The City of Tshwane MMC for Social Development Thabisile Vilakazi has accused the Gauteng provincial government of refusing to help the homeless people in the city with infrastructure.
Vilakazi says homeless shelters in the city have been neglected for a very long time.
“This is mainly due to policy uncertainty regarding who should fund them between provincial and local government,” says Vilakazi.
Vilakazi says she approached the Gauteng MEC for social development to partner with us in addressing the issue of homelessness in Tshwane.
“I made a request to collaborate with province to refurbish the infrastructure of homeless shelters. Unfortunately, the response we got was disappointing, the provincial government was not willing to work with us and assist in this matter,” says Vilakazi.
She says the work that needs to be done in addressing the issue of homelessness requires intervention and collaboration from all spheres of government.
“The Gauteng Department of Social Development was allocated R88 Million from the provincial treasury to address homelessness. We understand that only a small portion of the allocated budget has been spent,”
Vilakazi says homeless people matter and it is time that government bodies come together and formulate an intergovernmental bogy that will focus on ensuring that homeless people are also cared for.
