Dear Editor
During the National State of Disaster, the Department of Human Settlements reprioritised R300 million worth of housing grant allocations to assist struggling rental tenants.
The reallocated funds were re-invested into the Residential Rental Relief Programme. This Programme was managed by the Social Housing Regulatory Authority (SHRA), which is an entity of the Department.
The aim of the programme was to provide financial assistance to rental tenants who were unable to pay their landlords and who faced the potential of being evicted from their homes due to the Covid-19 pandemic. More so, it was to ensure that landlords could continue to service their mortgages without defaulting.
Fourteen months after the announcement of this scheme, the SHRA had still not finalised the details of the disbursement policy. During this time, arbitrary evictions of arrear tenants continued unabated in the informal economy, and homelessness soared. This is a common sight across all major Cities.
Today the Department of Human Settlements has revealed via a Parliamentary Question to Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi, to date a total amount of R 2 069 172 (two million rand) has been spent against this R300 million grant. This is less than 1% of the funds allocated.
Despite the colossal job losses and economic destruction wrought by the pandemic, only 201 South African families have benefitted from this grant.
The Department’s abject failure to assist South Africans with speed and urgency in their time of crisis yet again reveals the utter incompetence of the ANC-led government.
The ANC and their cadre deployees simply do not care about the people of South Africa.
Regards
Emma Louise Powell MP
DA Shadow Minister of Human Settlements
