Ho Motlatsa-Moporesidente, Modulasetulo wa NCOP, Matona, maloko a komiti ya phethahatso, maloko a lekgotla la botjhaba la diporofensi, maloko a lekgotla la ketsamolao, bomajoro ba phethahatso le makhanselara, marena a rona a hlomphehang le setjhaba sa rona se kgabane, ke a le dumedisa.
Ke monyetla ho nna ho ba karolo ya batho ba kgethilweng ho ka nehelana ka puo ngangisanong ya kajeno. Re buisana kajeno kamora ho qeta beke re le mona, re bua le baahi mme ba ntsha maikutlo a bona ka maemo a bona a bophelo le hore na ba lebelletse hore mmuso o arabela jwang diphepetso tseo ba tobaneng le tsona. Re bile le monyetla wa ho etela tse ding tsa dibaka tse nehelanang ka ditshebeletso ho ya inwesa ka nkgo hore di maemong a jwang, jwaloka dikolo, ditleliniki le dipetlele.
Jwaloka mmuso wa batho, molemong wa batho, re utlwile dillo tsa lona mme rona hammoho le lona, re tla fumana tharollo le mokgwa oo re ka lwantshang ditlamorao tsa kgethollo le kgatello ya nako e fetileng. Maikemisetso a ANC a ho ruta bana ba rona ka dithuto tse hodimo tsa naha, ha a so fetohe hobane ke baetapele ba rona ba hosane. Batho ba rona ba tlameha ho utlwisisa moo re tswang. Bana ba rona ba ne ba rutwa ka tlasa difate ho se na meaho ya dikolo, empa mmusong ona bana ba rona ba ahetswe dikolo leha dibakeng tse ding e le leqeeme.
Ka Sesotho re re "thupa e kojwa e sa le metsi" mme hona ho bonahala ka maikemisetso a Lefapha la Thuto, Lefapha la Ntshetsopele ya Setjhaba, ho thusa thutong ya bana ba banyenyane. Batswadi ba kotjwa hore ba ise bana ditsheng tsa thuto ya bana ba banyenyane hore ba tle ba kgothalletswe dilemong tseo ka bohlokwa ba thuto. Moo ditsha tseo di leng siyo, re etsa boipiletso ho mmasepala le mmuso wa diporofensi hore ba ntshetse ditsha tseo pele.
Mmuso o fana ka thuso ya ditjhelete ho thusa bana mme re ipiletsa ho batswadi ba amohelang ditjhelete tsa bana hore ba se ke ba di ja, di ke di tswele bana bao molemo. O tla fumana bana ba lapa, ba sa hlapiswe, ba sa rekelwe diaparo empa e le bana ba fumanang dithuso tsa mmuso tsa ditjhelete. Re a utlwisisa hore ba bang ba kena dikolo hole empa mmuso o fana ka tshehetso ya ditjhelete bakeng sa dipalangwang tse isang bana ba jwalo dikolong mme re ipeletsa hore moo ho sa etsahaleng jwalo, mmuso wa mmasepala le wa diporofensi, o kene dipakeng.
Mmuso o entse mekutu yohle hore dibuka le disebediswa tsa thuto, di fumanehe ka nako hore thuto e se ke ya sitiseha. Lenaneo la phepo ya bana dikolong, ke a mang a matsapa a ho etsa hore ho be bobebe hore bana ba ye sekolong ba sa lle ka tlala. Le dibakeng tseo ho tsona sena se sa etsahaleng, re kopa mmuso wa porofensi le mmuso wa mmasepala o kene dipakeng. Re utlwisisa tlhokeho tse teng hore mesebetsi e meng e phethahale. Re tshehetsa maikemisetso a mmuso a ho kwetlisa bana ba dikete tse leshome le metso e mehlano ka selemo, mme re tshepa hore dibaka tsa mahae di tla una molemo maikemisetsong ao. Re etsa boipeletso ba hore tshekamelo e be dithutong tsa dipalo, bonono le boenjinere. Re etsa boipeletso ho ditsha tse fapaneng tsa thuto, le kwetliso ya mofuta o jwalo, ho tshehetswa ka ditjhelete. Bana ba nang le bokgoni ba ho kwetlisa ba fumane meputso e bonahalang hore ba tle ba kgothalle ho etsa mosebetsi. Ho na le bothata bo boholo ba hore batjha ha ba se ba qetile sehlopha sa leshome, ba hloka ditjhelete tsa ho ntshetsa dithuto tsa bona pele. Batjha ba rona ke bokamoso ebile ke baetapele ba hosane mme ha mmuso o sa tsetele batjheng ka ho ba isa sekolong, bokamoso ba bona bo tla ba lerootho mme ba bang ba fetoha ditsotsi mme hono e be pharela setjhabeng.
