DA Gauteng Congress

This is a joint statement by Provincial Leader candidates Ghaleb Cachalia and John Moodey and Provincial Chairperson candidates Greaterman Mafanedza, Mike Moriarty and Glenda Steyn.

The Democratic Alliance knows that South Africans need a new beginning. South Africans need hope and inspiration. They need policies that will lead them out of the swamp of despair that has been caused by 23 years of mismanagement and corruption.

As part of giving hope to South Africans, the DA has set its sights on winning the province of Gauteng, and forming a provincial government that will deliver excellent services to ALL the people of that province. The Party will be holding its Provincial Congress on 18 November 2017, at which we will be electing the leadership that will guide the Party in the run up to the vital 2019 election.

As candidates for the positions of leader and chairperson of the Province, we have committed ourselves to contesting this election in a way that puts the interests of the country and the Party above our individual ambitions.

We accept the voters’ roll and will try to persuade the electors of our respective merits.  We know that there is so much at stake that it is vital that we commit ourselves to project our vision for a successful and prosperous province, and our plans for making this a reality.

We are also committed to work tirelessly together with whomsoever is elected to win Gauteng.

DA Proposes Introduction Of Teacher’s Assistants In Gauteng Schools

Speech by: Khume Ramulifho MPL

“Introducing Teacher’s Assistants in Gauteng schools will benefit the province”

  • Teachers in Gauteng experience high workloads and levels of stress;
  • Introducing teacher’s assistants in schools will help to improve the quality of pass rates in township and rural schools;
  • This proposal seeks to provide support to teachers and in doing so promotes excellence in our schools;
  • Many teachers will support this proposal as it will reduce their work load. The education system will improve and we will receive better outcomes; and
  • The province will benefit as we will be able to produce highly skilled, innovative and talented personnel.

The full speech can be obtained here

 

Speech by: Glenda Steyn MPL

“Gauteng teachers are over worked and under paid”

  • Our teachers are probably amongst the hardest working members of our community and amongst the least appreciated;
  • A teacher’s assistant in the classroom will plug this gap as well as take some of the huge load off the teacher to enable greater attention be given to the pursuit of excellence in our classrooms.;
  • This proposal has multiple benefits: the teacher will have more time to prepare and present stimulating lessons; the learner will have someone by her side to assist and help surmount obstacles; the teacher’s assistant will get experience in the real world and real classroom;
  • Teacher’s Assistants could be drawn from multiple sectors; and
  • It is not the intention that the teacher’s assistant makes tea and cleans the board before every class. The intention is for this person to assist in the teaching and assessing process.

The full speech can be obtained here

 

Media enquiries:

Khume Ramulifho MPL

DA Gauteng Education Shadow MEC

082 398 7375

 

Glenda Steyn MPL

DA Gauteng Spokesperson on SCOPA

082 456 3252

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SPEECH BY MS GLENDA STEYN, MPL ON THE DEBATE ON THE TEACHERS ASSISTANTS IN GAUTENG DELIVERED IN THE GAUTENG PROVINCIAL LEGISLATURE ON 25TH OCTOBER 2016

How often have you heard “teachers work half day” – very often, I’m sure. But it’s not true.

How often have you heard “teachers work half year” – again, very often. But again, it’s not true.

How often have you heard “teachers get half a salary” – well that is true.

Our teachers are probably amongst the hardest working members of our community and amongst the least appreciated. Many high school teachers teach two or three subjects in three to five grades which have four or five classes of 35 to 45 learners in a week. Let’s do the math to see how many young minds they are responsible for developing every week. This equates to a Gauteng teacher being responsible for over 840 young minds.

Now make the assumption that in each exam cycle, those learners sit two exams for each subject. Our hypothetical teacher has to mark 1680 exam papers taking 15 minutes per paper. That’s 420 hours of marking in each exam cycle. Please note that there is generally the expectation that a paper has to be marked within 5 days of it being written.

Teaching is not a half day, half year job. And we have not even considered the time needed for preparation for each lesson, the time for intervention sessions with struggling learners, the time for extra-curricula activities and the time needed for personal studies to remain ahead of the subject matter in an ever changing world. Seldom is the phrase, “over worked and under paid” so appropriate.

But who suffers in this very realistic scenario? The teacher? Yes. The learner? Very definitely! The community? Certainly! Our province? Absolutely. South Africa? Without a doubt.

Let’s look at it from the perspective of the learner. If the child is doing well at school, he or she will certainly be on the teacher’s radar. The child will be interacting with the teacher in the classroom and getting confirmation of material as well as affirmation regularly. A weak learner will be on the teacher’s radar too. Time will be spent on intervention and additional lessons. What about the child who is simply average but with potential to do better? Let’s call them “the invisible middle”. In the average Gauteng school, this child will get very little attention to realize her potential.

