Latest news with #R700m
TimesLIVE
4 days ago
- Politics
- TimesLIVE
Oldest person in Ramaphosa's national dialogue group is 92 — concern raised about age representation
President Cyril Ramaphosa's national dialogue group has sparked concern about its age representation, with the oldest member, Dr Brigalia Bam, 92 years old and the youngest, Miss South Africa Mia le Roux, 29. Last week, Ramaphosa announced an eminent persons group which will guide the national dialogue discussing challenges facing the country such as poverty, unemployment, inequalities, crime, gender-based violence and corruption. Some of the oldest members are: Bam, 92, former Independent Electoral Commission chairperson; Barbara Masekela, 84, poet, educator and stalwart; Ela Gandhi, 84, peace activist; and John Kani, 81, award-winning actor. People between 60 and 69 years old dominate the group. Other younger members below 35 include Springbok captain and world champion Siya Kolisi, award-winning rocket scientist Siyabulela Xuza and student activist and former MP Nompendulo Mkhatshwa. The ANC Youth League (ANCYL) has expressed concerns about the underrepresentation of youth in the group, citing the daily challenges faced by young people. 'That national dialogue will have no direction if it's not directed by the youth who are in the majority,' ANCYL leader Collen Malatji said. 'We need a youth dialogue to unite young people. You can't have a task team of only bourgeois while those who are struggling daily are left out. If they are not included we will host our own youth dialogue on the eve of the national dialogue and hand over resolutions to implement.' Meanwhile, the proposed R700m budget for the national dialogue has also sparked criticism. EFF leader Julius Malema said the proposed amount should be used to address service delivery issues. 'They say they want R700m for talking, yet our people don't have tar roads. Our people don't have bridges in KwaZulu-Natal, our people were affected by floods and there was no money. All of a sudden there's money for talking because they want to steal from us. We don't want that dialogue. Take the R700m and finance free tertiary education.'
IOL News
5 days ago
- Politics
- IOL News
Funding crisis in KZN Education Department, R900m pledged 'not enough'
Sadtu provincial secretary Nomarashiya Caluza says all outstanding allocations need to be paid. Image: Independent Newspapers Archives The R900 million pledged by the provincial government to tackle the funding crisis in the KwaZulu-Natal Education Department is insufficient to deal with all the outstanding issues plaguing the province's schools. This is according to a political party and labour union who said yesterday that more funding was needed. One source claimed that an additional R700m was needed. Last week, the provincial government committed to providing R900m for schools and for norms and standards funding after labour unions downed tools, which led to the disruption of exams at some schools. There had been reports that, as a result of the failure to disburse the funds, some teachers have been using their own funds to pay for school operations. Some school principals have claimed they are borrowing money to run school operations. This failure comes amid concerns that the numerous budget cuts by the national government have crippled the department financially. KZN Premier Thami Ntuli had said R900m has been secured to clear outstanding norms and standards payments, with disbursements to schools expected within three weeks. He also said the filling of teaching posts and timely payment of permanent and substitute educators would be prioritised, compensation for Grade R practitioners will be reviewed, and payments to National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP) service providers will be expedited to ensure uninterrupted food deliveries to schools. DA spokesperson Sakhile Mngadi noted the announcement from the Premier's Office regarding the allocation of R900 million to schools for norms and standards funding but said it was not enough. This funding is needed for operational costs, including the purchase of stationery, cleaning materials and to pay for municipal services, including water and electricity. He said close to R700 million additional funding was needed to deal with all the issues. 'While this is a step in the right direction, it is nowhere near enough to address the real crisis. The Department of Education is sitting with unpaid accruals, and hundreds of schools across the province are struggling to function due to months of delayed payments,' Mngadi stated. He also said that the protest by teacher unions, the South African Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu), had disrupted exams in some schools. 'Sadtu's action has disrupted primarily rural districts, with some exams being cancelled. The department isn't forthcoming about when the matter will be resolved.' Sadtu has warned that its members will continue with its work-to-rule campaign and union members will work the seven hours a day they are contracted to work. Teachers, especially those who teach grade 12, also hold extra morning, afternoon and weekend classes, which they are not paid for. Sadtu provincial secretary Nomarashiya Caluza commented, 'The money (R900m) is enough to cover the outstanding allocation to schools, which was supposed to be paid by May. What the union is fighting for is the allocation for May 2025 and the outstanding allocation for 2024. The union members are still working the contracted hours of 7 hours,' said Caluza. Regarding the exams, Sadtu said it has observed inconsistencies, with some schools cancelling exams while others proceeded as planned. The union said departmental leadership should provide clear guidance to ensure uniformity across all districts. The National Teachers' Union (NATU) said the intervention by the KwaZulu-Natal Premier was necessary. The union said its recent campaign, which included pickets at schools and district offices, has successfully pressured the provincial government to act on education funding. Thirona Moodley, provincial CEO of the National Professional Teachers' Organisation of South Africa, said the financial challenges in the province have a direct impact on teaching and learning. 'The silence of the department is deafening and unacceptable. The department has shown no effort to improve the current circumstances. We have no substitutes in schools, and schools are not being paid their financial allocations. How do we expect schools to function? The department has collapsed, and Napotosa calls on the DBE to urgently intervene as the province has failed. When will it be enough?' She added that there had been some disruption to exams due to the crisis, stating, 'Some schools did not have the resources to print exam papers, but I did not have many of my schools report this to me.' KZN Education Department spokesperson Muzi Mahlambi stated that they are in serious engagement with Sadtu. 'There is now common ground, and we are just attending to the modalities.' THE MERCURY