Ho ke ke ha nepahala ebile ke ntho e fosahetseng hore mona Limpopo ho e na le merafo, e etsang ditjhelete ka dirafshwa tsa mona, empa tjhelete e sa tswele baahi ba mona molemo. Phoso e hokae mme e ka lokiswa jwang le hona neng? Maemo a merafo ya mona a ke ke a tlohellwa ho tswela pele e ka a nepahetse. Batho ba mmuso ba fanang ka dilaesense tsa ho rafa, le baetapele ba nang le dikamano le merafo, ha ba ke ba be le nnete mme ba utlwisise hore ba sebeletsa setjhaba mme ba tshepahale bathong ba rona. Re ke ke ra lata batho kantle ho tlo tla sebetsa mona empa baahi ba mona ba tseba mosebetsi ono. Ho ke ke ha hlokahala metsi le motlakase bathong empa merafo e etsang tjhelete mona e fumana metsi le motlakase.
Bana ba sekolo ba ke ke ba hloka ho ya sekolong hobane pula e na mme ditsela di sa tsamaehe empa tsela e yang merafong e tsamaeha. Mmuso wa batho ka batho molemong wa batho, o bolela hore lentswe la setjhaba le ahelwa lesaka. Molaotheo wa naha o hlalosa hore o na le boikarabelo ho arabela ditlhokong tsa batho.
Ka boikokobetso, re etsa boipeletso hore marena le mmuso, le baetapele ba nang le dikamano le boramerafo, ba etse hore tjhelete e se felle mekotlaneng ya bona, e thuse setjhaba pele setjhaba se fellwa ke mamello. Ho kena dipakeng ha mmuso ho etse hore ditshebeletso tsa bophelo bo botle di fihlellwe ha bobebe ke batho ba rona. Ditleliniki le dipetlele di ahwe mme ho bulwe ditsha tsa thuto ya bophelo bo botle.
Batjha ba bangata ba sa sebetseng, hammoho le ba ithaopang ho thusa bakudi, ba fuwe thupello hantle mme ba hirwe e le basebetsi ba bophelo bo botle mme ba fuwe meputso e hantle. Mmuso o tlamehile ho hira dingaka mme di iswe dibakeng tsa mahaeng. Meriana le dipilisi di fumanehe bakeng sa bakudi ba rona. Ho se kwalwe ditleliniki pele batho ba rona ba thuswa kaofela mme batho ba rona ba tshwarwe hantle e leng baimana, maqheku le bana ba nang le boqhwala. Re tshehetsa kahohle maemong a bofuma le ho hlokeha ha mesebetsi ka baka la moruo o hlotsang, tshehetso ya Lefapha la Ntshetsopele ya Setjhaba ho maqheku, batho ba nang le boqhwala, dikgutsana le malapa a etelletsweng pele ke bana.
Modulasetulo ha se ke tla phethela, re etsa boipiletso ho mmuso ho fumana taba ya hore maqheku a rona ha a eme mane mefolong ... [Nako e fedile.] Tanki hang, tanki habedi, tanki hararo. Ke a leboha. [Mahofi.] (Translation of Sesotho speech follows.)
[Ms M L MOSHODI: Deputy President, Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces, Ministers, members of the executive council, members of the legislature, executive mayors and councillors, honourable chiefs and our beautiful nation, I greet you all.
