An eventful year in politics

From forfeiting R100m while schools are in dire need of infrastructural upgrades to an uproar over a UAE delegation landing at Bulembu Airport, there was never a dull moment in 2023  in the Eastern Cape’s political and administrative affairs.

The Dispatch is looking back at the year that was, reflecting on some of the topical issues that had set the news agenda for the province.

In February, finance minister Enoch Godongwana formally informed the Eastern Cape department of education that it was going to forfeit R100m after it transpired that it had no capacity to spend the funds, earmarked for school infrastructure, by the end of March 2023.

The money was redirected to Gauteng and the Western Cape, the country’s wealthiest provinces, to the dismay of civil society and unions.

In January,  the Eastern Cape was lauded by basic education minister Angie Motshekga after achieving a 77.3% matric pass rate for the 2022 academic year, up from 73% in 2021 and 68.1% for the class of 2020.

In March, premier Oscar Mabuyane and his delegation undertook a four-day working trip to the United Arab Emirates where he met, among other leaders, President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

In April, Al Nahyan paid a return visit to the Eastern Cape but there was an uproar when many in the country accused the UAE delegation of not following due processes when they directly landed at Bulembu Airport in Bhisho from the Middle East.

The landing of about 600 people at the airport prompted the national government to address the nation on processes followed.

Minister in the presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, home affairs minister Aaron Motsoaledi, agriculture minister Thoko Didiza and police minister Bheki Cele were among the senior officials who briefed the media on the matter.

Ntshavheni said the department of transport was satisfied “that our laws have been followed to the letter”.

“The minister of home affairs received an application to consider designation of Bulembu Airport in Bhisho as a place of entry by His Highness and his entourage.

“Upon receipt of the request from the Eastern Cape, the minister of home affairs considered all documents and granted the request, and declared the airport as a temporary port of entry,” Ntshavheni said.

There was a share of some good news for the province in October, with Mabuyane fulfilling what he promised in his state of the province address in February where he announced plans to attract investments for the province.

In an investment conference held at the East London ICC in early October, Mabuyane announced that 18 businesses had committed to invest R127bn across the province.

Sectors such as energy, technology, farming, tourism and the automotive sector were set to benefit from the investment.

Also in early October, Mabuyane announced that five heads of department had been shunted from their positions and placed in his office.

Known as the provincial government’s “crack team”, the five are  health’s Dr Rolene Wagner, Andile Fani from co-operative governance and traditional affairs, Mzi Mafani (transport), Tabisa Poswa (human settlements) and Siphokazi Ndudane (rural development and agrarian reform).

They are stationed in Mabuyane’s office for 12 months and are expected to “scale up” implementation of government commitments in a variety of fields, including investment co-ordination, support to local government and driving education and health turnaround strategies.

Also in October, the auditor-general released the audit outcomes of provincial government departments and entities for the 2022/2023 financial year and the Eastern Cape achieved 15 clean audits — eight departments and seven entities.

During the 2021/2022 financial year, there were 11 clean audits in the province.

In November, the SA Human Rights Commission recommended the premier consider declaring a state of disaster due to high child malnutrition in the province so that immediate interventions could be introduced.

The recommendation was part of a long list presented by the commission during the launch of the report on an inquiry into child malnutrition and the right to food.

The Chapter 9 institution was told that between April 2021 and March 2022, a total of 1,087 children in the province had presented with severe acute malnutrition, with 116 of them having died.

Alfred Nzo had 21 deaths, BCM eight, OR Tambo 22, Amathole 19, Joe Gqabi nine, Chris Hani 11, Nelson Mandela Bay 16 and Sarah Baartman 10.

While the provincial social development department undertook to feed the less-privileged children across the country, Mabuyane summoned rural development and agrarian reform MEC Nonkqubela Pieters and her top management to a meeting to explain the high rate of child malnutrition in the province while there was money and enough land to provide food security.

Mabuyane said last week that the “positive economic trajectory” in the province stood out as a highlight for him not only in 2023 but throughout his term.

“We owe the positive growth trajectory to the investors that we attracted to our province which we announced in our investment conferences.

“A major part of those investments came from the auto sector which is the anchor of our manufacturing sector.

“I am having sleepless nights about the prospects of our auto sector in light of the migration to electric vehicles (EV).

“We need to assure the auto industry that there is a future for EV production in SA in [the] budget speech next year with bold pronouncements.

“We need to do more on agriculture, both on primary and agro-processing,” Mabuyane said.

He said the unemployment rate in the province has been on a decline from 47.9 % in the fourth quarter of 2020 to 38.8 % in the third quarter of 2023. 

“In essence, during this sixth term, we reduced unemployment by 9.1% in our province.

“We are improving financial accountability every year, now we are on 15 clean audits.”

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