b - connect issue 5
TRANSCRIPT
CONNECTIssue 05
Internal Staff Newsletter
#RespekTheDoek
Registered
Date Saved
Ready to Vote
#3August2016 #AsambeKe
Editors NoteKhanya Kalashe
#RespekTheDoekA challenge in our circleSouth Africans have come out strong on social media to celebrate the head-wrap as a symbol of
their "Africanness". This follows a controversial dubbed Doekgate.
eNCA Senior Reporter, Ntobekho Sibisi alleged
that a story she was working on for Africa Day
was canned because she appeared in the insert
wearing a head-wrap. She expressed her
disappointment that a story that was about
celebrating African excellence was taken off air.
With that said, why do YOU wear a #Doek?
Is it a cultural, race, language or religious
influence or something else? And where do
you draw the line? e.g Can you attend
meetings wearing a doek? Have your say
and you could be our first prize winner.
New look, new feel! At least, that’s how I’d
like to think about the new “B – Connect”
internal staff newsletter. The main idea
behind the concept is to try and personalise
the newsletter with familiar faces, resulting
in a more interactive and appealing
newsletter for everyone. Generally, we have
a "young" institution with all sorts of
dynamics which make it interesting - hence
the reason for the new design. In this
quarter, we place our focus on the
upcoming local government elections.
‘Are you ready to make your mark on the
3rd of August?’ Is the question you’ll
need to answer for yourself. In other
news, we’d like to know your view on
what constitutes #RespekTheDoek in a
corporate environment? Is it related to
culture, religion, race or something else?
With that said, I hope you enjoy reading
it as much as I enjoyed compiling this
edition.
By Zukiswa Zimela (Destiny) Edited by Khanya Kalashe
In an interview with 702’s Xolani Gwala, eNCA
Editor-in-Chief Anton Harber said he had no
problem with what Sibisi was wearing, adding
that the incident had raised a sensitive
issue, which necessitated a policy review.
South Africans called for the channel to respect
the doek, using the hashtag #RespekTheDoek.
Men and women posted pictures of themselves
wearing some form of headgear, calling for the
channel to respect their Africanness.
Email your opinion to [email protected] and stand yourself a chance towin OUR FIRST PRIZE!!
important expression of your heritage and it is
always fitting to grace traditional events
wearing one."
On the other hand, we all have bad hair days,
and to keep it hidden away we just bring out
the doek as our fashion piece or statement,
making it a fashion convenience as well.” she
added.
When Nolusindiso Hleko, NMMU Masters
student, was asked about the headpiece she
said,' the item is associated with being an
ConnectVoice Column
South Africa has seen massive
transformation in all sporting codes
throughout the last few months and with the
doek in question as a professional gear or
not, can we safely say that we're moving
towards a free transformed African country?
MANDELADAY
By: Khanya Kalashe
Sarah Baartman District Municipality employees embarked on a Mandela day public participation
programme that took place on the 18th of July 2016 at Sundays River Valley Local Municipality in
Glenconnor.
The day started off with loud cheers and praises
from the children who were so eager to have their
class painted and of-course a good slice of cake to
accompany the excitement. Amongst the SBDM
officials was the Portfolio Councilor for Tourism
and Creative Industries, Mr Zamuxolo Peter, who
enjoyed the company of the elderly while sharing a
slice of cake and engaging on community based
challenges. The two projects of the day included,
painting the Grade R class with a touch of green
and yellow, while the other project was aimed at
cleaning the satellite clinic which was donated by
the institution a few years ago.
Special Programmes Unit Officer, Mr Luvuyo
Madlakana, led the team on a very successful
programme that touched the hearts of our own
community residents. When asked why that
area was chosen for the project, he
said, "Sometimes its not about the area you
choose but about what needs to be done
to live up to the mandate given to us by our
people, for our people". Nelson Mandela
International Day was launched in recognition
of Nelson Mandela’s birthday on the 18th of
July 2009 via a unanimous decision of the UN
General Assembly.
Sundays River ValleyLocal Municipality
Riebeeck EastLibrary Opening
By: Khanya Kalashe
MEC for the Department of Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture, Dr Pemmy Majodina, together with
the Sarah Baartman District Municipality and Makana Local Municipality officially opened a new
library in Riebeeck East on the 7th of July 2016. The new library was named in honour of the late
Edna Fortuin and was built by the Sarah Baartman District Municipality.
'Learning is an art that can never be bought by
anyone' said the energetic MEC, Dr Pemmy
Majodina at the official launch of the Edna
Fortuin Library in Riebeeck East.