A teacher’s assistant in the classroom will plug this gap as well as take some of the huge load off the teacher to enable greater attention be given to the pursuit of excellence in our classrooms.

It is not the intention that the teacher’s assistant makes tea and cleans the board before every class. The intention is for this person to assist in the teaching and assessing process. This has multiple benefits: the teacher will have more time to prepare and present stimulating lessons; the learner will have someone by her side to assist and help surmount obstacles; the teacher’s assistant will get experience in the real world, a real classroom.

Ask any teacher what they had to learn after getting an education degree and they will tell you that they didn’t really know how to handle a classroom in the real world. Theory is all very well but dealing with children in a classroom effectively requires experience beyond what is given in the annual practical period facilitated by our universities.

Teacher’s Assistants could be drawn from multiple sectors. New graduates who would gain much needed experience. Correspondence students studying towards an education degree who cannot afford to study full time and not work to provide for families. Retired specialist teachers where specialist skills are needed.

During my recent stay in London while doing research at Melcombe School which is an inner city state school in a working class area, it became more obvious that teachers’ assistants play a vital role in the education system. They have the advantage of much smaller class sizes than we have and sometimes have as many as 3 teachers’ assistants in the room at a time to assist in the learning process and personal development of the child. There is no way that we can have a system of this magnitude but we have to start putting more resources into education to achieve a well-educated population which can realize its potential and develop our country to the next level.

The time is now. The need is now. Action is needed now.

SPEECH BY MRS GLENDA STEYN, MPL ON THE STATE OF THE PROVINCE ADDRESS, DELIVERED IN THE GAUTENG PROVINCIAL LEGISLATURE ON THURSDAY, 25 FEBRUARY 2016

Let us stamp out the scourge of racism together

Thank you Madam Speaker,

On Monday, The Premier honoured those who fought and sacrificed so much for freedom and democracy in our country. He said “I hereby make a clarion call that we must unite against racism and xenophobia. Let us fight against racism wherever and whenever it manifests itself”.

I couldn’t agree more!

The DA couldn’t agree more!

He said “those who call black people baboons are as wrong as those who threaten to drive white students out of university campuses”.

I couldn’t agree more!

The DA couldn’t agree more!

Racism and xenophobia is a reality. To try to justify it, in any of its repugnant forms, is despicable and unacceptable and must be exposed for what it.

I believe this!

The DA believes this!

This must include making assumptions about any group of people, be they in an organisation, be they of one demographic or another, be they of one specific religious group.

The Premier said on Monday, “Nothing is more offensive that acts of incompetence and corruption that feed the racial stereotype that all black people are either inherently incompetent or corrupt”.

I couldn’t agree more!

The DA couldn’t agree more!

Black people are no more predisposed to corruption and incompetence that any other racial group. Individuals are incompetent. Individuals are corrupt. This does not make it true for everyone else in his or her family, for everyone else who is in the same race group or for everyone else who shares his or her demographics.

Far too often, assuming the actions of one individual are indicative of the sentiments and abilities of an entire group is the forerunner to dividing our nation which so many have sacrificed so much to build. The Premier made such an error just a few days before the state of the province address when he tried to rally ANC supporters by accusing his opposition of being racists trying to mislead the young people in townships. Equally erroneously, he made the assumption that there were no racists in the ANC leadership.

You see Mr Premier, black people are right to be offended to be assumed incompetent and corrupt because of the actions of some individuals for those individuals are not representative of the demographic. Equally white people are right to be offended to be assumed racist due to the actions of others who committed horrendous acts of racism 100 years ago, 50 years ago, 10 years ago or even yesterday for those individuals are not representative of the demographic. Muslim people are right to be offended to be assumed violent due to the actions of others who committed acts of extreme violence for those individuals are not representative of the demographic. And there are so many examples beyond the obvious stated.

Political mobilisation on race, religion or creed, is a certain road to a divided nation and so contrary to the lessons which the Premier says are taught by those who shed their blood and fought for this country we now enjoy,   who he describes as “the moral compass and conscience of the nation”.

Mr Premier, acknowledging plagiarism, I too make a clarion call that “we unite against racism and xenophobia. Let us fight against racism wherever and whenever it manifests itself”.

DA Gauteng Shadow Cabinet Portfolio Allocations

Shadow Cabinet

The DA in Gauteng has made slight amendments to its shadow cabinet to better serve the needs of the people of our province.

