31 Jan 2021

Ntlo ya Dikgosi has adopted a motion by Ghanzi West Region, Kgosi Mbao Kahiko requesting government to amend section 133.1 of the General Orders (1996).

Kgosi Kahiko is of the view that government has to subsidise rental fees for Public Officers.

When responding to the motion during the fifth meeting of the fourth Ntlo ya Dikgosi on Friday, Assistant Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Mr Sethabelo Modukanele explained that General Order 133.1 generally provided that government did not normally provide housing, whether subsidised or not to public officers.

He indicated that currently government had not considered amendment of General Order 133.1, adding that this was primarily because housing provision was expensive.

Mr Modukanele explained that such provision would delay creativity and initiative by officers to build or purchase their own houses, adding that this was further complicated by the fact that the nature of public service required officers to transfer around the country.

Kgosi Kahiko highlighted that public officers were living under hard conditions, taking into consideration high rental fees especially in cities and towns hence the need to subsidise rental fees.

“Landboards has such arrangement for their employees but they are part of government, why not adopt that for all public officers,” he added.

He said cost of living was too high, noting that housing allowance was very low. Kgosi Kahiko gave an example of a public officer earning P4 000 a month, indicating that he/she would be paying rent, school fees, food, transport, supporting  parents, clothes for children.

These kind of workers, he said would resort to borrowing money just to survive through the month, adding that at the end of the month they would still be left with no money and still in debts.

He said if government was willing to see public officers owning houses, it should come up with strategies to make it easy for them to acquire houses. ends