About 100 Grade 6 bright-minds from Crawford School in Sandton recently took their seats in Council Chambers and became councillors for the day.
As part of their visit on Thursday, 26 September 2019, the learners had the Executive Mayor Cllr Herman Mashaba and the Speaker of Council Cllr Vasco da Gama on the podium; where they fielded tough questions from future councillors.
The session was facilitated by the members of the current Johannesburg Student Council.
The questions raised ranged from what are important decisions that have recently been taken by Council, how the Council allocates budget, how many votes does a political party need to win a ward, the role of the Speaker in Council and who is allowed to sit in the public gallery.
“The Council is where the future of the residents of Johannesburg is decided. Not long ago I was your age, but now I’m an old man. This proves that time really flies. So I want to urge you not to take anything for granted. I want to see you one day as future judges, engineers and councillors,” said Mayor Mashaba.
As part of their Democracy Education, the school had written a letter to the Mayor requesting him to visit the school. The request was referred to the Speaker’s Office as public participation falls within the Legislature. As a result, the Legislature hosted the learners to expand on what democracy means.
Among others, the visit was aimed at educating learners on the role of the Speaker of Council, introduce learners to the Council Chamber. Also covered was democracy education in terms of how to propose a motion and in terms of the opposition’s response.
Speaker da Gama had this to say to the learners: “As the Speaker I’m the head of Council and the Mayor is the head of the administration. My responsibilities extend to overseeing all the 270 councillors serving in Council, to ensure that they are assisted and regularly communicate to residents.”
The learners were also taken on a trip to visit the City’s Interactive Knowledge Centre, where they had the opportunity to learn about the city’s past, present and future. Sheena Clarke from Innovation and Knowledge Management Unit welcomed the learners, saying they were a first group to be hosted in the newly built centre.