We believe that by doing so we aligned caucus members’ skills and competencies more closely with their portfolio requirements – so as to ensure that oversight over Premier David Makhura’s Cabinet is carried out in a more thorough and effective manner.

 

The Shadow Cabinet is as follows:

Caucus leader and Leader of the Official Opposition

John Moodey MPL

 

Arts, Culture, Sports and Recreation

Shadow MEC: Paul Willemburg MPL

Spokesperson: Kingsol Chabalala MPL

 

Community Safety and Security

Shadow MEC: Kate Lorimer MPL

Spokesperson: Michele Clarke MPL

 

Cooperative Governance, Traditional Affairs and Human Settlements

Shadow MEC: Fred Nel MPL

Spokesperson Housing: Mervyn Cirota MPL

 

Economic, Environment, Agriculture and Rural Development

Shadow MEC: Janet Semple MPL

Spokesperson – Agriculture: Ina Cilliers MPL

Spokesperson – Environment: Janho Engelbrecht MPL

 

Education

Shadow MEC: Khume Ramulifho MPL

Spokesperson: Solly Msimanga MPL

 

Finance

Shadow MEC: Adriana Randall MPL

Spokesperson: Mike Moriarty MPL

 

Health

Shadow MEC: Jack Bloom MPL

Spokesperson: Dr Neil Campbell MPL

 

Infrastructure Development

Shadow MEC: Alan Fuchs MPL

Spokesperson: Janho Engelbrecht MPL

 

ICT

Spokesperson: Ashor Sarupen MPL

 

Oversight Committee on the Premier’s Office and the Legislature

Spokesperson: John Moodey MPL

Spokesperson: Jack Bloom MPL

 

Public Accounts (Scopa)

Spokesperson: Glenda Steyn MPL

Spokesperson: Paul Willemburg MPL

Spokesperson: Graham Gersbach MPL

 

Roads and Transport

Shadow MEC: Dr Neil Campbell MPL

Spokesperson: Graham Gersbach MPL

Spokesperson: Justus de Goede MPL

 

Social Development

Shadow MEC: Refiloe Nt’sekhe MPL

Spokesperson: Ashor Sarupen MPL

 

Petitions

Spokesperson: Lebo More MPL

 

 

Media enquiries:

John Moodey MPL

082 960 1743

 

Willie Venter

Director: Communications and Research

060 963 8260

DA Wraps Up Roads Campaign in Springs

The Democratic Alliance in Springs has wrapped up a comprehensive campaign on the problems with roads and storm-water systems in the area.

Road infrastructure is not just about travel and convenience, it is part of the key infrastructure for jobs and growth. The DA wants comprehensive roads and storm-water systems to be properly maintained in Springs. This will reduce travel times, help minimise damage to vehicles and reduce travel times for people to get to work and for those looking for work.

During the campaign, the DA had events to reach out to as many people as possible about the DA’s plan to fix road. DA Ward councillors Ramesh Sheodin, Shadow Shabangu and Dean Stone reported potholes and road issues to the council.

The DA believes that good infrastructure will be the driver of jobs and growth for all people, and that road infrastructure will help all residents in this regard. Hundreds of residents in Springs have signed the DA’s petition for better roads and storm-water systems, which will be tabled to the Ekurhuleni Council and the Gauteng Legislature. The DA will keep fighting for infrastructure for growth.

Sarupen-AshorGlenda

 

Media Enquiries:

Glenda Steyn, MPL

DA Constituency Head for Springs and Nigel

082 456 3252

 

Ashor Sarupen, MPL

DA Constituency Head for Springs/Daveyton

076 335 5147

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SPEECH ON THE DEBATE ON PREMIER’S STATE OF THE PROVINCE ADDRESS BY MRS. GLENDA STEYN DELIVERED IN THE GAUTENG PROVINCIAL LEGISLATURE ON 26 FEBRUARY 2015

Mr Premier, in the week of your birthday, I believe that we should all give you a gift. I also believe that that the members on this side of the House have done just that. Happy birthday, Mr Premier – your gift is some solid advice and critique of your government, its plans and its performance since your last State of the Province address.

I reiterate what I said last year. I want to believe that the Premier will be successful in carrying out his objectives. It would refreshing to praise and not criticise.

But I am less enthused than I was last year and I wonder whether the successor in title to our previous Premier, Nomvula Mokonyane, will also be the successor in sentiment. Are we going to have a huge number of promises annually and very little action?

