Note to Editors: Please find a sounbite in English here and Sesotho here from DA MPL, Refiloe Nt’sekhe.
Non-profit organisations (NPOs) in Gauteng have faced significant challenges that have hindered their ability to provide essential social welfare services to vulnerable residents.
The challenges stemmed from a questionable and flawed funding process by the Gauteng Department of Social Development (GDSD), a concern that the Democratic Alliance (DA) has consistently raised.
Replying to oral questions tabled by the Democratic Alliance (DA) in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature, MEC for the Gauteng Department of Social Development (GDSD), Faith Mazibuko, concedes that NPOs received funding without having signed Service Level Agreements (SLAs). However, the MEC does not specify the number of NPOs that received funding without a signed SLA.
According to MEC Mazibuko, 84 NPOs received less funding than requested, while 80 NPOs received more funding than they asked for.
See reply here.
The MEC’s admission underscores the validity of the DA’s concerns regarding the mishandled adjudication process that commenced in late November 2023.
This was further confirmed by a recent Johannesburg Court order, mandating the Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) to resolve the matter and pay NPOs within the next three weeks.
Earlier this year, the DA exposed that NPOs in Gauteng received varying addresses for their submissions, which confused them. We further uncovered that NPOs were initially required to sign SLAs, which were later withdrawn. The DA also reported the lack of transparency in communicating the outcomes of the adjudication process.
MEC Mazibuko’s admission further vindicates our claim that the GDSD is solely responsible for the suffering endured by Gauteng NPOs – some of which have since closed down, leaving beneficiaries stranded.
The Social Development Department’s failure to execute the funding process for NPOs in a fair and transparent manner represents a significant betrayal of the poor and vulnerable residents of Gauteng.
The DA has submitted a Promotion of Access to Information (PAIA) application and filed a petition to compel the department to release the NPO adjudication report. We want to ascertain which NPOs were overfunded and underfunded and the panellists responsible for overseeing this adjudication process.
As in the Western Cape, a DA Gauteng Provincial Government would have initiated the adjudication process for NPOs in September 2023. This proactive measure would have given the department leeway to rectify errors and ensure that NPOs receive timely payments to deliver services effectively. The DA would also have prioritised transparency and accountability in the adjudication process for NPOs.
The DA is committed to ensuring that all poor and vulnerable Gauteng residents eligible for the Department of Social Development’s services receive them without fail.