By KEDIBONE MOLAETSI

North West MEC for Finance, Motlalepula Rosho, who tabled the total budget for the province amounting to R49.712 billion at the North West Provincial Legislature (NWPL) in Mahikeng, said they need all hands on the deck.

Rosho said fiscal discipline, good governance and accountability will take the province to the new economic growth trajectory.   

“Consistent with the above principles, we commit to use the limited fiscal resources in order to achieve value for money and create a conducive environment for job creation. The total budget for the province amounts to R49.712 billion in the 2022/23 financial year and R97.880 billion in the last two years of the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF).

“The 2022/23 budget allocation is made up of provincial equitable share amounting to R39.540 billion, R8.568 billion for the Conditional Grants and R1.6 billion from Own Provincial funding,” she said.

According to Rosho, the provincial budget incorporates the restructuring of some of the conditional grants and changes to accommodate the planned function shifts in the agricultural sector as well as the social development and education sectors.

On social cluster, Rosho said the province has ensured that the budget of social sector departments is protected over the MTEF. She said this was done in alignment with national priority outcomes.

“This is to ensure that the province continues to provide and expand services provided by the Departments of Education, Health, Social Development, Human Settlements and Arts, Culture, Sports and Recreation.

“These departments collectively receive a lion’s share of the provincial budget estimated at 80%. This translates into a budget allocation of R39.852 billion in the 2022/23 financial year and cumulatively amounts to R77.708 billion in the last two years of the MTEF,” said Rosho.

She further said, to ensure that effective teaching and learning takes place in the schools, the Department of Education was allocated R20.346 billion in 2022/23 and R39.834 billion for the two outer years of the MTEF period. 

Rosho added that this translates into the largest share of 40.9% of the provincial budget.

“The total allocation is inclusive of R1.237 billion in the 2022/23 financial year and R2.411 billion over the MTEF for education infrastructure provision. Other key programmes to be funded include Early Childhood Development (ECD) at the Grade R and Pre-Grade R levels and the Sanitary Dignity Project.

“This will ensure that young girls remain in school and access sanitary dignity products in public schools. The National School Nutrition Programme Grant, which provides more than 191 000 learners with a hot meal at school every day, will be included,” she said.

Rosho said included in the budget allocation for 2022/23, is an amount of R633.794 million to cater for budget pressures created by the increasing number of educators and other shortfalls within the sector. She said education will continue to implement the Presidential Youth Employment Initiative, which will benefit more than 800 unemployed youth.

“Resultantly, an amount of R815 million is allocated in the first two years of the MTEF. The function for Early Childhood Development has been transferred from Social Development to Education resulting in an amount of R90.453 million being shifted in 2022/23 and R179.361 million in the outer years of the MTEF.

By REGINALD KANYANE

The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation Unit, the Hawks in Northern Cape said a murder case against the most wanted suspect has been postponed until 17 March 2022 for formal bail application by Prieska Magistrate’s Court on Monday.   

The Hawks provincial spokesperson, Capt Tebogo Thebe said: “Serious Organised Crime Investigation team together with Kimberley TRT and Kimberley Crime Intelligence followed up on information about a wanted suspect, who was wanted on murder and attempted murder charges committed in January 2022 and February 2022 in Roodepan.

“The team pounced on the suspect on 5 March 2022 at Prieska. A search and seizure operation was conducted at the suspect’s house, where the team found a black 9mm pistol, magazine and 33 ammunition,” Thebe said.

He said the suspect was also charged for possession of unlicensed firearm and ammunition. Thebe further said a vehicle worth an estimated amount of R50 000 was also seized during the arrest.

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The Pan South African Language Board chairperson in North West, Goitsemodimo Seleka, said they will write to North West MEC for education, Wendy Matsemela about the challenges at the North West School for the Deaf in Leeudoringstad, near Wolmaransstad.

Seleka said they recently visited the school and were shocked to find out its teachers do not know sign language. “What is happening there undermines the rights of these learners that are enshrined in the constitution.

These learners expect to be taught in the language they understand.

“There are languages that are used as a medium of instruction in various schools. If the language that is used as a medium of instruction is English or Setswana, we expect the teachers to use it to communicate,” he said.

Seleka said it was difficult if teachers who were supposed to use sign language at the school did not know the language. He said this affected pupils and it was in evidence when one looked at the 2021 Grade 12 results at the school.

“The school had six Grade 12 learners last year and only one passed. Even when you look at the results of that learner, they are not impressive. This happened because of the quality of education these learners received. It becomes difficult for these learners to further their studies. When you look at the statistics, we have almost one million people using sign language in the province, but only a few have junior degrees.”

