The elderly residents of Tembisa, in dire need of support and shelter, continue to suffer because the Gauteng Department of Social Development (GDSD) has not opened the R30 million state-of-the-art Tembisa Old Age Home, which has a capacity of 59 beds. This inaction by the department has left many elderly without a safe and reliable place to stay, highlighting a growing concern for the welfare of senior citizens in our province.
This information was revealed by the GDSD MEC, Faith Mazibuko, during an oral response to the DA questions in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature (GPL). She stated that the Tembisa Old Age Home has not been opened to beneficiaries because her department has not appointed Non-Profit Organisations (NPOs) to manage the facility, which also faces structural challenges.
However, this is confusing because when the current Speaker of the Gauteng Provincial Legislature (GPL), Morakane Mosupye, served as the MEC for the Gauteng Department of Social Development (GDSD), she stated in an oral reply that R500 000 had been allocated to tackle these structural issues at Tembisa Old Age Home.
The DA demands MEC Faith Mazibuko to urgently address the structural challenges at this facility and expedite the appointment of NPOs to manage it. Each day that this facility stands empty highlights a profound failure to provide care and support to the most vulnerable members of our community. Furthermore, the job opportunities that should arise from this facility are slipping away as its doors stay closed.
A compassionate DA-led Gauteng Provincial Government would have ensured that the Tembisa Old Age Home is opened and accessible to elderly residents forced to live in environments where they are not properly cared for.
The DA Gauteng is committed to holding the Premier Lesufi-led government accountable for its troubling practice of abandoning building facilities and making them inaccessible to the residents of Gauteng. This pattern of neglect undermines the purpose of such infrastructure and deprives the community of essential resources that could improve their quality of life.