Instead of building homes, DHS wastes almost R5 million on workshops

The Department of Human Settlements (DHS) has admitted, in a written reply to a DA parliamentary question, that the department and its 7 entities needlessly spent over R4.8 million on workshops and conferences between 2014 and 2016.
The DHS was the biggest spender and splurged over R1.8 million in this period.
The DA is not opposed to government officials receiving training and learning to improve their skills to provide services to our people. However, upon closer examination, these workshops and conferences show a clear duplication and a tendency for hosting these events at luxury hotels and lodges such as 15 on Orange in Cape Town.
The exorbitant expenditure on these events, during a period where National Treasury continuously warned against spending on non-essential services, appears reckless and financially imprudent, and is quite frankly a slap in the face of the poor.
The R4.8 million spent on these workshops in total could have provided 40 RDP houses to those in need.
The DA will now write to Minister Lindiwe Sisulu to establish what austerity measures she has initiated, if any, in her department as part of National Treasury’s cost-cutting initiatives.
After 23 years of democracy, millions of South Africans still do not own title-deeds, yet the department responsible for building homes for our people, would rather waste money on luxury hotels and lodges.