Latest news with #DemocraticAlliance
The Citizen
2 hours ago
- Politics
- The Citizen
Gauteng NPOs face collapse as social development cuts funding
Despite the increasing need for child protection services, the department has returned significant sums to the provincial treasury. Non-profit organisations (NPOs) providing vital services to vulnerable children across Gauteng are struggling to stay afloat due to funding cuts and delays by the Gauteng Department of Social Development (GDSD). According to the Democratic Alliance's Gauteng MEC for Social Development, Refiloe Nt'sekhe, children in need are bearing the brunt of these failures. Sharp decline in support for NPOs Nt'sekhe said the department has consistently reduced the number of NPOs it funds. 'In the 2021/22 financial year, the department was funding 2 856 NPOs, 2022/23 – 1 837, 2023/24 – 1 464, and about 1 328 in the 2024/25 financial year,' she stated. One of the affected organisations is a foundation in Daveyton, Ekurhuleni, which caters for children and operates feeding schemes. With funding either delayed or completely withdrawn, operations have been severely impacted. Despite the increasing need for child protection services, the department has returned significant sums to the provincial treasury. 'In 2023/24, GDSD returned R554 million, and the first quarter of the 2024/25 financial year already indicates R102 million returned,' Nt'sekhe said. ALSO READ: South Africans trust business and NGOs, but have beef with the rich 'No sympathy for social needs' As South Africa observes Child Protection Week, Nt'sekhe has called for greater accountability from MEC Faith Mazibuko. 'Delays in the signing of Service Level Agreements and disbursing funds demonstrate her department's incompetence and a lack of sympathy towards the province's social needs and the well-being of its most vulnerable children,' she said. She added that Mazibuko could no longer blame her predecessor and urged her to effect urgent changes within the department. 'This Child Protection Week, we must demand transparency and clear timelines on the disbursement of funds to NPOs.' ALSO READ: My Vote Counts asks for extension and transparency in IEC appointments Constitutional rights under threat Citing Section 27 of the Constitution, Nt'sekhe said the state has a legal obligation to ensure that citizens, especially children, have access to food, healthcare, and social security. 'Without adequate funding for NPOs, the chances of abandoned children surviving and thriving diminish significantly,' she warned. The GDSD had not yet responded to The Citizen at the time of publishing. NOW READ: MES faces explosive claims of BEE violations and financial misconduct
Mail & Guardian
a day ago
- General
- Mail & Guardian
DA renews bid to control policing in Western Cape
Raid: South African Police Service members patrol the streets on the Cape Flats (above). The Democratic Alliance wants the Western Cape to take over policing responsibility from the national government. The party has bristled at billionaire Johann Rupert's remarks that the Cape Flats are the epicentre of South Africa's violent crime problem This content is restricted to subscribers only . Join the M&G Community Our commitment at the Mail & Guardian is to ensure every reader enjoys the finest experience. Join the M&G community and support us in delivering in-depth news to you consistently. Subscription enables: - M&G community membership - independent journalism - access to all premium articles & features - a digital version of the weekly newspaper - invites to subscriber-only events - the opportunity to test new online features first Already a subscriber?
Eyewitness News
a day ago
- Politics
- Eyewitness News
Steenhuisen says he stands by his comments that EFF should be kept out of power
CAPE TOWN - Democratic Alliance (DA) leader John Steenhuisen said he stands by everything he said during government's official visit to the White House last week, including that the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) should be kept out of power. The remarks on Thursday prompted the EFF to call on the National Assembly to condemn Steenhuisen's utterances, saying it sounded as if Steenhuisen was putting out an international hit on its leader, Julius Malema. ALSO READ: We can't have EFF occupying Union Buildings, says Steenhuisen to Trump As the spat denigrated to below the belt comments, Steenhuisen hit back, saying the EFF's poor electoral performance in 2024's polls indicated that the party is removing itself from the country's political landscape. The EFF's Thapelo Mogale has slammed President Cyril Ramaphosa for not calling out Steenhuisen on his comments made about the EFF during their meeting with President Donald Trump. Steenhuisen was responding to a video played in the Oval Office of Malema chanting the struggle song, 'Kill the Boer'. 'His words are tantamount to calling on an international inkabi to eliminate political competition.' But in response, Steenhuisen repeated last week's remarks in Parliament that the EFF should not be allowed to reach the seat of power, calling it a party of chaos and corruption. 'I stand absolutely 100% by everything I said in the White House. That door must remain shut, and it must remain shut permanently. We don't need to call on foreign governments to get rid of the EFF, they are doing that all on their own.' The EFF's Sihle Lonzi then took a potshot at Steenhuisen's romantic past, but Steenhuisen was unmoved. 'I've learnt in politics long enough that the only people who worry about what goes on in other people's bedrooms, have nothing going on in their own.' The EFF said the United States has a history of interfering in the elections of foreign nations and Steenhuisen has opened the door to the same in South Africa.