Among those that attended the auspicious event
was the Executive Mayor, Khunjuzwa Eunice
Kekana, Speaker of the Makana Local
Municipality, Cllr Vara and the Hourable Mayor
of Makana, Cllr Gaga. The program kicked off
with the choir singing both anthems (SA
National Athem & AU Anthem), which then
proceeded to the unveiling of the plaque.
Mayor of Makana, Cllr Gaga then had the
honour of cutting the ribbon which saw the
doors being open for the community.
At the same event, the SBDM Executive
Mayor had the pleasure of handing over fire
equipment to the Makana Local Municipality and
said, "This equipment is meant to ensure that all
our facilities are protected from what could be a
possible threat to our children's future".
The main event took place inside the community
adjacent hall that was filled to its maximum
capacity. Although the library opening was primari
ly targeted at the youth, a large number of the
elderly people participated in the event. The
MEC noted that she was pleased
with the turnout at the event.
Proceedings came to a close and everyone
departed in high spirits.
'NEHAO' 早上Jet - lagged for who?
Ms Theo Betha
The Chinese government together with the South African government signed the “Nuclear Energy Peaceful Use Agreement”
in June 2006. Subsequently, the two governments signed a “Memorandum of Energy Cooperation" in 2010, which laid a good
foundation for nuclear power cooperation between the two countries.
The Chinese Government proposed the establishment
of a training cooperative agreement between the two
countries. Recently, PMU Manager, Theodora Betha,
was among 50 participants that visited China on a
nuclear power plant study programme that will benefit
South African communities, in particular the Camdeboo
Local Municipality. According to Betha, "The Coega
Development Corporation (CDC) received an invitation
to participate in phase II of the Nuclear Training
programme and extended the invitation to its key
provincial stakeholders. The CDC explores opportunities
related to the Nuclear Energy sector through
relationships with key industry role-players. The CDC
invited SBDM on the 9th of November 2015 to nominate
a young professional, with at least one year work
experience. Among the 50 participants that were invited,
she was accompanied by representatives
from the Blue Crane Route Local Municipality and Kouga
Local Municipality. In a recent interview with B-Connect,
Betha shared her experience as a nominated delegate
from SBDM. "The study programme was broken down
into 10 groups. I formed part of the construction
technology group," she said. She attended a series of
lectures and was exposed to the 'cap 400' nuclear plant,
which is currently in its production stages in Shanghai. On
the lighter side of things, Betha woke up very early in the
morning to try her hand at the popular Chinese exercise
called "thaj", which is similar to tai-bo. Asked if she would
ever go back to China she replied with enthusiasm, "Yes i
would but if there's one thing i will never miss, it is the
food". The training programme went on for just over 2
weeks. With that said, B-Connect congratulates her on a
job well done.
ARE YOU READY? By: Khanya Kalashe
The Sarah Baartman District Municipality, together with the Eastern Cape Legislature Offices, has embarked on a voters education programme in Camdeboo.
The area has been identified as one of the 'lowest voter turnout' areas in the Eastern Cape province. One of the common reasons behind this problem is
that voters are not well informed before they have to take to the polls.
The importance of voter and civic education during an
election year cannot be overstated. Such initiatives
assist voters in better understanding their rights and
responsibilities, as well as giving them sufficient
knowledge about the country’s election process and
political system. Voters can then understand the value
of democracy, the impact it has on the system of
government, and how it can be used to address the
economic, social and political challenges facing the
nation. In a recent interview with Ndlambe fm,SBDM
Speaker of Council, Deon De Vos said,"In the run-up
to the 2014 elections, the Independent Electoral
Commission (IEC) made an effort to ensure that
eligible voters, and specifically young, first-time
voters, get registered. The voter education
programme is one of their initiatives in making
sure our people are well informed before taking
on the polls". He then added, "Young South
Africans need to be sufficiently knowledgeable
and informed to cast their votes and participate
meaningfully in the voting process.
STILL I RISE#InspiredToConquer
By Khanya Kalashe
B - ConnectWarrior of the Week
Born and bread in the upper valley of the Great Fish River (Cradock), just 250 kilometers northeast of Port Elizabeth, hails a woman who
takes pride in her upbringing. Many will know her as 'Khanyisa' Stemele, a customary name given to her by her in-laws in 2004 and some
will refer to her as 'Nolwayiphi' Mzimkulu. In a recent interview with B-connect, Stemele shared a life-time testimony that seeks to challenge
and motivate 'unemployed youth graduates' within the institution.
Growing up in a christian home and being the
brightest in the family, Stemele had hopes of
becoming one of South Africa's first black
scientists. Little did she know that things
would take a wrong turn after she fell
pregnant with her first daughter, just
moments before enrolling into the University
of Port Elizabeth, which is now known as
NMMU.
