Note to Editors: Please find an English soundbite from DA MPL, Refiloe Nt’sekhe here.
Non-profit organisations (NPOs) in Gauteng are in turmoil due to a failed adjudication process that has led to funding challenges, forcing many of these organisations to close their doors, retrench staff, or scale back operations.
This crisis stems from the Gauteng Department of Social Development’s (DSD) mishandling of its adjudication process and its failure to pay eligible NPOs their subsidies, which is deeply disturbing since it leaves Gauteng’s most vulnerable residents without the support system they need for social welfare and social services.
The DA has long demanded that DSD MEC Mbali Hlophe guarantee that the adjudication process is carried out transparently and that beneficiaries be paid without any needless delays. However, our calls have been disregarded, leaving NPO beneficiaries in limbo.
The fact that Premier Panyaza Lesufi has only now committed to start paying the NPOs as of Monday, 13 May 2024, confirms that the Gauteng Provincial does not care about the vulnerable people in our province. The intervention of the Premier to correct the botched funding process also demonstrates that MEC Hlophe, whose leadership has been overshadowed by scandals, is incompetent to lead this department.
While we agree that it is important to save the NPO sector by providing the much-needed subsidy, there are questions to be asked about the procedure followed since the funding adjudication process that took place was clearly flawed.
The DA will continue monitor this process to ensure that Treasury regulations are not flouted and that all compliant NPOs are paid in line with the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA).
We have only 13 days left to rescue vulnerable individuals in Gauteng from an uncaring government that fails to conduct a proper and transparent adjudication process for NPOs, despite having had sufficient time to do so. In a DA government, NPOs will be respected and treated as partners in helping the government fulfill its constitutional obligation to protect the human rights of the most vulnerable among us.