STATEMENT BY BRETT HERRON, SECRETARY-GENERAL OF GOOD AND MEMBER OF THE WESTERN CAPE PROVINCIAL PARLIAMENT
Good Party opens lines to receive evidence from community
25 APRIL 2020
At a time of an acute public health crisis, with the population locked down at home, many without sufficient food to eat, the integrity of government programmes to provide food security must be beyond reproach.
Anything less risks people going hungry, heightens anxiety and anger, increases the potential for violence, and threatens to undermine the lockdown’s impact on retarding the progression of the coronavirus.
But instead of committing to act on widespread allegations that the distribution of emergency food is being manipulated by politicians, Western Cape leader of the DA Bonginkosi Madikizela has described those making the allegations as liars.
Responding to complaints of food corruption tabled by members of several opposition parties during a virtual sitting of the Western Cape Legislature on Thursday, Madikizela, the MEC for Transport, dismissed the allegations as “cheap political points”.
GOOD MPL Brett Herron had already shared a recording sent to the GOOD Party by elderly District Six residents, who said they’d been by-passed for food assistance “because we are not DA,” with the Premier and the provincial Covid19 oversight committee.
Similar stories from Mitchells Plain and Khayelitsha have also been shared with the GOOD Party, and social media is awash with allegations from other communities – in the Western Cape and elsewhere.
After the President expressed disgust at the allegations, the Premier of Gauteng instructed politicians to remove themselves from food distribution programmes. But formal requests by the GOOD Party to the Western Cape Premier to follow suit have been ignored.
Instead of committing the DA-led Western Cape government to investigate food aid corruption, and assure citizens that their food security is being taking seriously, Madikizela on Thursday suggested it wasn’t his job to investigate and called for further evidence.
While reluctant to expose anyone to further discrimination or persecution, or entertain unnecessary delay tactics, the GOOD Party will compile a report that takes care to protect the identities of vulnerable witnesses.
We further call on individuals and communities who are aware of local councillors or other politicians distributing government food parcels unfairly, but have yet to contact us, to report this information to:
Email: registrations@forgood.org.za
Call: 021-518 0890
WhatsApp: 060 688 8384
Details of when the handouts took place, who was handing out the food, or photos of the food handouts – and information on who was denied access – will hopefully encourage Madikizela and his cabinet colleagues to stamp out this scourge.
Assistance to vulnerable households should not be granted along political lines. All allegations of food aid corruption must be investigated, and guilty parties must face criminal sanctions.
Democracy doesn’t mean starving to death because you don’t support the ruling party of your ward, city, province or country.
Ends…