22 June 2023

For Immediate Release

HUMAN SETTLEMENTS PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE TO HOLDS PUBLIC HEARINGS ON THE HOUSING CONSUMER PROTECTION BILL OF 2021

KwaZulu-Natal Legislature’s Portfolio Committee on Human Settlements will begin holding Public Hearings on the Housing Consumer Protection Bill of 2021 in Jozini tomorrow.

Public hearings are part of the law making process and they are designed to provide interested stakeholders with an opportunity to raise issues on the Bill that is being processed.

Housing Consumer Protection Bill seeks to repeal the Housing Consumers Protection Measures Act, 95 of 1998.

The Bill seeks to ensure adequate protection of housing consumers and effective regulation of the home building industry by, inter alia, strengthening the regulatory mechanisms, strengthening the protection of housing consumers, introducing effective enforcement mechanisms and prescribing appropriate penalties or sanctions to deter non-compliance by home builders.

The hearings will be held as follows:

Date: 23 June 2023

Time: 9am to 2pm

Venue: Emachibini Hall in Jozini

Interested parties and relevant stakeholders are invited to attend so that they can make their inputs. Those who will be unable to physically attend can follow the proceedings through the legislature’s social media platforms such as facebook and youtube.

Ends

Issued by KZN Legislature Communications Unit

For more information please contact Wonder Hlongwa at 0829083532

Youth Parliament debates issues facing Young People in KwaZulu-Natal

On 14 and 15 June 2023, KwaZulu-Natal Youth converged at Ndwedwe Regional Sports Ground in Ilembe District for their Youth Parliament. Youth formations from 8 political parties that are represented in the Legislature met this year under the theme, “Accelerating Youth Economic Opportunities for a Sustainable Future”.  

The first session of the Youth Parliament took place in the form of Commissions, where delegates received presentations from government departments and public entities on various topics that were of interest to the youth. Delegates had an opportunity to engage on the presentations and raised issues that affected them and needed urgent intervention.

The second session of the Youth Parliament took place in the form of a formal sitting where delegates debated the theme “Accelerating Youth Economic Opportunities for a Sustainable Future”. Some of the critical issues which delegates raised during the debate include: the state of education in KwaZulu-Natal, economic opportunities that South Africa’s BRICS membership presents to young people, the mentoring of youth in governance matters and leveraging information technology training for gainful employment.

Other issues affecting young people that need urgent solutions include poverty, unemployment, crime and inequality.

24 May 2023

For Immediate Release

HUMAN SETTLEMENTS PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE CHAIRPERSON WELCOMES NEW MEC

KwaZulu-Natal Legislature’s Human Settlements Portfolio Committee Chairperson Honourable Linda Hlongwa-Madlala has congratulated and welcomed the appointment of Sipho “KK” Nkosi as the new MEC for Public Works and Human Settlements.

“Nkosi is a principled and experienced leader who has demonstrated strong qualities of fiscal discipline when he was serving as the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Finance. That experience is going to serve him very well when he steers the ship of Human Settlements and Public Works,” said Hlongwa-Madlala.

She said the committee hopes that Nkosi will prioritize the housing of last year’s victims of floods, filling of vacant posts and delivery of much needed housing units to deserving people throughout the province.

Hlongwa-Madlala said Nkosi has had a notable spell as the Chairperson of Finance Portfolio Committee and this will assist in curbing maladministration and mismanagement within the department.

“Having served in the legislature since 2009, we believe that he will appreciate the oversight role played by portfolio committees and will always attempt to make himself available to appear before the portfolio committees.

Ends

Issued by KZN Legislature Communications Unit For more information please contact Hon Hlongwa-Madlala at 0837447119

or Mr Wonder Hlongwa, the Committee’s Media Officer at 0829083532.

24 May 2023

For Immediate Release

PUBLIC WORKS PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE CHAIRPERSON WELCOMES NEW MEC

KwaZulu-Natal Legislature’s Public Works Portfolio Committee Chairperson Honourable Makhosazane Zungu has congratulated and welcomed the appointment of Sipho “KK” Nkosi as the new MEC for Public Works and Human Settlements.

“Nkosi is a seasoned activist with a proven track record as the champion of the poor and the working class. With these attributes he is well positioned to drive the construction of government infrastructure such as schools and hospitals and prioritize the completion of repairing the infrastructure which was damaged by last year’s floods,” said Zungu.

She added that as a former Chairperson of the Finance Portfolio Committee Nkosi will be better positioned to curb issues of mismanagement of public resources and the committee will expect him to deal decisively with the contractors who are doing shoddy work.

Public Works Portfolio Committee is looking forward to working with Nkosi and his departments and we hope that having spent time at the legislature serving in a number of portfolio committees he understands very well the importance of oversight and accountability.

