He said PRET was formed by a group of people who realised that if they got together and unite behind a common purpose they would be strong.
Economic development MEC Eric Kholwane has referred to the existence of the Practical Radical Economic Transformation (PRET) group as something of help to government.
He said being ordinary people didn’t mean “folding your arms and not assist your own government to achieve the same goal you are chasing”.
He said PRET is a Section 21 organisation – meaning it is a non profit organisation – and not a political party and that it was formed for young people “who are unemployed” and “who decided to come together and say ‘united we stand, divided we fall’ and organised themselves and come out together as a formidable force,” Kholwane explained.
He was addressing journalists at the government complex in Mbombela Wednesday evening this week.
The briefing at the legislature boardroom was meant to give feedback to journalists as well as PRET members who were bussed in by their leaders – Themba Sgudla and Sunday Mathebula – to come fill the boardroom after their leaders, Kholwane and Kusile managers had a meeting in Premier David Mabuza’s on the Wednesday.
WATCH: Sgudla explains how PRET will work
In the meeting, Kusile power station managers agreed to offer 10 000 jobs to the people of eMalahleni in their response to the group’s memorandum submitted a week ago during a march by PRET.
“I must say that since their formation as government they have strengthened us because more often when you speak, people they don’t take you serious but now because they know and they hear you as an organised group they respond faster and people begin to take government seriously,” the MEC said.
He said they have been having memorandums of understanding (MoU) with companies to empower and get more and more young people to be active players in the economy but there have been difficulties on the side of these corporates to honour the pledge.
“But we are hoping now that we are going to have MoUs with a clear, achievable and deliverable goals,” he said.
(edited by MLM)
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