Seleka added that the communities that these pupils come from make it difficult to accommodate them. He said in the process, the deaf community felt excluded.

“We are going to have consultative engagements with North West MEC for education Wendy Matsemela and MEC for arts and culture Virginia Tlhapi to address this matter. “We believe that teaching and learning should not be a challenge for learners who are using sign language.

“As the board, our understanding of multilingualism and language development in the context of language legislation is embodied in the constitution and no one should be left out,” he said.

Seleka said they will urge the department of education to also ensure that the teacher assistant who is appointed at the school understood sign language. Meanwhile, North West education department spokesperson Elias Malindi said five of the teachers were trained and 10 were attending in-service training with North-West University.

“Training should have started and concluded in 2020, but the delay was caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. However, teacher training in our department has over the years been the cornerstone to effective quality teaching and learning to date.

“Special schools, which include but are not limited to the North West School for the Deaf, are also beneficiaries of training through the North-West University [NWU]. We can confirm that we have trained teachers at the school and some are undergoing training,” he said.

Malindi said the school currently has 140 pupils with a Grade 12 enrolment of six pupils in 2021 and one pass, while the teacher component comprised 15 sign, language teachers. He said the school also had three teacher assistants who had hearing impairments.

In 2015, three teenage girls were burnt to death while 23 pupils suffered injuries when trying to escape a fire at the school by jumping from the building. It was alleged that the pupils were locked up in their rooms without being monitored by the teachers. The cause of the fire is unknown.

Source: Sunday World

The residents of Taung in the North West, where the fossilised skull of a child was discovered by unsuspecting workers in a limestone quarry in Buxton village in 1924, are calling for the return of the skull.

The Taung Skull or Taung Child, which was later named Australopithecus africanus, was the first hominid fossil to be discovered on the African continent.

The Taung Skull was formally discovered and studied by Raymond Dart. The skull was taken to the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg for research purposes, where it is currently located. One of the residents, Lucas Raito, said the Taung Heritage Site was an area of enormous archaeological importance and the return of the fossil would boost the economy of Taung.

“This area is a fascinating place for tourists to explore and learn about the ancient history of Taung. Remember, many anthropologists and other scientists believe this to be the site of the first human being, confirming the notion that Africa is the origin of humankind.

“We are living beyond the poverty line, whereas having the area with a massive historical background. We urge the North West provincial government to put pressure on the Witwatersrand University to return the skull to its origins,” Raito said. Fellow resident Orabile Jim, who is also a local artist, shared the sentiment. Jim said even though he had mixed feelings, he still believed the skull should be returned.

“I have mixed reactions on the matter because the Taung Skull Site that was declared as the World Heritage Site has been abandoned. We have seen the provincial government trying to revamp the area but the project has been delayed. “So, currently, there is no secured place to accommodate the skull.

I believe that the Witwatersrand University continues to benefit financially through the research conducted on the skull, whereas we are left out.” He said the least the university could do was to identify a few youths and offer them annual bursaries as part of its community responsibilities.

North West Premier Bushy Maape, who identified tourism as one of the key tools to boost the economy, said: “The issue of Taung Skull has been discussed with the Witwatersrand University over a long time, and we are hoping that the matter will be resolved and finally the skull will be returned to Taung.

“Our government has initiated the process of revamping that site and I can assure you that it is in the plans of the department of tourism.

They have also planned to investigate whether they cannot assist people who want to put stalls there. So, I’m sure this year they will start doing something about it.” Meanwhile, the Greater Taung local municipality mayor Tumisang Gaoraelwe said two weeks ago they had a meeting with all stakeholders involved in the revamping of the project in the area.

“We discussed issues that are delaying the project and the project manager highlighted that community members are boycotting the project because they alleged that some of the decisions were taken without their consent.

“So, we have resolved there must be a fully-fledged steering committee on site. Some community members are building shacks in a buffer zone for opportunistic purposes.”

Source: Sunday World

By BAKANG MOKOTO

Two accused sentenced to life imprisonment for rape by the North Gauteng High Court on Friday. The North West police spokesperson, Lieutenant Col Amanda Funani said, this follows after the accused gang raped the girl (14) back in 2019.

“The incident took place in the early hours of Wednesday morning on 25 December 2019 at Letlhabile near Brits. It was reported during the court proceedings that the victim and her male friend were walking home at about 4am after attending a music festival when confronted by four suspicious males.

“One of the males grabbed the victim and took her to the nearby bushes, where he and one of his companions took turns in raping her. They then compelled the victim’s male friend to rape her,” Funani said.

