DA calls on government to modify regulations for informal traders during lockdown

The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng is calling on government to rethink the current regulations regarding fresh produce informal traders, after a video surfaced showing Johannesburg Metro Police (JMPD) confiscating fresh produce from informal traders who were selling their produce outside Jabulani Mall, Soweto.

Currently the regulations allow informal traders with permits to sell fresh produce in designated spaces or areas.

Whilst this move to amend the original Disaster Management regulations was correct, the DA believes that it has done very little to assist informal traders.

Informal traders depend on foot traffic for the bulk of their customers.

The regulations to fight COVID-19, restricts the movement of people and therefore limits the available customer base for informal traders.

As the DA in Gauteng we are calling for the relaxation of regulations to allow for informal traders who sell produce to be permitted to sell their produce in residential areas with trolleys.

Furthermore, we are calling on supermarket chains to assist informal traders with trolleys and for the Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (GDARD) to make Tuk- Tuks available as well.

Should government consider this intervention, all informal traders who have permits to trade must at all times wear protective clothing and observe the one metre distancing rule.

While we continue to look for innovative ways for people to be able to feed their families during this challenging time, we encourage South Africans to stay at home and observe the lockdown restrictions.

Gauteng DSD fails to meet 48 hour turnaround time to distribute food parcels

The Gauteng Department of Social Development (DSD) has been failing to meet its 48 hour turnaround time to deliver food parcels to residents in need during the national lockdown period.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) has received numerous complaints from residents who are desperately in need of food and who claim that they have put in requests for food parcels and the department has yet to respond within the allocated time of 48 hours.

DA Councillor, Lesego Lekoto from Mogale City Local Municipality applied for food parcels for six families on 8 April and to date those families have not yet received food parcels from the department. This despite the fact that the Councillor received an acknowledgement receipt of his request via email with a reference number indicating that the turnaround time for food deliveries is seven working days.

This is one of many requests where the Gauteng ANC-led administration is failing to fulfill its promise to poor families who are hungry for food. For these applicants, food parcels are the only way to provide for their families during this difficult time.

This clearly indicates that the department does not have a proper plan in place to distribute food parcels on time as per their pronouncement.

The DA calls on the Acting MEC for Social Development, Panyaza Lesufi to provide clarity on the turnaround time with regards to the distribution of food parcels as well as to fast-track the process of food parcel distribution to ensure that no family goes to bed with empty stomachs.

GBV: DA calls for more resources and strengthening of unit 

The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng is deeply concerned about the escalating number of gender-based violence cases during the lockdown period.

According to the Minister of Police, Bheki Cele over 2 300 complaints have been registered since the beginning of the lockdown between the 27 to 31 March and from these cases, 148 suspects have been charged.

The number of gender-based violence cases that have been registered between January and 31 March 2020 now stands at 15 924.

The DA, therefore, calls on both the Gauteng MEC for Community Safety, Faith Mazibuko and the Gauteng SAPS Provincial Commissioner Lieutenant General, Elias Mawela to strengthen and provide adequate resources and personnel to the Family Violence Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit (FCS) at our police stations to ensure that police officers have the capacity to respond to such complaints.

Minister Cele indicated that once all reports have been consolidated, the figures will be measured against the number of complaints received through the Gender-Based Violence Command Centre in 2019, where the figure stands at 87,920.

These stats are worrying and clearly indicate that the safety of women and children is under threat particularly during this lockdown period.

We demand a breakdown per province on where these incidents have been reported to ensure that there are immediate interventions by different stakeholders involved in fighting the scourge of gender-based violence.

The DA will make a follow-up on the gender-based violence cases reported during the lockdown to ascertain the number of arrests, the progress in terms of investigations and the number of convictions to ensure that the victims get the justice they deserve.

We also encourage more victims to speak out on issues of gender-based violence as this social ill has a negative impact on the well-being of all our people.

DA calls on local government to work with Gauteng DSD to ensure the safety of homeless during lockdown

The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng is deeply concerned that there is a lack of intergovernmental coordination between local government and the Gauteng Department of Social Development (DSD) in terms of identifying temporary shelters for homeless people during the lockdown period.

We have been reliably informed that the DSD requested municipalities to identify places that can be used as temporary shelters for homeless people and to submit the list to the department so that the department can provide the necessary resources. However, we have been informed that some of our municipalities have not yet responded to the department’s call.

This clearly indicates a lack of intergovernmental relations and that these different levels of government are working in silos.

This will have a negative impact on the lives of homeless people who are at risk of contracting coronavirus because they do not have homes to stay in during lockdown.

There are temporary shelters that have been identified in Tshwane, but these have not been properly organised and are not ready to accommodate the homeless.

The new Tshwane Administrator is failing the homeless people in the City as the toll-free number is not functioning and homeless people are being left in the cold.

Furthermore, there seems to be a challenge with housing homeless people in the province as most of the department’s subsidised shelters have been filled to capacity and municipalities are failing to identify temporary shelters.

The DA calls for cooperation between the local municipalities and the DSD to ensure that temporary shelters are identified as a matter of urgency and equipped with the necessities needed by the homeless.

The DA further believes that now more than ever the Department for Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) should come to the fore as well and assist DSD.

The DPWI should donate some of its abandoned buildings to be converted into shelters which NGOs can manage.

The Covid-19 pandemic must be seen as the warning sign, where we should not only look into possible temporary shelters but consider long term plans to relieve the plight of the most vulnerable.