The appointment of Sarah Helena Roberts as the new Commissioner for Children for the Western Cape has been welcomed. 

The role was created to advocate for and protect the rights of children in the province, carries a five-year term and is renewable once.

The leader of the African National Congress (ANC) in the Provincial Legislature, Khalid Sayed, commended the Caucus of the 6th Administration for working collaboratively along political lines to implement the Western Cape Constitution by ensuring this position was not just an idea on paper but a functioning mechanism to protect the rights of children. 

“I must commend our Standing Committee Chairperson for the non-partisan manner in which she led the process, ensuring that we could agree on one candidate in the end.  We trust that this appointment will build on the important foundation laid and that it will not be reduced to a mere tick-box exercise. The role of the Commissioner must be one of active advocacy, visible leadership, and fearless defence of children’s rights,” Sayed said. 

He further called on Premier Alan Winde to not only fulfil the legal requirement of appointing the Commissioner but also to empower and adequately resource her office so that it can carry out its mandate effectively. 

“Sadly, this Office was not adequately supported by the Executive, and could not fulfil its role optimally. This is why the previous Commissioner did not even avail herself for a second term. We cannot ignore the reality: children in the Western Cape are dying. This year alone, we have mourned the loss of four-year-old Davin, killed by stray bullets, and seven-year-old Lolitha, whose life was cut short in another senseless act of violence. These are not isolated incidents — they are part of a pattern of tragedy that must end,” Sayed said. 

He said the Commissioner’s Office is meant to be an armour of protection for children, but the office alone is not enough, and it needs to be backed by political will, community partnerships, and targeted interventions to address the root causes of violence, neglect, and abuse.

Roberts, who is an advocate and acting magistrate at the Kuilsriver/ Blue Downs Children’s Court, is the second person to hold the post since the Act was passed more than five years ago, after years of delays and public concern over the province’s handling of the selection process. 

robin.francke@iol.co.za

IOL

Source link