She further said, upon realising that the friend was only pretending to be raping his friend, they assaulted him. Funani added that the friend of the victim pretended to be unconscious.

“The two accused then continued to rape the victim. The third male (26) left the scene with the victim’s cell-phone. He further robbed other festival attendees of their valuables including their cell-phones.

“One of the victims saw the police who were on patrol and informed them about the robbery. The victim identified the accused and as a result, he was arrested. The initial gang rape suspects were apprehended later the same day. They were found to be in possession of items reported stolen by the victims,” she said.

Funani said subsequently, the three accused were found to be in possession of the minor’s cell-phone and clothes. Moreover, the two accused aged 27 and 32 were linked to the rape through the DNA results. 

“One of the four accused was eventually released as he could not be linked to the crimes. The accused (26) was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment for common robbery, while two accused aged 27 and 32 were sentenced to two years imprisonment each for kidnapping.

“They were also found guilty of armed robbery and sentenced to 15 years imprisonment each, 10 years each for attempted compelled rape, five years imprisonment each for assault and life sentence imprisonment each for rape,” said Funani.

Meanwhile, the North West Police Commissioner, Lieutenant General Sello Kwena lauded the Brits Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences (FCS) Unit for securing yet another two life sentences in one week. Kwena said it shows that the unit is committed to the fight against Gender-Based Violence (GBV) by ensuring that maximum jail terms are imposed on the two accused.

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By REGINALD KANYANE

South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to visit the embattled North West province on 12 March 2022 in quest to institutionalise the District Development Model (DDM).

Following the 2022 State of the Nation Address (SONA), Ramaphosa will undertake the DDM Presidential Imbizo to Mahikeng.

The Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) spokesperson, Lungi Mtshali said in a statement that, Ramaphosa will be accompanied by the North West Premier, Bushy Maape and various Cabinet Ministers including the DDM champions, North West Province MECs, Mayors and Councillors.

“As per the President’s message in the 2022 State of Nations Address (SoNA), the government must work for the people. This speaks to the need to build an ethical, capable, and developmental state that delivers on its mandate.

“To this effect, being a public-participation platform, the Presidential Imbizo to the North West will provide government an opportunity to assess the level of service delivery in the province, to assess the extends to which Section 100 intervention was successful, assess the extent to which DDM has been institutionalised,” Mtshali said.

According to Mtshali, this will also provide Ramaphosa with an opportunity to listen to the people and respond to their concerns and recommendations.

He said the Presidential Imbizo will assist to highlight challenges and unblock any blockages to service delivery in line with the District Development Model (DDM), which is an all of government and society approach that enables integrated and responsive planning, implementation and budgeting through the ‘One Plans’.

“Ahead of the Presidential Imbizo on 12 March 2022, a number of build-up events will be held led by national, provincial and municipal leadership. The programme of stakeholders engagements, community meetings, walk about in communities and high traffic areas like Shopping centres and taxi or bus ranks and door to door engagements,” said Mtshali.

He said the communities will during this period be given an opportunity to ask questions and receive answers to issues that concern them.

“Some of the questions will be responded to during the Presidential Imbizo event taking place on 12 March 2022. In line with the COVID-19 pandemic regulations, attendance of the Imbizo will be limited to two thousand community members,” he said.

Mtshali said for those who won’t be able to attend physically, a provision has been made to broadcast the speeches live through various platforms (Radio Stations, TV channels and social media platforms).

In 2018, the North West province was ravaged by #SupraMustFall protests and that forced Ramaphosa to put it under Section 100.

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By BAKANG MOKOTO

The North West Premier, Bushy Maape said he has appointed a team of five MECs constituted by North West MEC for Social Development, Boitumelo Moiloa, MEC for Fiance, Motlalepula Rosho, MEC for Education, Wendy Matsemela, MEC for Public Works and Roads, Oageng Molapisi and MEC for Community Safety and Transport Management, Sello Lehari to focus on providing support for the mass funeral of all the deceased.

“This team will be supported by a technical team led by the Administrator and Director General in the Office of the Premier and HODs for Social Development, Provincial Treasury, HODs and Administrators for Education, Community Safety and Transport Management and Administrator for Public Works and Roads,” he said.

The deceased will be buried on Sunday at Ipelegeng Township in Schweizer Reneke.

Meanwhile, Maape said the North West Executive Council has also concluded a successful session on 2 March 2022, which follows the maiden State of the Province Address (SOPA) delivered by him last month.

“The Executive Council (EXCO) also received a progress report on stabilisation and optimisation of pharmaceutical services in the North West. The report reflected decisive interventions made at the Mmabatho Medical Stores, which include improving financial management and human resources amongst others. 

