DEAR Editor,-
The DA is appalled by the contents of a KZN Treasury Unaudited Close-Out report for 2015/16, which shows that the province’s Department of Social Development (DSD) has under-spent its budget by R98 million. Of this, R15, 548 million was money due to be transferred to non-profit organisations in the province, many of whom are struggling to keep their doors open amid severe financial pressure.
The DA is extremely alarmed by these figures which come at a time when staff are being retrenched and services decreased across the province. Given that un-audited figures are usually lower, it is likely that these figures will go up once auditing is complete.
KZN is a province facing huge socio-economic challenges.
This money could be spent a hundred times over, instead it is sitting in the department’s coffers. To make matters worse, the report also reveals an under-spend of R63 million under programme 5 (support for NGOs) indicating that the department has only spent 17 percent of its budget in this area.
The department claims this is as a result of the non-filling of vacant posts, as well as the under-utilisation of funds earmarked for capacitation of NGOs due to the delay in procurement.
This is an unacceptable situation as more than 3 000 KZN social workers sit at home unemployed.
A further area of concern is under-spending on building and other fixed structures – to the tune of R28 million. This has in turn affected the service offices in Phoenix, Vryheid, Marburg and Bulwer. It is immoral that the poor and vulnerable who live in deplorable conditions also have to access services under these same conditions.
While Social Development MEC Weziwe Thusi claims there is no major NGO funding crisis, there is a total of R78.5 million under-spending on payment of NGO tariffs and NGO support services in 2015/16 alone.
The MECs confusion begs the question – is she in control of the administration of her department?
The DA expects her to account to the province’s Social Development portfolio committee for this shocking performance. To this end we will again request that committee chair, Hon Yatima Nahara, call an urgent meeting at which the MEC must appear.
If the MEC is unable to provide acceptable reasons for the underspend, the DA will petition the KZN Treasury to investigate the department’s budgeting and spending so that NGOs and other social services are no longer negatively impacted.
MEC Thusi and her department are failing on one of their fundamental strategic objectives, ‘To provide effective support to Non-Profit organisations.’ She can no longer evade the issue. The DA demands accountability.
DR RISHIGEN VIRANNA
MPL
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