The Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality (EMM) hosted an outreach initiative aimed at addressing the socio-economic challenges facing military veterans and ex-combatants in the province on June 16.
Ekurhuleni spokesperson Mr Themba Gadebe said the city wants to restore dignity to the lives of those who sacrificed their futures in the name of liberation.
He said the Gauteng Provincial Government has committed to addressing the plight of military veterans and ex-combatants.
“The roadshows are being held across Gauteng in a bid to restore the dignity and livelihood of those who contributed towards the liberation of the country, but do not have the means to fully take care of themselves and their loved ones due to injuries and psychological challenges incurred during the struggle,” Mr Gadebe said.
The Deputy Director of the Gauteng Military Veterans office, Ms Oratile Makgoba, stated that the initiative is to identify whether veterans are happy about the services they are receiving.
They also want to determine how the state can assist those who have not been accorded benefits as per the Military Act of 2011.
“The household assessments done today will assist in quantifying the number of military veterans and ex-combatants there are in Gauteng so that we can plan on how best they can be assisted according to their needs,” said Ms Makgoba.
“Military compensation, education assistance, post-traumatic therapy, psychotherapy and eco-therapy are amongst the support services offered to the veterans and ex-combatants who have registered and provided the required documents.”
One of the veterans who came to find out how he can be registered on the database to qualify for compensation, Mr Themba Mahlangu, expressed how vital the initiative was.
“This is long overdue. A lot of us suffered for the integration of the country and were left to fend for ourselves with no jobs or any form of compensation. Today’s programme is an indication that a new era is about to begin as our living circumstances are being looked into,” he said.
The municipality calls upon all military veterans, ex-combatants and families of those who have passed to register to be placed on the database in order to be acknowledged and compensated for accordingly.
For more information residents can contact the call centre on 080 232 3244 or visit the Department of Military Veterans offices at 323 Festival Street, Hatfield, in Pretoria.
