Durban - People who had expected to receive food parcels and vouchers on Wednesday were left disappointed after the eThekwini municipality postponed the initiative.
The programme was launched last week by mayor Mxolisi Kaunda and was intended to start providing people from all of eThekwini’s 110 wards with food vouchers and parcels from Wednesday.
Councillors were to identify needy families from their wards to receive vouchers or parcels. The programme provides R66 million worth of relief to eThekwini residents. Parcels were to be given to people who did not have access to large supermarkets in the more rural areas, and vouchers to people able to get to stores in urban areas. One thousand of these food vouchers or hampers were to be given out in each ward.
DA councillor Thabani Mthethwa said the delays were the result of a lack of preparation by the municipality. “It is unacceptable that councillors have had to scramble to put together resources to feed destitute communities, but the municipality fails to procure the much-needed relief vouchers and parcels when the budget has been approved to facilitate this process.
“Councillors are being contacted by thousands of hungry and desperate residents every day, and people charged with the responsibility to implement the relief measures do not seem to understand the severity of the crisis facing communities,” he said.
Mthethwa said they had written to the municipality to get an explanation.
IFP councillor Mdu Nkosi said delaying the roll-out was painful for communities.
“It is playing with the feelings of poor people,” he said.
Nkosi said councillors were receiving calls from poor people telling them how desperate they were.
Mayoral spokesperson Mluleki Mntungwa said there would be challenges because of the large size of the programme. He said some families had been given parcels when the programme was launched last week. Mntungwa said they expected all vouchers and parcels to be given to those who were in need, by this weekend.
The City was trying to ensure all procurement processes were followed.