Hon Chairperson, hon Minister and Deputy Minister, senior government officials, invited guests, ladies and gentlemen, in the Medium- Term Strategic Framework for April 2009 to March 2012, the Minister stated that:
... our predecessors, Minister Pallo Jordan and Deputy Minister Ntombazana Botha, the first political principals of the Department of Arts and Culture, have gone far in leading the department in the right direction. I now build on this firm foundation. I would like to acknowledge their leadership in the last five years. My colleague the Deputy Minister Paul Mashatile and I would like to carry the baton forward with the mandate of the people of South Africa.
Likewise, the Portfolio Committee on Arts and Culture is here to realise such a dream, in co-ordination with the said department, by further developing and preserving South African culture to ensure social cohesion and nation-building.
Of interest is the need to improve our support to all our staff in the administrative sector of departments. We need to make an effort continually to improve their lives as fellow South Africans and to assist holistically in keeping up their morale in the work environment.
The Department of Arts and Culture has a high vacancy rate. There are too many administrators acting in senior positions. These positions, which are part of the organogram and have budget allocations, are meant to be in place, so why is there a delay in filling these vacancies? This is one of the key strategic objectives and it is hoped that it will be implemented and resolved in the next six months in an effort to ensure continuity and improved service delivery.
The department also needs to greatly improve skills as part of human resource development to ensure that there is a lower rate of staff turnover. A skills audit should be made a priority in an effort to identify relevant skills training for employees, especially in areas of scarce skills in the department.
If ever there is a bursary system, it should be well advocated in terms of scarce skills and opportunities should be given to internal employees. As the saying goes, one is never too old to learn, and foremost of all, therefore, a learned nation can only ensure improved continuity, and effective and efficient service delivery. Most important of all, our own economic status will eventually improve. Much more of the Batho Pele principles can also be realised.
Part of our commitment is related to an already stated and emphasised speech by the hon Pam Tshwete, who served on the Portfolio Committee on Arts and Culture in the Third Parliament, on matters of renaming and naming of geographical and historical places. I wish to quote her as follows:
On the matter of the renaming and naming of geographical and historical places, we, as South Africans, are supposed to look at this process as part of transformation and reconciliation in our country. We, the democratic South African Parliament have approved the South African Geographical Names Council Act of 1998 to give effect to the name changes.
This, therefore, further emphasises the need for the present Parliament to speed up the process and start to make this a reality of the appreciation and commemoration of the very important losses of our people in the past struggle. This history needs to be upheld unapologetically even for our generations to come.
Renaming of streets was recently emphasised in a march by Free State women from the Progressive Women's Movement on 16 April this year in Bloemfontein; reminding government that we do not see much happening in this area of work. A peaceful march was staged to hand over a memorandum of demand to the SA Geographical Committee, the Mayor of Mangaung Local Municipality and the then MEC for sport, arts and culture, requesting a speedy process for the renaming of streets such as Maitland Street and others to icons of the past struggle such as Lilian Ngoyi and Charlotte Maxeke. Of course, there are many more.
I want the House also to note the fact that in an effort to correct such issues, women also wish to see more statues of women, as there is already an exaggerated number of statues of men to be seen around the various historical buildings in the country. Many stalwarts and veterans of the struggle are women, and I want the House to note further that the majority of voters in South Africa are women. Let the country, the government and the department please honour them. [Applause.]
The talent of self-employed South Africans is vast. They contribute and continually make an effort to show their skills through African craft work, which is so often taken for granted by our own South African community.
Out of love, in trying to portray their talent, beautiful craft work is made by men and women who earn a living from pottery, beadwork, clothing design and other craft work. They are even often seen in our most remote parts of our country standing near national roads, at bazaar stands, at various beachfronts and even at hawker stations trying to sell their goods. International businesspeople and tourists buy these craft works at next to nothing. These pieces are taken back to the external world, such as America and European countries, to mostly bourgeois places and sold at exorbitant prices. Some people are even known to have become millionaires from these craft works, but the South African manufacturer and producer continues to live from hand to mouth and even possibly dies a pauper. This is also very evident in the music industry where most musicians die penniless, never having enjoyed the fruits of their own hard work.
The message I wish to stress and put across is that we need to develop stringent strategies that protect our highly skilled and self-employed businesspeople by truly developing and applying policies and legislation that are seen to assist economically. Most important of all, our reality of job creation and poverty alleviation goals will be met.
The purpose of the national archives, records, libraries and heraldic services programme in Arts and Culture is to facilitate full and open access and information resources in South Africa.
According to the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, the national anthem is determined by the President by proclamation. Yes, that proclamation was done. So, why do we still see the anthem being incorrectly sung and compromised at not only national events but international events as well? We, as the custodians, need to act swiftly in correcting such carelessness to prevent further distortion. Along with the already ongoing advocacy, bookmarks or, where possible, pamphlets printed with the national anthem in its correct version should accompany South African flags and be supplied to all schools.
Furthermore, with an exemplary booklet, developed by Prof E Slabbert and Mrs L du Plessis from the University of the North West, already in distribution at our airports by the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, a similar booklet can be produced and we can ensure that it reaches all South African schools. Such a book should also be made available in all South African languages as even the person in the most remote part of the country will feel appreciation to be in possession of such a piece of work.
This should not be of importance to tourists only but also to our own fellow countrymen and countrywomen, of course, proving that charity begins at home. What is interesting about this little booklet is the detailed pages on the national anthem and the rest of the seven national symbols.
This then makes us realise the necessity of this department in improving the availability of libraries in rural areas in order to encourage reading, and we also note with great appreciation what the Minister has already indicated.
Braille production in libraries is still not yet effectively and properly co-ordinated. The SA Library for the Blind in Grahamstown produces Braille and audio books for the blind mainly in English, Afrikaans and isiXhosa.
In Johannesburg, Blind SA, a nongovernmental organisation receiving a subsidy from the Department of Arts and Culture, produces Braille at a fee in all 11 languages. The effort is there, but of concern is the fact that this body has not been declared a cultural institution. The Minister can influence its policies on the membership of its board in the province. Attention is therefore needed in improving co-ordination of these policies. I thank you. [Applause.]