Speed up distribution Lesufi, people are starving – DA

Concerned at the people yet to receive food parcels during the national lock-down period, the DA has called for acting Gauteng social development MEC Panyaza Lesufi to speed up the distribution of food, as people who applied for food parcels a month ago are yet to receive feedback from the Gauteng social development department.

The party demands Lesufi speed up the process of food distribution to ensure no one starves.

“It is high time that the department considers making it easier to work with NGOs [and] ensuring that permits are easier and faster to process. This will speed up the process of distributing food parcels.”

According to a DA statement, food parcels which were meant to be delivered within the estimated time of 48 hours never arrived.

“Most of our people who reside in informal settlements, townships and rural communities are living in fear of starvation because they have been unemployed since the national lockdown was implemented 46 days ago to help curb the spread of the potentially deadly Covid-19 virus.

“The department is only aiming to distribute 4,000 food parcels per day which is not enough and cannot cover the large numbers that are hungry for food.”

This, according to the party indicates that the department is incapacitated, under-resourced and understaffed leaving them incapable to distribute food parcels.

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