Due to the Gauteng Department of Social Development delaying in paying the NGOs subsidies in Tshwane and surrounding areas, vulnerable children are at risk of starvation and not having safe homes.
The DA Gauteng Spokesperson for Social Development Bronwynn Engelbrecht said Christelike Maatskaplike Raad (CMR) is one of the NGOs in the welfare sector that have not yet received the subsidies from the department.
As the CMR serves a good purpose of providing food, clothing, shelter and child protection services to destitute families, the delay of unpaid subsidies is holding them back. “This is one the many NGOs that fulfil such an important role in our fractured society, relying on every cent that they get from the department,” says Engelbrecht.
Engelbrecht added that the failure of the Gauteng Department of Social Development to fulfil its mandate it is like throwing the poor children under the bus. She also said, “This means the essential services of our orphaned, homeless, and victimised children and families cannot continue.”
“The DA has engaged with the affected NGO, and we will be writing to the Gauteng MEC for Social Development, Morakane Mosupyoe and the Head of Department to ask for their intervention and to expedite the payments,” she says.
The DA promised that they will put pressure on the MEC to speed up the process of making the payments and ensure that this never happens again, as many lives are depending on that money for their day-to-0day survival.
