Naming convention leaves bad taste for NPO

AROUND 30 elderly people in an old age home face no food or care because of a discrepancy over the wording on the NPO’S registration with the Gauteng Department of Social Development.

“The Department of Finance rejected our service level agreement (SLA) for Ebenhaeser Old Age Home,” said Les Sanabria, national director of Operation Compassion SA, this week, which meant it could not receive its annual subsidy.

“We’re faced with no food or care for 30 older persons, plus a contingent of staff threatening strike action. We’ve been given to understand the department expects project names to be the same as the NPO registration in line with its database.”

In recent weeks, several NGOS, including Sanabria’s, have revealed how they had not signed SLAS, which affects the payment of their annual subsidies.

The DSD said it had not introduced new conditions but taken stringent measures to ensure NPOS comply with terms and regulations as contained in their SLAS. “We’ve had instances where some NPOS provide inaccurate financial reports, inappropriate management of assets purchased with public funds and poor record keeping systems,” it stated.

Sanabria maintained “petty adminis-tration” by the department “has placed lives at risk at a time when we should have received our first subsidy tranche.

“Operation Compassion South Africa (Ocsa ) is the NPO name of the welfare department of the Full Gospel Church of God in SA.

“We have 342 projects with over 450 000 beneficiaries. Ebenhaeser Old Age Home was purchased in 1977… and has continued to operate as ‘Ebenhaeser Tehuis vir Bejaardes’ under our NPO number,” he said.

“Earlier this year the Springs Office (pointed out that the bank account of the home needed to be changed to include Ocsa to show it was linked. The manager had that corrected and thought this would satisfy DSD. Unfortunately, the department has rejected our SLA.”