SPEECH BY MEC NANDI MAYATHULA-KHOZA AT THE STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATIVE ENGAGEMENT IN EMPEROR’S PALACE

THURSDAY 24 JANUARY 2013

Programme Director,

Farmer Unions Represented,

Labour Unions Represented,

Farmers Present,

Farm Workers Present,

WARD Representatives Present,

YARD Representatives Present,

Environmental Groups Present,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Dumelang, Molweni, Sanibonani, Gooie More, Good Morning,

I am honoured to be here this morning at our final StakeholderConsultative Engagement. An important engagement, Program Director, which we resumed in 2009 upon my appointment as Gauteng MEC for Agriculture and Rural Development.

Vital, as these Stakeholder Consultative Engagements were created to provide a platform for you, our valued stakeholders,to engage with the Department on issues of service delivery, particularly in the Agricultural Sector.

Program Director, I am further delighted to engage with you, our esteemed stakeholders, in this month of January. A significant month for our country and ruling party. As it was in this month of January 1912 when our glorious movement, the African National Congress (ANC), was founded on the 8th.

The Bible scholars amongst uswould know the significance of the number 8 Biblically. As we study the Bible we realize that God created the Heavens and earth during the first 6 days and on the 7thday,all was perfect and thus, God rested.

And on the 8thday,God’s creation in unison and perfect harmony, begun working and performing the tasks for which they had been created, as a result,the 8th day is known as the day of “New Beginnings”, as all life begun operating and working on the 8th day.

So as the forefathers of the ANC founded the liberation movement on the 8th day,with the insight that a new dawn and new beginning was essential for the oppressed and down trodden. They understood that true liberation for the masses would come through a movement that recognized that all people, both black and white, areprecious, and thus their life and human rights, paramount.

On this premise, 101 years after the formation of the ANC, I would like to remind us all of what President Jacob Zuma said during the January 8 statement 2013. Despite the significant strides made over the past 18 years of liberation, the triple challenges of poverty, unemployment and inequality continue to persist, thus requiring continued focus in 2013 and beyond.

And with that clarion call, President Zuma placed upon us all,the responsibility to recognize the plight of so many of our fellow humans and collectively, as partners from various sectors,work together in addressing unemployment, poverty and the growing inequality in our country.

And with that, Program Director let me remind us on what our objective was in the establishment of these Stakeholder Consultative Engagements in 2009.

Our vision as the Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development is to build “vibrant, equitable, sustainable rural communities, food security for all and protected and enhanced environmental assets and natural resources,” and to also share in the mission of the department which is “unlocking the full potential of environment, agriculture and rural development to enhance the economic, ecological and social wealth of all the people of Gauteng”. A vision, I believe we have shared and thus strived to achieve in the past 4 years.

Ladies and gentlemen, we also meet as our country marks the centenary of the infamous 1913 Natives Land Act, an inhumane Act promulgated by the Apartheid machinery to prohibit Black people from owning land and strip it off those who owned any land. This Act was a ploy by the Apartheid regime to strip our people of their wealth, food, security and provision. As it is through the land that we cultivate our food, it is through land that we find shelter and it is through land that we find security and generate an income for our families.

And a century later, this evil legacy is a daily and constant reminder to us all. Our people still live far from any amenities, the infrastructure in our communities still bare that legacy and our people are still without the land to till and eat off. While significant strides have been made in addressing the ills of Apartheid, the land issue still remains a challenge.

I therefore concur with our President that indeed the willing buyer, willing seller policy has not worked and thus requires a review to fully address the legacy of Apartheid and its ramifications on Africans.

We also meet when our country has witnessed an upheaval in the Western Cape agricultural sector. Again, the events of the Western Cape bear testament to the evil legacy of Apartheid, which instituted the abuse and exploitation of farm workers. A legacy we, the ANC Government, have worked tirelessly to address and ensure that farm workers are protected by the law and their human rights entrenched.

Ladies and gentlemen, as we conclude our stakeholder consultative engagements, I want to assure you that I heard your concerns and challenges and in-turn requested the Department to address them speedily, which they did,like the upgrading of infrastructureeg. the hydro-phonics tunnels, boreholes systems, the care taking of mechanization and the timeous provision of agricultural inputs. For that, I wish to thank the Department, under the sterling leadership of HOD, Mme Simangele Sekgobela, for their good work.

And in the same breath, I wish to also commend all stakeholders for your dedication and contribution towards food security, job creation and protection of our natural resources. Your good work has not gone unnoticed by the Gauteng Government. And on behalf of the Premier, Mme Nomvula Mokonyane, I would like to take this opportunity to thank you, for a job well done, and trust this zeal and commitment will continue in 2013 and beyond as we address the triple challenges facing our nation.

In closing, let me quote from the Freedom Charter, the guiding document of Government since its adoption in 1956, “The land shall be shared among those who work it to banish famine and hunger”, and I therefore wish to call on us as partners and stakeholders to continuously strive to declared war on poverty and remain fixed on banishing hunger and poverty within our communities and nation.

Thank you

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