“This progress report was endorsed as work in progress registered as a result of the Section 100 intervention in the province. In addition, the Executive Council reflected on incidents of Gender Based Violence (GBV) in the province and reiterated a call for all government departments to prioritise interventions in this area as this scourge continues to rear its ugly head,” said Maape.

He further said the EXCO also welcomed an update report on the District Development Model Presidential Imbizo (DDMPI) that is to be held in Mahikeng on 12 March 2022.

Maape added that the imbizo, which is the first of its kind in the 6^th Administration, will be held in observance of the COVID-19 regulations and will afford citizens an opportunity to engage with President Cyril Ramaphosa. 

“This imbizo will be preceded by build-up activities in various parts of Mahikeng Local Municipality,” he said.

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By OBAKENG MAJE

Forum 4 Service Delivery (F4SD) set to change the political landscape in various higher learning institutions across South Africa. This follows the much-anticipated launch of the party’s Student Forum at Taletso TVET College (Lehurutshe campus) on 3 March 2022. 

F4SD president, Dr Mbahare Kekana, said the Student Forum will play a pivotal role in addressing underlying challenges most students at higher learning institutions across the country are subjected to.

“We believe in empowering students academically, socially, psychologically and politically. In order to do so, today marks a very historical day as we launch the F4SD Student Forum. We are launching this F4SD Student Forum on the land of none other than Abram Ramothibi Onkgopotse Tiro, who was born in Dinokana, Lehurutshe near Zeerust in 1947,” he said.

Kekana further said the educational system continues to fail young people. He added that this Student Forum will be different from other current student movements menus that students are confronted with.

“The F4SD Student Forum shall describe them to be working towards the complete overthrow of a neoliberal anti-black system and the realisation of students’ power. Remember, soldiers without revolutionary theory have been catalysts of the toxic misogyny, toxic gender constructs women expurgation and are part of the parasitic elements wrongfully characterising our struggle.

“The F4SD students shall engage on a political education programme, which will make sure every member understands the ideological perspective, organisational understanding, gender, sexual orientation and inter-sectional of ideas,” said Kekana.

He said this includes organising structures of the mass-based student movement and towards free, quality, decolonised and well-resourced education.

“The F4SD Student Forum believes that it is the responsibility of a revolutionary to be educated. The F4SD Student Forum must be divided into two components, which is the senior and junior unit.

“The junior unit must fight against other socio-economic challenges like teenage pregnancy, bullying, dropouts, learners and teacher killings, gangsterism, lower passing mark of 30%, including pit toilets, muddy schools and scholar transport,” he said.

Kekana said the senior unit should confront the funding model, accommodation, colonised education system, the irrelevant curriculum, dropouts and unemployment. He said the senior unit must also fight for one region, one TVET College, one university.

#FeesMustFall activist, Bonginkosi Khanyile who was part of the historical event said: “We are honoured to be part of this historic event. This is an event whereby young people are meeting to form a fighting force, an organisation that shall ensure that young people’s challenges are addressed.

“It is a blessing to come here and be amongst the first people to be in attendance. I know because we are getting old now. When I am old, I’m going to look back and tell my children that I was amongst the speakers in the historic formation of the Student Forum in North West.”

Khanyile encouraged students to fight for what they believed in as the leading organisation was in tatters. He said the infightings within the ANC had compromised service delivery.

Most students raised various challenges such as lack of electricity, no provision of water and safety. They believe that F4SD Student Forum will bring differences as they are preparing for CSRC elections on 23 March 2022.

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By REGINALD KANYANE

North West Premier, Bushy Maape and MEC for Community Safety and Transport Management, Sello Lehari are expected to visit the family of Ntlatseng at Ipelegeng Township near Schweizer Reneke on Monday.

This follows a horrific accident where a taxi minibus ferrying 19 people involved in a head-on collision with a truck on R34 road between Schweizer Reneke and Bloemhof in the early hours of Sunday morning.

According to information, 19 people, who were from a wedding anniversary in Bloemhof, perished in a horrific accident.

Lehari said: “Seventeen people out of 19 are family members, while the other two belong to another family. Only three people survived the accident and were transported to the local hospital for medical attention with serious injuries, but in stable condition.  

“Both families are from Ipelegeng Township in Schweizer Reneke and were travelling together from Bloemhof,” he said.  

Meanwhile, Maape said he is saddened by the tragedy. He appealed to road users to exercise caution on the roads to ensure their own safety and that of other road users.

“On behalf of the provincial government and the people of our beloved province I would like to take this opportunity and convey our heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of those who died in this tragic accident. Our thoughts are with them during this difficult period of mourning,” he said.

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