The new 10-member provincial cabinet was announced last Friday by the premier Mr David Mabuza with the sole aim of accelerating service delivery for the people.

Our view is that which is commendable about the new cabinet, is that women have been honoured to have received 60 per cent of the total number of seats.

I welcome the return of Ms Nomsa Mtsweni who has previously served under former premier Mr Thabang Makwetla as responsible for culture, sport and recreation.

She brings along a wealth of experience to her new portfolio, social development which will keep her on her toes because a lot of challenges await her, and she needs to work effectively as she has been espoused by Mabuza when he appointed her.

I also welcome the appointment of Eric Kholwane to take over a much beefed-up Department of Finance which now includes economic development and tourism.

That’s quite a mammoth task he has on his hands, but as a young man, he should roll up his sleeves and really get the economy growing.

We need to see growth in small-medium development under his wing, and not the creation of more tenderpreneurs as has been the case in the past.
There is a dire need to witness a significant growth in our tourism industry, which is a given because we have the natural heritage.

All it needs, is a visionary to market it extensively internationally. He must not forget to ensure that he introduces affordable flights to various destinations as our flights have been the most expensive which has made it difficult in the past for tourists to utilise as expected.

Even the government-run establishments need to be seriously upgraded to acceptable standards.

It is a given fact that Andries Gamede has made inroads in the cabinet when he took over human settlements in the last term – housing for the poor and middle-income groups were delivered, something which only existed on paper in the past.

We hope that in his new portfolio, agriculture, rural development, land and environmental affairs, we will begin to see significant growth, as he’s always been a man of his word in terms of service delivery.

Dumisile Nhlengethwa has a mammoth task on her hands to address the state of our pothole-ridden roads. It really needs to be one of her priorities to appoint credible contractors to fix the roads and not temporarily fix them on an ongoing basis, as has been the case in the past.

Can we at least have the cultural hub that was announced many years ago, of Norah Mahlangu the new MEC for culture sport and recreation. It’s an old song that we’ve grown tired of listening to. It is time to deliver this artists’ haven as a matter of urgency.

Refilwe Mtsweni needs to work really hard at Cogta with all the municipalities. Things need to be put in place. Enough of the disclaimers that many municipalities receive from the Auditor General each year. Besides, they need to service the communities in the right manner and beef them up with capacitated personnel.

Vusi Shongwe has really been doing a good job in his portfolio, hence his return. We hope he will continue the good work and decrease crime.

Education under Reginah Mhaule’s command must continue doing the best it can.

It is well appreciated, but they must still deliver the promised schools and fixing of infrastructure, especially in rural communities. With all our blessings, let the work begin.