12 May 2017

Assistant Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Mr Frans Van Der Westhuizen has pleaded with communities to avoid high risk projects when they utilise the constituency funds.

Addressing a kgotla meeting in Makalamabedi, Mr Van Der Westhuizen  underscored the need for communities to come up with sustainable projects which could benefit all, adding that the funding was introduced to transform the local economy.

He explained that the constituency funding was meant for projects which the government could not include in the normal budgetary process.

The initiative, he said, was meant to augment the National Development Plan (NDP) 11 and Economic Stimulus Programme (ESP) which would focus on developments lacking in the constituencies and would be controlled by constituents.

Furthermore, he said it was expected to run parallel to NDP 11 and ESP, adding that it would not interrupt any existing development programme.

Mr Van Der Westhuizen appreciated that residents requested a slaughter house, as they found it to be a vital need in the village.

He discouraged projects such as retailers, saying they were not sustainable and that people could also fail to account for finances and ultimately the project would collapse.

Other projects he suggested the community could venture into include kgotla shelters, connection of electricity in Village Development Committee (VDC) houses and guest houses because they were easy to manage.

The assistant minister also advised communities to consult with their leadership including MPs when they proposed projects to encourage ownership.

On other issues, he informed residents about the increase of Ipelegeng allowances and VDC members.

He also noted that the Ipelegeng budget has not been increased this financial year, adding that it means quotas would also not be increased.

Mr Van Der Westhuizen said they did not increase the budget deliberately because they want people to take advantage of other initiatives and to venture into income generating projects which could change their lives.

“Ipelegeng is a not a permanent job as it is meant to provide short term employment support and relief,” he added.

Earlier on, VDC chairperson, Mr Tsholofelo Ramolelo thanked the government for increasing their allowances even though it was not enough.

He also noted that Ipelegeng projects were progressing well, and said he wished the quota could be increased due to the high unemployment in the village.

He also decried about the slow implementation of poverty eradication programmes, noting that most beneficiaries had not started because they were not given all the necessary materials.

Mr Ramolelo observed that projects were unsuccessful, especially backyard gardens.

For his part, area MP, Mr Kosta Markus advised residents to propose more projects for the constituency funding, noting that some proposed big projects which took the whole budget.

He said they should utilise the funding and urged residents to focus on projects that would bring a new image to their village and  improve their living standards. ENDS