SPEECH BY NORTH WEST PREMIER, PROF TEBOGO JOB MOKGORO, AT THE SALGA NORTH WEST PROVINCIAL MEMBERS ASSEMBLY HELD ON SUNDAY, 29 NOVEMBER 2020 IN RUSTENBURG Programme Director, Chairperson of SALGA in the North West, Cllr Fetsang Molosiwa The entire leadership, membership and management of SALGA North West Speaker of the North West Provincial Legislature, Hon Suzan Dantje MEC for Cooperative Governance, Human Settlements and Traditional Affairs, Hon Mmoloki Cwaile MEC for Health, Hon Madoda Sambatha MEC for Provincial Treasury, Hon Motlalepule Rosho Members of the North West Provincial Legislature Chairperson of the North West House of Traditional Leaders, Kgosi Moshe Mabe Councillors Eskom representative, Ms Lona Manzana CEO of Magalies Water, Mr Sandile Mkhize Let’s Grow North West Together ---------------------- 1 | Page Chief Operating Officer of the Municipal Demarcation Board, Mr Aluwani Ramagadza Representatives of various institutions of higher learning Representatives of the Independent Electoral Commission Distinguished guests Members of the media Ladies and gentlemen Good morning. It is an honour and a privilege to stand before you this morning and be afforded an opportunity to address the annual Provincial Members Assembly of the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) in the North West. I speak to you at a time when we are at the crossroads, expected to chart a way forward for the future of local government in this province in at a period in our lives when the entire globe is been ravaged by the devastating and long-lasting effects of the novel Coronavirus, aptly known as COVID-19 to most of us. We have come to the realization that the global outbreak of the pandemic, and in South African in particular, has changed the face of service delivery forever; hence, we need to look at ways and means of Let’s Grow North West Together ---------------------- 2 | Page delivering basic municipal services to our communities in a different manner than we have attempted to do in the past. We are mindful, Chairperson, that the new normal, the new way of doing things, is not going to be easy in the face of an ailing and devastated economy; an economy that is seriously struggling to get on its feet. The question is then, “how do we inspire the delivery of basic municipal services during this period of uncertainty presented by the COVID-19 pandemic while having to honestly introspect the deteriorating state of municipalities in the North West Province?” It is an open secret that municipalities in the North West, and elsewhere in the country, have experienced a decline in the ability to deliver services, with some being put under provincial administration and the outbreak of the pandemic has not made things any simpler for us to fix the mess that some of those municipalities find themselves in, for some reason or the other. Therefore, as this Provincial Members Assembly gets underway, it is very important to take into cognisance the state of our municipalities as we find new avenues to deliver quality services while faced with the ever-increasing threat posed by the spread of COVID-19 to lives and livelihoods. Let’s Grow North West Together ---------------------- 3 | Page Through an honest introspection of where we are, as local government, will go a long in assisting us to adopt to the new normal; that of providing quality services while fighting the spread of the virus. Just over two years ago, addressing this very same gathering in Klerksdorp, I raised the following issues, amongst the many which are still there, for consideration by SALGA in their quest to turn the fortunes of our ailing municipalities around; - The inability of various municipalities to attain clean audits, with some of them continuing to slide into financial management abyss and continuously receiving disclaimers from the Auditor-General - The lack of Service Delivery Improvement Plans (SDIPs) in place in most of our municipalities - Lack of internal controls to prevent irregular, wasteful and unauthorized expenditure, prevalence of negative audit outcomes, lack of administrative capacity, poor revenue collection and poor administration of conditional grants to municipalities. We should then ask ourselves whether we have overcome some of those hurdles which continue to be an achilles heel in our quest to deliver quality services to the people. I had earlier this month embarked on a road show to engage with various municipalities in the province, at times accompanied by MECs, to get first-hand as to what is the reason for the recurring collapse of Let’s Grow North West Together ---------------------- 4 | Page municipalities, even those that had been placed under administration previously and the picture that we got was too gloomy to comprehend. However, we should ensure that we turn that gloom into bloom and we have started to do that as a government. Tomorrow, we are hosting a Provincial Economic Recovery Summit and SALGA is a key role player in this exercise because the economic effect that came about as a result of COVID-19 has a bearing on our ability to deliver quality basic municipal services. I strongly hold the view that we can turn things for the better if we work towards a common goal as a united front committed to improving the lives of those that have put their trust in us as elected public representatives and public servants. Looking at the list of various invited participants and contributors to this Assembly, I have no doubt the festival of ideas that will ensue here will produce strategies to take our service delivery efforts a gear up in the face of the devastating virus that is COVID-19. It can be done, it is possible. This is evidently true if one looks at our coordinated efforts to fight the spread of the pandemic in the last eight months; the manner in which the Provincial Coronavirus Command Council and the various District and Let’s Grow North West Together ---------------------- 5 | Page Local Coronavirus Command Council were able to harmonize work between the two tiers of government brings me much hope than despair. Our coordinated health response plan to the virus as well as other areas of focus related to the fight against the virus, have proven our ability to rise above expectation when really needed to do and I appeal to all of us to use that same vigour to deliver quality basic services to needy communities. The Provincial Government is readily available to provide, at all material times, the necessary support and expertise to ensure that ailing municipalities are aided and service delivery happens in during the fight to stop the spread of COVID-19. Programme Director, allow me to wish this Provincial Members Assembly all the best in their endeavours and hope that by the end of their engagements, a way forward regarding service delivery is in place. I thank you ENDS Let’s Grow North West Together ---------------------- 6 | Page .