This ordeal came with great challenges as
she could no longer enroll herself into the
institution and felt it necessary to find a job in
PE after conceiving her baby.
More challenges queued up as she heavily
relied on her baby's father for assistance,
who also didn't earn that much at the time.
Despite her family's disappointment, her
mother was the only token of strength she
could fall back on. With this said, Stemele
was motivated to assist her husband and got
her first job as a waitress at a coffee shop in
Summerstrand. She later joined a security
company that had an ongoing contract
with the Cacadu District Municipality at the
time. The company was called
Nomathamsanqa and was owned by Nomtha
Stemele and Pauline Nkwinti at the time. With
the new job came greater responsibilities so I
started looking out for other opportunities. "I
was fortunate enough to get a new job as an
operator at DNB wiring," she said
proudly. However, she was retrenched not long
after she obtained the new job. Stemele opted
to get married and rather raise her children as
a housewife until her marriage
took unbearable strain and she was forced to
get a job. After numerous applications she
eventually got employed as a tea lady at the
erstwhile Cacadu District Municipality and was
then later promoted to an Archives Clerk.
Stemele is now prepared to go back to
school and finish what she had started
years back. "I'm now a mother of three
and a woman amongst other women,"
she concluded with a giggle.
ConnectPutting People First
Principle's We ShareBy: Graham Terblanche
To promote this notion of “putting people first” and
to provide a framework for the transformation of
public service delivery, government introduced the
concept of Batho Pele, “people first” in 1997. This
notion was expanded in the White Paper on
Transforming the public service, also known as the
Batho Pele White Paper, which provides a policy
framework to ensure that Batho Pele is woven into
the very fabric of government
Simply stated, Batho Pele is an initiative to get
public servants to be service orientated, to strive
for excellence in service delivery and to commit to
continuous service delivery improvement. It is a
simple, transparent mechanism, which allows
customers to hold public servants accountable for
the type of services they deliver.
The Batho Pele White Paper signalled very
strongly government’s intention to adopt a citizen-
orientated approach to service delivery, informed
by the eight principles of consultation, service
standards, access, courtesy, information,
openness and transparency, redress and value
for money.
In a genuinely competitive commercial market,
private companies cannot afford
to ignore the needs and wishes of their
customers if they want to stay in business,
because dissatisfied customers can choose to
take their business elsewhere. Knowing
what the customer wants and providing it
quicker, better and cheaper than your
competitors, is essential to business success.
As competitive companies worldwide
soon discover, 'the customer comes first' is not
an empty slogan but a fundamental
business principle. By contrast citizens, as the
'customers' of public services, cannot choose
to take their business elsewhere.
For example, any South African who wants a
passport has no alternative but to apply to the
Department of Home Affairs. Many public
services are not paid for directly by individual
'customers', and national and
provincial departments which fail to satisfy their
'customers' do not go out of business.
Moreover, many public services, such as revenue
collection or the imposition of law and order are not
'services' but are regulatory in function.They are
accepted by citizens as essential safeguards of a
civilized society in which the vulnerable
are protected and all citizens have equal
opportunity for economic and social
development.
The concept of the citizen as a 'customer' may
therefore seem inappropriate at
first sight. 'Customer' is nevertheless a useful
term in the context of improving service delivery
because it embraces certain principles which are
as fundamental to public service delivery.
Santam launches fire preventionto Kouga Local Municipality
By: Charl Bosch
As part of its contribution to International Mandela Day, short term insurer Santam, in partnership with the South African Local Government Association
(SALGA) and the Sarah Baartman District Municipality, handed over a number of smoke detectors at the municipality’s head office in Port Elizabeth on 22
July, as part of a pilot project set to commence in the Kouga Local Municipality.
Speaking to Sarah Baartman News after the formal
handover, Santam Stakeholder Relations Head John
Lomberg said the detectors would be handed over to
vulnerable communities in Cape St Francis, in
response to the area often being affected by
devastating fires.
He confirmed that a total of 252 out of the 798
detectors would be implemented as part of the pilot,
With the help of the municipality who
identified the potential hotspots in the
respective informal settlements, we hope
to reduce the risk of fires in these areas
and also to highlight the dangers of how
smoking affects communities with regards
to fires.
with the eventual project rollout set to start in early
2017. "As part our partnership with SALGA,
training will be provided to communities as to what
they can expect with the smoke detectors, and we
will also monitor and track progress over the next
three months before rolling the programme out
nationally,” Lomberg said.
Connect#StayInformed
For more information or anysuggestions please contact theeditor on:
Khanya Kalashe Public Relations Tel: 041 508 7192Cell: 079 525 5140Email: [email protected]