KwaZulu-Natal Premier, Sihle Zikalala, hosted a virtual media briefing on Monday, 8 October, to give an update on the recent developments on elections and vaccinations in the province.
“We wish to start by expressing our gratitude to all the people of KwaZulu-Natal for
the recent Local Government Elections, which were largely held in a climate of peace, tolerance and acceptance of each other’s right to campaign and to vote freely. While we are concerned about the number of people who chose not to participate in these elections, we are nevertheless pleased that our society seems to have come of age,” said Premier Zikalala.
He appealed to all political parties to be united and work together. “We must never lose sight of the fact that we have a province to develop, and a country to grow. This is something that no political party can achieve in isolation from the rest of society. Since last Monday’s elections we have noted a few unpleasant scenes in which certain people were seen toyi-toying and ‘demanding keys’ to certain buildings. Others were engaging in other forms of provocation. These were accompanied by insults hurled at municipal officials who are public servants and not politicians,” he said.
Speaking about the councillor orientation programme, Zikalala said the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) has advised that immediately after elections, they will be undertaking a skills audit of all councillors.
“The purpose of the skills audit is to identify the councillor experience and office held; years of experience in local government, employment, educational profile and demographic information. The skills audit provides valuable information towards the identification of training needs and the customisation of capacity building initiatives.
“Two capacity building programmes are scheduled for roll-out post the local government elections aimed at inducting and orientating councillors to their roles and responsibilities. SALGA will be rolling out the Integrated Councillor Induction Programme. Thereafter CoGTA will conduct Sector Based Councillor Orientation Workshops. The programmes will provide councillors with an overview of the local government environment which will cover roles and responsibilities, the policy and legal framework and various municipal processes,” he said.
Premier Zikalala said they have noted with absolute dismay, people spreading false claims that the country’s national lockdown was downgraded only to allow for the elections to take place and that after the elections, government will bring back the hard lockdown.
Kwazulu-Natal Premier, Sihle Zikalala giving an update on elections and vaccinations****