IOL News
14-06-2025
- Politics
- IOL News
Debating the R700 million National Dialogue budget amid South Africa's economic challenges
President Cyril Ramaphosa this week announced that the National Dialogue will be held in August. Image: Itumeleng English / Independent Newspapers The draft budget of more than R700 million for preparations for the National Dialogue has sparked anger amid concerns that it could just be another government-sponsored talk shop. President Cyril Ramaphosa this week announced the eminent persons group for the National Dialogue, which is scheduled to be held on August 15. Mduduzi Mbada, head of Deputy President Paul Mashatile's office, said the preparatory task team has drafted a budget for the gathering to be presented to the ministerial committee. 'What we can say is that democracy is not cheap, building a nation is very costly,' he said. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ Mbada said the R700m price tag included provinces and municipalities, and admitted that it was quite a lot of money. The government also intends to use its existing infrastructure and programmes provided by Statistics South Africa and the Department of Home Affairs to cover some operational costs for the National Dialogue. The R700m to be spent has irritated the trade union federation Cosatu, which described it as 'ill-considered, rash and grossly insensitive to the frustrations of society'. 'Cosatu, like other sober-minded South Africans, was amazed that anyone could even suggest the dialogue should be allocated R700m. This rash estimate should be dismissed as a verbal gaffe and a reckless typo better left deleted and forgotten,' the federation stated. According to Cosatu, the country has borne the brunt of the government's brutal austerity budget cuts to frontline services, in particular, health, education, police and home affairs, among others, while also expected to tighten their belts in the midst of battling rising costs of living in a fragile economy saddled with unbearable levels of unemployment, poverty, and inequality. The federation added that it was comforted by the fact that these are still draft proposals by officials and have yet to be costed, tabled, or approved by the government, let alone Parliament, and trusted the National Treasury to keep a hawk's eye on the matter and ensure that a modest budget be allocated. The EFF has described the R700m as outrageous and wasteful while South Africans are subjected to a brutal cost-of-living crisis, rising unemployment, and collapsing public services. 'It is, therefore, an insult to millions of South Africans, who are battling with food insecurity, load shedding, broken healthcare, and unaffordable education, that the same government would consider wasting close to a billion rand on elite talk shows while failing to deliver basic services,' the party observed. The EFF is demanding full transparency and public disclosure of the budget for the dialogue and is considering legal action to halt what it called a 'reckless allocation of public funds to a non-essential, unmandated vanity project'. Former Cosatu general secretary Bheki Ntshalintshali, who is part of the 32-member eminent persons group, said many people and organisations have been calling or in support of the National Dialogue, and some believe it will be an opportunity to reflect on the journey travelled since 1994. Ntshalintshali said it would also be an opportunity to engage on the challenges and opportunities that exist, priorities on the competing needs, and suggestions on what South Africans can do together in building the rainbow nation that they are envisaging, but more importantly, what strategies are needed to realise such a dream. 'So, challenges are known, but commitment by all is missing, so this is an opportunity for a social compact that has to be balanced. For workers, without being their spokesperson, this idea of a social impact is not new. 'There have been many social compacts agreed upon, others successful and others not, so they would share their experience and proposals and what needs to be done in an equitable and fair contribution,' he explained. Academic head of the University of the Free State's department of sociology, Professor Sethulego Matebesi, said the National Dialogue will be another public relations exercise that will not lead to tangible outcomes. He said the National Dialogue is a great initiative that will enable South Africans to openly discuss how the country must navigate some of the most pressing challenges it faces. Matebesi added that democracy was achieved through dialogue, but the country needs decisive leaders who can implement policies, fight crime, create job opportunities, combat corruption, and grow the economy. 'We have mortgaged ourselves to the false narrative that dialogue in itself will lead to tangible outcomes. 'For example, do we expect the forthcoming National Dialogue to deliver tangible outcomes where our politicians have failed to deliver basic services and implement the findings of several commissions of inquiries and a justice system, which is failing at every stage of the judicial process?' he asked. Matebesi continued: 'If we now have to institute a commission of inquiry to investigate the delays in the prosecution of Truth and Reconciliation Commission cases, where millions were spent, what will make the National Dialogue different?' Professor Kedibone Phago, director of the North West University's School of Governance, said among the challenges the dialogue will face is finding a way of protecting the discussions and outcomes from being disrupted or hijacked by nefarious elements within society. 'This is a necessary part since we have become a country of coalition government, and one disadvantage is that no one may take full ownership to protect this project and see it through,' he added. Phago believes that the government will be required to implement the outcomes with clear targets. 'But we know that we have a huge challenge with dysfunctional institutions, which are often lacking in accountability, skills, and capacity. This is even prevalent at local government, where mostly unqualified people are occupying critical positions,' he said.
