Black Sash march outside the Department of Social Development in Pretoria on Thursday 22 April. Picture: Twitter Screengrab
Human rights organisation Black Sash along with 85 other organisations, are putting pressure on government to extend, expand and increase the R350 pandemic social relief of distress grant.
The organisations picketed outside the Social Development Department head office in Pretoria on Thursday as they handed over their memorandum of demands.
An online petition is also gaining momentum since its launch, requesting citizens to sign up “in support of the millions of people who stand to lose this grant if terminated”.
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The memorandum calls for the extension of the relief grant until it is turned into basic income support. Among its demands are:
“Time is running out for the SRD (social relief distress) grant, but our leaders are feeling the pressure. Finance Minister Mboweni and the national Treasury are already under fire for delivering an anti-poor austerity budget. We can’t let them cut the SRD grant too,” reads the statement.
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