We commend you for highlighting the economy as a primary issue in getting this province into its rightful place but wonder whether you have the right people around you to do it. For instance you “announced” the aerotropolis in Ekurhuleni which is actually a programme initiated in 2010 as if it was the “fix-all” for your eastern corridor. In the last five years, as my colleagues have told you, it has been a drain on the Ekurhuleni budget and the excuse for international travel for the ANC mayor and his mayoral committee.

Do you have the right people around you Mr Premier? Is the Mayor of Ekurhuleni, or the mayors of the other councils, the right people to realise your dream, and may I add our dream too, to “transform, modernise and re-industrialise this beautiful and resilient province”

Any economic revival would require a dedicated, knowledgeable and transparent MEC too. I’m sure you would agree. You also call for an “accountable, responsive, transparent and clean government”. That same MEC, charged with economic development, resorted to personally abusive and racial statements in a Public Accounts hearing because he was being held accountable, asked to be responsive and transparent and to demonstrate that we have a clean government.

Do you have the right people around you Mr Premier?

In order to have an accountable, responsive, transparent and clean government, another aspiration which this side of the House shares with you, you need Heads of Departments who are willing to acknowledge flaws and initiate firm action to mitigate weaknesses. The HOD of Community Safety submitted vague, obscure and in some instances, inaccurate responses, to SCOPA in last week’s Public Accounts hearing. I would add that the responses were signed off by the MEC.

Do you have the right people around you, Mr Premier?

Annually, SCOPA makes recommendations to this House on how to make the Provincial Government accountable, responsive, transparent and clean. In the 11 years I have served here, all these recommendations have been adopted and become House resolutions. I could give you an incredibly long list of resolutions of this House which have been ignored or only partially complied with. Most of the guilty MECs and senior officials remain in positions of extreme responsibility regardless of their contempt of the House.

Do you have the right people around you, Mr Premier?

My colleague, Dr Neil Campbell referred to the poor use of our traffic police who, in his words, “seem only able to man speed taps, solicit bribes and gridlock the cities by amateurish point duty such as happened on Monday”. Are you aware that police and security personnel refused passage way to this building to at least 3 opposition MPLs to hear the State of the Province. I personally was told, by a self-confessed ANC supporting officer, that I may not access the area because I was not an ANC member.

I repeat, Mr. Premier, do you have the right people around you?

I reiterate the comments of my colleagues. There has to be a referendum on the public attitude to e-tolls and you must fulfil your promise to stand by the wishes of Gauteng citizens in rejecting e-tolls unconditionally. Mr Premier, you took a bold stand on the matter nine months ago and we appreciate that there are many around you in your party that disagree, but you are the Premier of Gauteng and Gauteng demands action.

You need the right people around you, right here in Gauteng, to oppose, with the same strength you demonstrated last year, Sanral, the National Department of Roads and Transport and the ANC outside of this province who seem determined to subject our province to e-tolls.

Yesterday the Minister of Finance referred to the government’s habit of not paying suppliers within 30 days as stipulated by the PFMA. He said that departments’ timeous payment of accounts would be a factor considered when renewing the contracts of Accounting Officers as well as assessing their performance.

In Gauteng this is a huge problem, with the Departments of Education and Health being significant offenders. You may have noticed the drop in unauthorized expenditure last year but have you compared it to the accruals in excess of 30 days? Mr. Premier, Departments in Gauteng, have, in my considered opinion, breached the PFMA by neglecting to pay suppliers in order to avoid unauthorized expenditure. This has a knock on effect on the ability to deliver services in this financial year.

I would also add Mr. Premier, that your office still owes money to the Department of Community Safety since the 2014 financial year. We are now almost at the end of the 2015 financial year.

Mr. Premier, will you and your MECs have the power of your convictions to penalize Accounting Officers by not renewing their contracts if they do not ensure that suppliers are paid within 30 days? Mr. Premier, do you have the right people around you to take on this task?

There is another quote from your speech which I would like to align myself to. You said “drugs and alcohol abuse remains a major problem in our communities”. I couldn’t agree more. I ask you then, can you imagine the frustration of the police in Springs when an alleged drug dealer is apprehended, just this month, with drugs to the value of R1 000 000 and is granted bail of R500. Where is the justice in that? You say that you will “intensify the implementation of our comprehensive response”. All the treatment centres and one-stop centres in the province will be swimming against the tide if the supply of drugs goes unabated.

Mr. Premier, do you have the right people around you to deal with this problem?

Mr. Premier, I recommend that you look to your right, look behind you, look at the MECs and consider all the promises you made on Monday, all the dreams you shared, all the plans you have made, all the strategies you implemented and ask yourself, “is the team I have around me, the right one to make these aspirations a reality?”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Contact: Cell 082 456 3252