1st ANC Motion

The Minority Front welcomes the ANC motion on National Environment Month
celebrated from 2015 notwithstanding World Environment Day 05 June was declared
such by the United Nations in 1972.
In 2022, 50 years later we must ask, “Has the developed countries considered their
economic activities impact on climate change, the price we as developing countries
have to pay currently?”
For South Africa, more strategizing should have been done e.g., June is summer in
the West and a good time to greening activities but its mid–winter in South Africa,
hence we celebrate Heritage month and Arbor Week in September when spring is at
its height and we can get maximum people participation. Therefore, we must adopt
these international days according to our seasons and climate as June is Youth month
and should not be undermined.
Ideally, therefore we should be celebrating National Environment Month in
September.
Our focus should be the 17 SDGs 2030, half of which are climate related. We have
conditional grants in Agriculture to rehabilitate the environment and soil being our
biggest ecosystem is under threat yet the Land Care Grant is underspent annually,
making KZN vulnerable to droughts and floods.
As South Africans we need to form practical partnerships with champions who are
saving the soil like Sadguru of the Isha Foundation and others who are planting trees
in KZN or saving the oceans.
We need to bring back organised local subsistence for food security; this means
releasing land to vulnerable citizens who have indigenous knowledge to farm.
We need to keep corporates in check who produce mass food that is not the
healthiest and review their labelling claims.
Whilst we wait for a fully–fledged disaster management plan and climate change, we
need to protect our oceans and include prayer as an activity e.g., the Shembe and
Hindus regard the ocean as spiritual and government must be an enabler for such
activities.
A preventative focus for deepening environmental awareness Hon. Members, means
going beyond the science, therefore a spiritual awareness of Gods creations is
imperative to law and regulation–making.
The Minority Front supports this motion with these suggestions.