DA to intensify monitoring of GBV cases in Upington
| by Willie Aucamp, MP – DA Member of Parliament |
| Date: 17 July 2020 |
| Release: Immediate |
| Note to Editors: Please find attached soundbites in English & Afrikaans from Willie Aucamp, MP. The Democratic Alliance (DA) in the Northern Cape is calling for the national state of disaster over drought to be urgently renewed so that desperately needed funds can be pushed into the ailing agriculture sector.This comes after Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma today announced that she would not be renewing the state of disaster over drought, that lapsed today.The Democratic Alliance is extremely concerned that the lifting of the state of disaster is premature, given that drought conditions in the Northern Cape still prevail and that even with good rainfall, recovery will only occur in the long term.This is a viewpoint that we share with the Northern Cape Provincial Legislature, who ironically, just yesterday, during the negotiating mandate, voted in favour of the Division of Revenue Amendment Bill, on condition that funds be allocated towards the drought.In fact, the legislature’s own words are that “drought relief for the agricultural sector is not sufficient and that a clause must be included in the Division of Revenue Amendment Bill that requires various role players to align plans to realise the required impact of disaster management grants”.The DA condemns the ANC government’s lack of consultation with its own provinces. We also wonder whether Dlamini-Zuma even consulted with President Cyril Ramaphosa on her reckless decision not to renew the disaster declaration, as we are doubtful that, having been presented with the devastating effects of the ongoing drought earlier this year, he would have supported this outcome.It is increasingly clear that the unilateral leadership style adopted during the state of disaster over Covid-19, is nullifying valuable provincial inputs, to the detriment of South Africa and the Northern Cape.The lapsing of the state of disaster over drought, has clearly been done to spare the out-of-funds government from the obligation of availing adequate funds towards the agricultural sector. It has most definitely not been done with the best interests of the agricultural sector at heart. Nor has it taken into consideration agricultural related job losses and the threat imposed on food security.The DA will lobby hard for the state of disaster over drought to be immediately reinstated.It will not help South Africa, or its people, for this government to save lives from Covid-19, only for it to take lives through famine. |
| Media Enquiries |
| Willie Aucamp, MPDA Member of Parliament083 305 8892 Shelley De WittResearcher082 847 1387 |
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