ANC REJECTS DA MOTION TO SPLIT GAUTENG HEALTH & SOC DEVELOPMENT DEPT

I am greatly disappointed that the ANC today rejected a motion by the Democratic Alliance in the Gauteng Legislature to split the Gauteng Health and Social Development Department (see motion below).

ANC Chief Whip Brian Hlongwa said that the Legislature should not dictate to the Executive in this matter and that the solution was to hold the administration to account if there were problems.

The motivation for the DA motion to have separate Health and Social Development Departments is that they both require full-time MECs to attend to complex problems.

The DA was supported in the debate by all the other opposition parties who concurred that social development has suffered because of the merger that was done in 2009 when Premier Nomvula Mokonyane took over.

The department itself admits in its Second Quarterly Report that "Health Department payments (are) crowding out those of the Social Development Branch due to the limited availability of funds."

According to the Third Quarterly Report there is a massive underspend in critical areas of social development like elderly persons and HIV/Aids.

By the end of December last year, only R149 million out of R250 million for care and service to elderly persons had been spent - about 41% of the budget instead of 75 percent.

Only R114 million out of R205 million was spent on HIV/Aids, which amounts to 44% of the budget available.

There are also lots of vacant social development posts.

NGOs have complained at every public hearing that things have gone downhill for social development since the merger.

It is significant that not a single ANC member of the Health and Social Development Committee spoke in the debate as I suspect that they would have been sympathetic to the motion.

Hlongwa was the sole ANC speaker, and he shot it down with typical arrogance.

It makes eminent sense to split the department, otherwise both health and social development will continue to suffer in Gauteng.

DA Motion

Noting:

1. The amalgamation of the Gauteng Department of Health with the Gauteng Department of Social Development in 2009;

2. The complaints by the public and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) that social development is being neglected because of this amalgamation;

And Believing:

1. That the health portfolio in Gauteng is highly complex and requires the full-time attention of a Member of the Executive Council;

2. That the social development portfolio is also best looked after in a separate department;

Therefore Resolves:

1. That this House request the Honourable Premier to consider the creation of separate Health and Social Development Departments;

2. That consideration be given to following the example in the Eastern Cape where there is a Social Development, Women, Youth and People with Disabilities Department;

3. That consideration be given to amalgamating small budget departments or ones with a natural affinity in order to better balance the responsibilities of MECs.

4. That the Honourable Premier report back within three months to this House on the feasibility and desirability of restructuring the departments as proposed above.

Statement issued by Jack Bloom, MPL, DA Gauteng spokesperson on health, March 22 2011

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