30 Jul 2013

Assistant Minister of Local Government and Rural Development Ms Botlogile Tshireletso has expressed concern over the slow implementation of poverty eradication projects in Struizendam.

Speaking during a kgotla meeting in Tsabong on July 29, the assistant minister said that she, together with the Kgalagadi South political leaders have concurred that implementers of the poverty eradication projects were lax.

She blamed public officers for failing the people, pointing out that it has taken a long time for beneficiaries of the Struizendam poverty eradication workshop to benefit.

She revealed that since the Struizendam poverty eradication workshop last year, only two people benefited from alternative packages by way of bakery of which they were forced by officials to partner even though they harboured differing views on how best they could run their enterprises.

As a result, Ms Tshireletso expressed concern at the forced partnership and ordered that the bakery beneficiaries in question be separated. “I must not hide my unhappiness at what I am seeing here,” Ms Tshireletso said adding that LIMID was the only package which has forged ahead.

“Because of the prevailing poverty in this area one would have expected that we would be having a high number of people registered to benefit from poverty eradication programmes,” the assistant minister said.

She promised some significant improvements and warned that she ‘will not leave any stone unturned.’ The better part of her lashing was directed at the social and community development (S&CD) for not identifying as well as training deserving destitute. For re-engineering purposes, Ms Tshireletso promised to meet public servants in Tsabong and deliberate on expeditious delivery of government programmes to the beneficiaries.

On other issues Ms Tshireletso informed residents that a 1.8 hectare plot has been identified in Tsabong for a small stock abattoir.

She said that talks were on-going between the Ministry of Agriculture and Kgalagadi District Council regarding ownership of the project.

Ms Tshireletso also informed residents that their plea to the government to have LUBU research farm turned into artificial insemination camp was not successful on the grounds that the farm has been deemed suitable only for small stock.

Its carrying capacity was also one of the factors that led to the unsuccessful plea.

For his part, Member of Parliament for Kgalagadi South Mr John Toto pledged his support for poverty eradication initiatives but expressed his doubts on the implementation part.

He observed that Struizendam was not the only village faced with slow implementation of projects but the problem prevailed in other villages in his constituency.

Subsequently, Mr Toto called for a cordial working relationship between politicians and public servants for a smooth and speedy delivery. He also requested that the people of Struizendam and the whole BORAVAST (Bokspits, Rappelspan, Vaalhoek and Struizendam) region be provided with transport so as to access small stock market days in Tsabong.

Earlier on in his welcome remarks Kgosi Isaac Titus requested for speedy application for equipping Struizendam borehole so that beneficiaries of the alternative packages could not struggle for water. He had also requested that beneficiaries of the November poverty eradication workshop be given what they have been trained for. Ends