Ends

Issued by KZN Legislature Communications UnitFor more information please contact Hon Zungu at 0839894400

or Mr Wonder Hlongwa, the Committee’s Media Officer at 0829083532.

KZN LEGISLATURE held its annual Workers Parliament under the theme “Defend and Advance Collective Bargaining in Honour of 50 Years for Worker Recognition”

On 19 May 2023, Workers from the three major union federations in the province which is Cosatu, Fedusa and Nactu, gathered at the Cecil Emmet Hall in Vryheid under Abaqulusi Municipality for their annual Workers Parliament where they deliberated on issues affecting workers as a sector. The issues that dominated the deliberations included the following:

• Labour Migration Policy, Compliance and Resource on National Minimum Wage Implementation and Challenges facing Unemployment Insurance Fund.
• Exploitation of EPWP workers in relation to the minimum wage.
• Challenges facing the Council for Conciliation Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA)
• Transnet Privatisation, road congestion post April floods and plans to overcome these challenges.

Workers Parliament is one of the Legislature’s public participation programmes which enables the Legislature to involve various stakeholders in its law-making and oversight processes. It gives various sectors a platform to raise issues that affect them as citizens of the province.

Workers adopted a set of resolutions that will be submitted to the Office of the Speaker for referral to relevant committees of the Legislature for consideration. After consideration by Legislature committees, the resolutions will be referred to the Executive for processing and implementation. Provincial departments are required to provide regular reports to committees on progress regarding the implementation of resolutions adopted by the Workers Parliament.

02 May 2023

Statement

KZN Legislature Passes Division of Revenue Bill

This morning, KwaZulu-Natal Legislature Speaker Honourable Nontembeko Boyce presided over a Special Sitting of the legislature to pass the Division of Revenue Bill.

The Bill, which provides equitable division of revenue raised nationally among the national, provincial and local spheres of government was unanimously passed by the House.

The Bill has been sent to the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) as our Provincial Mandate for voting.

Ends

Issued by KZN Legislature Communications Unit

For more information please contact Sina Nxumalo at 0829060449

20 April 2023

TO: ALL MEDIA

KWAZULU-NATAL LEGISLATURE TO VOTE ON THE KWAZULU-NATAL APPROPRIATION BILL 2023/2024

In performing its law-making function, the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature considers and passes the provincial budget to allow the Provincial Government to deliver services to the people of KwaZulu-Natal.

From the 18th to the 21st April 2023, all provincial departments have presented their Budget Votes to the Legislature where the Premier and Members of the Executive Council (MECs) outlined their departmental programmes that are designed to accelerate service delivery in the province.

The Legislature will consider and vote on the KwaZulu-Natal Appropriation Bill, 2023 on the afternoon of 21st April 2023 in the Chamber. The KwaZulu-Natal Appropriation Bill provides for the appropriation of money from the Provincial Revenue Fund for the requirements of the Province in the 2023/2024 financial year ending on 31 March 2024.

In performing its oversight function, the Legislature will closely monitor the spending of the Provincial Budget by departments to ensure the implementation of government programmes to bring about service delivery to communities. Legislature Committees will perform their oversight responsibilities over departments to ensure proper spending of departmental budgets and implementation of programmes to deliver services and development.

Ends

Issued by
Communications Unit: KZN Legislature
For more information:

Sina Nxumalo, 0829060449

Wonder Hlongwa, 0829083532

Annual Interfaith Symposium held in Alfred Duma Municipality

The KZN Legislature convened people of various faiths in the province of KwaZulu-Natal in their annual Interfaith Symposium which took place in Alfred Duma Municipality under the theme, “Developing Boys to be Leaders in the Fight Against Gender Based Violence for the Restoration of Women’s Dignity”. 

The Interfaith Symposium is a platform for the Interfaith Sector to deliberate on issues of social ills facing society and to provide the Legislature and Executive with inputs on how they can address other societal challenges in their law-making, oversight and executive functions respectively.

The Interfaith Sector has committed themselves to the ideals of peace, restoration of moral values, fight against all forms of social ills including gender-based violence, and a search for a society that respects and acknowledges the values of Ubuntu.

The symposium, which met on the 12^th April 2023, adopted a set of resolutions that will be forwarded to the Legislature for consideration and further processing by its committees. After consideration by relevant committees, the resolutions will be tabled in the House for adoption and referred to the Executive for implementation.

Committees will perform their oversight responsibility on the implementation of resolutions in their monthly committee meetings. The Executive is required to present a comprehensive report on the implementation of the resolutions adopted by this year’s symposium at the next sitting of the Interfaith Symposium.

Some of the resolutions that will be adopted by the Legislature will find expression in the law-making processes of the Legislature.