It is an honour for me to be one of the people chosen to participate in this debate. We are debating today after spending a week here talking to communities. They voiced their opinions about their situation as well as how they expect government to respond to the challenges they are faced with. We had an opportunity to visit some of the areas that offer services in order to see for ourselves the condition they are in, such as schools, clinics and hospitals.
As a government of the people for the people, we heard your complaints and, together with you, we are going to find a solution and a way that we can fight the aftereffects of the discrimination and oppression of the past. The aim of the ANC to offer our children the highest education standards in the land has not changed because they are our future leaders. Our people should understand where we come from. Our children were taught under trees with no school buildings, but in this dispensation schools have been built for our children even though in some areas there are some shortcomings.
In Sesotho we say, "Thupa e kojwa e sa le metsi" [spare the rod and spoil the child.] This is evident in the aims of the Department of Education and the Department of Social Development in helping with the education of the little ones. Parents are asked to take their children to educational centres so that they are encouraged early on about the importance of education. Where those centres don't exist, we make a request to the municipality and provincial government to establish them.
Government provides child grants in order to help needy children and therefore we ask parents not to misuse it for their own purposes. It should benefit the children. You will find children going hungry, unwashed, clothes not being bought for them and yet they are children who receive financial assistance from government. We understand that some children attend school very far away but the government does provide assistance with transport fares to help such children to go to school. Therefore we ask that where this is not happening the municipality and provincial government should intervene.
The government has made every effort to ensure that books and other educational resources are made available timeously so that teaching is not affected. The schools feeding scheme is one of the means for children to attend school without the possibility of complaining about hunger. Even in those areas where this is not happening we ask the provincial government and the municipality to intervene. We do understand that there are certain requirements that are necessary in order for certain things to happen. We support the government's plans to train 15 000 children a year and we believe that rural areas will benefit from them.
We make a request that emphasis should be placed on mathematics, arts and engineering. We make a further request for different educational centres, as well as similar training centres, to be given financial assistance. Children who are able to provide training should be fairly remunerated so that they become enthusiastic about their work. There is a huge problem about the fact that when children have completed Grade 10, they don't have funds to further their studies. Our youth is our future and they are tomorrow's leaders; therefore if government does not invest in the youth by taking them to school their future will be dark and some of them will turn into thugs, and that will pose a big problem for the country.
It cannot be right and it is a terrible thing that even though there are mines here in Limpopo which make a lot of money from local minerals this does not benefit local communities. Where is the problem, how is it going to be corrected and when? The situation with the mines in this area cannot be left to continue as though it is normal. Government officials who issue mining licences as well as other leaders who have mining interests are not always honest. They should understand that they are working for the people and therefore they should be trustworthy to our people. We cannot recruit people from outside to come and work here and yet we have locals who can do the work. There cannot be water and electricity shortages and yet mines which make huge profits have water and electricity.
Schoolchildren should not miss going to school because the roads are not negotiable when it rains, whereas the road leading to the mines is. The Government of the people by the people for the people means that the people's voice should be respected. The Constitution of the country mentions that there is a responsibility to be accountable for the needs of the people.
We humbly request that the chiefs, government and other leaders who have relations with mine owners see to it that money does not only end up in their pockets. It should help communities before communities run out of patience. The government's intervention should ensure that good social services are easily accessible for our people. Clinics and hospitals should be built and health care centres should also be established.
Many youths who are not working, as well as those who volunteer to help the sick, should be given proper training and should be employed as health care- givers and be fairly remunerated. Government should employ doctors who should be sent to the rural areas. Medicines and pills should be made available to the sick. Clinics should not close before all our people have received help and our people should be treated well, including pregnant women, the aged as well as physically disabled children. We totally commend the support given to the poor and the unemployed by the Department of Social Development as a result of the ailing economy, as well as to the aged, the physically disabled, orphans and child-headed families.
Chairperson, in conclusion we plead with government to look into the matter that the aged should not stand in long queues ... [Time expired.] I thank you once, twice, thrice. Thank you. [Applause.]]