Mpumalanga learners scoop two awards at National Road Safety Debate and PET finals
The winners were announced at a Gala Dinner that was held yesterday where all other provinces were also represented.
Mpumalanga learners won in two categories at this year’s National Road Safety Debate and Participatory Education Techniques (PET) finals that were held in Rustenburg, North West province since Tuesday, 3 October 2017.
They claimed these accolades in categories: Best Team in PET: Rural and Best Team in the Rural Safety debate. The winners were announced at a Gala Dinner that was held yesterday where all other provinces were also represented.
The province further produced the best speaker when Mbali Mhlongo, from Reatshwana Secondary School in Embalenhle came out tops. To motivate the learners’ mentors, Mr. MG Mavuso walked away with the first PET category rural while the rural safety debate category best trainer award went to Ms. Zanele Mazolo.
Also read:Learners who won the provincial debate to go national.
MEC for Community Safety, Security and Liaison Pat Ngomane, praised the learners and their mentors saying that they did the province proud. He added that the learners displayed a greater of degree of knowledge and consciousness about road safety matters as they debated and presented. He has further called for harnessing of such knowledge and input in order to augment r existing road safety strategies.
Ngomane went on to encourage the learners to become road safety ambassadors in their communities. He said: “Please assist government so that we make roads safer. Mentor other learners at your respective schools so that road safety messages become replicated and this will assist the country to become road crash-free as this will save more lives.”
He also added: “Young people uses the roads as passengers, pedestrians and newly licensed drivers and therefore making it a way of life for them to talk road safety will contribute to a road safety conscious society.”
Also read:Road safety debate team makes it to Top 2 nationally
The annual debates and PET competitions are meant to contribute towards addressing underlying causes of road safety in the society while also building the learners’ capacity to speak in public.
On the other hand PET is aimed at changing learners’ attitudes towards road safety by means of participatory education. It also encourages them to identify road safety challenges in their communities and to find solutions by way of research to the problems thereby providing them with a hands-on opportunity in resolving those challenges.
The annual competition is held under the auspices of National Department of Transport and Road Traffic Management Corporation and other stakeholders in the transport sector.
