EC school children still exposed to life-threatening asbestos
November 15th, 2022
Tens of thousands of learners at 1 075 schools in the Eastern Cape are at risk of contracting life-threatening diseases because the Education Department has still not done anything to remove the carcinogenic asbestos from schools. Education MEC Fundile Gade admits that asbestos can cause diseases such as asbestosis and asbestos-related cancer, but the Department is dragging its heels on eradicating it from schools. In response to a parliamentary question, …
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Nearly 70 000 EC learners disappear from enrolment register
November 2nd, 2022 Close to 70 000 learners have disappeared from the Eastern Cape’s enrolment register between April and August this year, but despite this worrying trend, there seems to be no plan in place to address this, or even a sense of urgency to do so. I am deeply concerned as to what is happening to these learners, given the social ills in our society. They cannot simply be abandoned. In response …
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Retired EC teachers owed millions in unpaid leave gratuities
October 20th, 2022 It is unacceptable that some educators that have exited the system more than 18 months ago are still waiting to receive their leave gratuities. In response to a parliamentary question from the DA, Education MEC Fundile Gade revealed that there are 108 retired educators who are owed R8.8 million in leave gratuity, with some queries dating back to the beginning of 2021. These educators, who dedicated their lives to assisting …
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No food parcels as EC residents starve
June 28th, 2022 The Eastern Cape Department of Social Development has failed to provide food parcels to thousands of starving households in the province. Since the beginning of the new financial year in April, the Department has distributed food parcels to just 3% of its beneficiaries. In response to a parliamentary question from the Democratic Alliance, MEC Siphokazi Mani-Lusithi revealed that between 1 April and 10 June this year, just 141 food parcels …
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DSD lets EC Metro residents starve
May 30th, 2022 Since the beginning of March 2022, the Department of Social Development (DSD) has not distributed a single food parcel to the destitute in the Buffalo City or Nelson Mandela Bay Metros. While the Department has not given any explanation as to why they have not done so, the problem is clearly not due to a lack of funds. Earlier this year, the DA revealed that R67 million provided in grant …
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Where are the bank cards, MEC?
May 25th, 2021
Nearly two months into the new financial year and the Eastern Cape Department of Social Development has still not distributed the controversial bank cards to needy beneficiaries. Where are the bank cards MEC, and who are the beneficiaries? Show us the list! The Department decided to issue people in the province with bank cards pre-loaded with R1 500 cash, after failing to spend more than R141 million entrusted to them …
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Eastern Cape Department of Social Development is failing the elderly
April 19th, 2021 The Eastern Cape Department of Social Development is failing to meet the needs of a growing elderly population in the province, leaving many old and frail individuals destitute and without care. Statistics released last month by Stats SA show that the province’s population of individuals 60 years and older has grown significantly over the past five years, from 708 000 (10.6%) in 2015 to 771 000 (11.4%) in 2020. The …
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Failing ANC Government buys support with R1 500 bank card
March 31st, 2021
The failing ANC-led Provincial Government has decided to issue people in the province with bank cards pre-loaded with R1 500 cash, after failing to spend the money entrusted to them by the National Government to provide relief to those in distress. After failing to spend more than 86% of the R164 million in grant funding given to the Department of Social Development to assist families in dire need, the Department …
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Department of Social Development unable to spend its budget on those in despair
February 16th, 2021 Ten months into the current financial year and the Eastern Cape Department of Social Development (DSD) has spent less than 14% of the funds meant to assist those people in distress in the province. While tens of thousands of people have had their livelihoods destroyed in this province by Covid-19 and the subsequently enforced lockdown, while children have been starving, this incompetent Department has been sitting on millions of rand …
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World Homeless Day reminder for EC government to tackle homelessness
October 9th, 2020 World Homeless Day [10 October 2020] is a fresh opportunity for the Eastern Cape Government to revisit the plight of the homeless and tackle some of the complex issues affecting these marginalised individuals. During the national lockdown, the Department of Social Development in the Eastern Cape opened nine temporary homeless shelters in five districts in the Eastern Cape. This presented the perfect opportunity to assist individuals with needs such as …
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