DA challenge to cooked food ban
The Democratic Alliance (DA) says they have lodged a complaint with the SA Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) against the department of social development (DSD) following a supposed instruction prohibiting NGOs from distributing cooked food to hungry people during lockdown.
MPL Refiloe Nt’sekhe said in a statement yesterday: “We are of the view that the ban on the distribution of cooked food is in violation of the constitution – particularly on the right to dignity, the right to life and the right to sufficient food, water and appropriate social assistance.”
Nt’sekhe said the party’s complaint was two-fold, including the prevention of soup kitchens and prepared hot meal schemes from operating in places where poor people cannot afford water and electricity to cook their own food.
“It is also not guaranteed that those who depend on cooked food will receive non-perishable food parcels timeously once distribution is halted – given the recent ongoing delays and reports of corruption related to the distribution of food parcels,” she said.
Nt’sekhe said while independent schemes may still operate, the rules they need to comply with make it almost impossible for them to continue their work and that NGOs will essentially be expected to apply for permits every time they distribute food.
“The bureaucratic challenges within the DSD and SA Social Security Agency will also make independent distribution impossible. The ban on NGOs distributing cooked food will do more harm than good.
“Already in Gauteng, the DA has been reliably informed that the Cradle of Hope was forced to stop rendering their services after the Gauteng DSD issued a permit prohibiting them from distributing cooked food and only allows them to distribute non-perishable food parcels.
“Many residents who depended on these sandwiches are likely to face starvation because they either cannot afford water and electricity, or they do not have access to these amenities, in order to cook their own food,” she said.
Nt’sekhe said the situation was further exacerbated by the fact that many families in Gauteng who had applied for food parcels in April, were yet to receive any assistance from the department.
“This instruction to prohibit NGOs from distributing cooked food is problematic given the fact that Social Development Minister Lindiwe Zulu’s leaked regulations are still in the draft phase and, therefore, not enforceable.
“Further to this, the ban seems more like an attempt to exercise power and punish the poor, than an attempt to protect the vulnerable from starvation.”