Eyewitness News
a day ago
- Business
- Eyewitness News
Tshwane says revenue generated from new cleansing levy will go towards fixing landfill sites
JOHANNESBURG - The Tshwane Municipality said revenue generated from its new tariff, the city cleansing levy, will go towards fixing its dysfunctional landfill sites. On Thursday, the Tshwane council passed its annual budget for the 2025 / 2026 financial year. The budget includes the R194 a month city cleansing levy that will be charged to customers using private waste collection services. The Democratic Alliance (DA) has criticised the new tariff, saying the city is double-charging over-burdened ratepayers since private waste collectors also pay landfill site fees. However, MMC for Finance Eugene Modise said the current administration is trying to fix issues it inherited from previous DA-led coalition governments. 'We as this executive, went to conduct oversight in all our landfill sites and there is none that have got a lifespan of more than three years as we speak. There is a moratorium that says we cannot apply for landfill sites. All of them, the weighbridges are not functional. Who was in power? What did they do? So, we are going to make sure the landfill sites are fully functional and access controlled.'
IOL News
a day ago
- Politics
- IOL News
Helen Zille's remarks on Afrikaner "opportunities" under scrutiny
Democratic Alliance (DA) Federal Council Chairperson Helen Zille. Image: Itumeleng English/ Independent Newspapers HELEN Zille has defended her comments that the Afrikaner community "took all opportunities very seriously" and there was "nothing stopping everyone else from following that example" despite backlash. Zille took to X and wrote: 'Afrikaners took all opportunities very seriously. Educated their children into professional skills and out of poverty. Built huge enterprises from the bottom up. Nothing stopping everyone else from following that example.' Many quickly called her out, citing the racist apartheid system. Approached for further comment on Thursday, Zille told the Cape Times: 'Read the history of Afrikaners between 1902 and 1940, in any authoritative history. They started absolutely poverty stricken and economically excluded, and the story of how they changed that in the ensuing three decades is clear. The historical facts of the transition from poverty to prosperity of Afrikaners is well documented in many sources. Taking offence will not change this.' This comes as the DA has turned to court to challenge the Employment Equity Amendment Act (EEAA), which the party believes will repel investors and discriminate against certain races. Her comments also come as the 2025 Commission for Employment Equity (CEE) annual report showed that white people were eight times their Economically Active Population (EAP) at top management, while the black population representation at just 18.0% is four times below their EAP. The statistics contained in the report forms part of the Department of Employment and Labour's basis to forge ahead with legislative amendments despite pushback from opposition parties, in particular the DA. Employment Equity deputy director, Niresh Singh told a recent EE Roadshow in Pietermaritzburg that employers who are not compliant with the Employment Equity Act (EEA) will be excluded from doing business with organs of state. 'Designated employers must comply with Chapters II and III of the Act whereas those not designated have to comply only with Chapter II. They must attach the certificate of compliance which can only be issued by the Minister for a period of 12 months. The certificate can be revoked at any time for failure to comply.' He told the gathering that the certificate of compliance issued by the Minister will only be issued when the minister is satisfied that the employer has complied with the numerical targets in terms of Section 15A relevant to that employer, if the target is not achieved, the employer must have raised a reasonable ground to justify the failure. Singh said Section 53 has been in the Act since 1998 and was not promulgated then. 'And now it is promulgated and will be in force', he said. General Industries Workers Union of South Africa (GIWUSA) president Mametlwe Sebei said it was clear that without any pressure, from the state, 'there's not going to be any de-racialisation of the workplace".
