plan and finance water resource infrastructure.

This agency will enable significantly greater investment in bulk water infrastructure to guarantee water security in the years and decades to come, while creating jobs and unlocking new agricultural potential.

We are implementing a range of other reforms to unlock economic growth, from creating an enabling regulatory environment for hemp and cannabis production to eradicating the backlog of title deeds for subsidised housing.

Despite difficult global conditions, investors continue to see value in the South African economy and the benefit of the reform agenda we are pursuing.

We are pleased that the BRICS Business Forum held last week was attended by 1,500 investors and business people from all five member countries. We were able to showcase the potential of South Africa and the African continent as the next frontiers of productivity and growth.

Many of the participants remarked on the enormous potential of our economic reform agenda to drive growth in the green economy, the digital economy and other key sectors.

In all of the work that we do, our ultimate goal is the same: to build an inclusive, fast-growing and dynamic economy and thereby create a better life for all South Africans.

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Picture: The acting North West Premier, Nono Maloyi/Supplied

By OBAKENG MAJE

The acting North West Premier, Nono Maloyi said they are concerned about the high rate of unemployment in the province. North West is sitting at 53%, which makes it one of the most affected provinces in the country.

However, Maloyi said they are working with all relevant stakeholders and considering options that can assist in mitigating this scourge. He further said the Provincial Executive Council (EXCO) held its meeting in Klerksdorp recently and reflected on a number of pertinent issues on the environment.

“The Executive Council noted that the North West Premier, Bushy Maape was still recovering from home and wished him a speedy recovery as the province needed a full complement of the EXCO. The South African government is from the BRICS Summit and decisions taken there are crucial both for the province and the country.

“In this instance, we had a session with potential investors and discussed possibilities of investing in the province. There was positive feedback from investors who expressed willingness to invest in the province,” said Maloyi.

He added that, to this end, the province will host a dinner session with investors on 15 September 2023 to take forward the conversation on how they can invest in the province. Maloyi said some of the investors have already expressed interest in investing in roads and agriculture in the province.

“The EXCO further noted that as the women’s month is coming to an end, issues of Gender Based Violence and Femicide (GBV&F) remain sore points that require to be tackled head-on. We are to accelerate efforts to confront this pandemic.

“The EXCO commended the province for a recently held Provincial Women’s Day event, which took place in the JB Marks Local Municipality and was attended by thousands of women,” said Maloyi.

He said the EXCO reiterated its determination to resolve service delivery challenges that confront communities in various parts of the province, most of which are to be tackled through the Accelerated Service Delivery initiative, Thuntsha Lerole, which was launched recently in Mamusa Local Municipality.

He said the challenges of veld fires that have been ravaging various parts of the province and which have affected the agricultural sector adversely, also came under the spotlight.

“The EXCO commended the North West MEC for Agriculture and Rural Development Desbo Mohono for her pro-activeness in visiting affected areas to understand the extent of the damage. The EXCO also decries the unfortunate incident of the burning of the Pilanesberg Airport to ashes.

“This happened at a time when some Chinese investors have shown interest in investing in the airport to revamp it. The EXCO further resolved that the unfortunate incident of sewage spillage in Mahikeng, which affected the community of Seweding and Ramosadi, needed to be given more attention,” said Maloyi.

According to Maloyi, a mobile clinic has been stationed in the area to mitigate the situation.

“In a meeting I had with Ngaka Modiri Molema District and Mahikeng Local Municipality Executive Mayors recently, I directed that Ngaka Modiri Molema should intervene urgently.

“The Development Bank of Southern Africa was also convened to establish how it could assist on the challenges of infrastructure in the area to provide a permanent solution to the sewage spillage challenge,” he said.

Maloyi said on the contractors who were awarded tenders and failed to deliver on their contractual obligations, the EXCO resolved that such contractors should be blacklisted. He said the EXCO received a report on the term 1 Grade 1 to 12 results and expressed satisfaction that learner performance in all these grades had improved compared to the same term last year.

“To this end, the EXCO resolved that members should each adopt an underperforming school as part of the many other efforts to intervene in a quest to improve learner performance in the province,” said Maloyi.

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