Zawya
01-05-2025
- General
- Zawya
South Africa: Five months without water in Komani
For more than six months Komani, formerly Queenstown, has suffered water outages. Taps having been completely dry in high-lying areas since November. The high-lying areas, such as Nkululekweni, are being serviced by water trucks, but residents say they are insufficient as they only come to the area twice a week, and sometimes less. Last year the Bonkolo Dam, which is one of the town's water supplies, dried up to the point water could no longer be abstracted. The other supply, the Waterdown Dam, suffered leaks in the pipelines. Chris Hani District Municipality spokesperson, Thobeka Mqamelo said most of the Waterdown leaks have been fixed, and the Bonkolo Dam level has risen to 22%. Supply to the city centre and middle-class suburbs has been restored. But residents in poorer high-lying areas are still without water. Meanwhile, 23km away, the Xonxa Dam is 100% full, but the Xonxa bulk water scheme initiated in 2012 has not been completed. The initial completion deadline was 2018. The Chris Hani District Municipality budgeted R546m for the bulk water scheme, but close to R700m has been spent on the project so far, said Mqamelo. In January the situation was so dire that charity organisation Gift of the Givers tried to help by delivering four water trucks, rehabilitating two boreholes at Komani Hospital, and drilling new boreholes at Sixishe Primary school, Edlelweni Primary school, Luvuyo Lerumo Senior Secondary, and Inkwanca Senior Secondary school. But the borehole pumps have not yet been connected to an electricity supply. Mqamelo said it was not clear whether the boreholes were just for the school, or whether they should benefit the broader community, so it was not clear who should be responsible for the electrical connections. 'Engagements are in progress,' she said. Gift of the Givers also installed water tanks in the areas of Mlungisi, Ezibeleni, VANS, and Top Town. Resident Nolulama Moses from Zone 2 in Nkululekweni said she has forgotten that she has a tap in her house, as no water has come out of them for five months. Moses said she was too old to fetch water. She is completely reliant on the water trucks, but she never knows when they will arrive. 'Every day I always sit outside the house so that when it comes, I can see it.' She said the worst part was not being able to use her toilet. 'We are now using buckets to relieve ourselves and throw it away in a canal. I'm sure that will affect our health,' said Moses. Resident Nosaphiwe Booi said they have been begging the municipality to restore water in their area. She said the city centre and middle-class suburbs had water, but everyone else had to suffer. 'There's an area under us called Izinyoka. There they get water, even if it's for an hour a day but they do get it. In our area it's been five months now with no water.' She said the water trucks were unreliable, and when they didn't arrive, residents walked to the stadium to fetch water, which was 'very far'. Booi said people who weren't able to get to the stadium paid R10 for someone to fill a 20-litre bucket. 'In some houses it's a granny with small children: 20 litres would not be enough, meaning everyday that granny must pay money to buy water. This is very frustrating and the municipal officials do not care about us because they have water,' she said. Community leader Sibulele Mninzi said some people walked for an hour to fetch water from the stadium, and it was only open during the day so people who were at work had to hire people to fetch water for them. Mqamelo said the district municipality mayor Lusanda Sizani visited the Xonxa Dam project recently and was satisfied with the progress. 'The (district municipality) technical team is closely monitoring the system to determine the functionality of all components after a lengthy period of inactivity,' said Mqamelo. She said the municipality continues carting water to high lying areas, and water rationing was in effect in other areas until the water supply systems were at full operation.
