(NCOP debate: Adjustment Budget for Department of Social Development)
Poverty must be seen as a starting block for development and empowerment and not as a means to make communities even more dependent on the government. According to the Bible, it is better to teach someone to fish than to just give them fish.
Poverty is a national problem that impacts a large part of our society. The most effective way to eradicate poverty is to ensure that the entire community is involved. Involve the community; do not debilitate it.
The FF Plus is committed to promoting community-based social services. The party rejects the use of racial quotas and instead proposes that a means test must be used to allocate government funding to social service organisations.
To combat poverty, independent local economies must be developed, poverty must be seen as a starting block for empowerment and growth and development, not race-based targets, must be used as methods for empowerment.
South Africa must strive to establish Special Economic Zones that are not subject to Affirmative Action, Black Economic Empowerment and other restrictive labour legislation as well as to offer community-orientated social services.
But for the ANC, it seems to be business as usual. What is alarming is that there is draft legislation on social relief that seems very honourable at first glance, but it is actually no more than an attempt to bring about even greater community dependence on the government.
Passing this legislation will surely benefit the ANC in light of next year's municipal elections because the poor will not jeopardise their social grants by voting for any other party.
It appears as if Minister Lindiwe Zulu might lose her position in the Cabinet and analysts are speculating whether her radical idea of a basic income grant is an attempt to strengthen her position or provide her with an excuse should she be dismissed.
Such a basic income grant will only result in greater dependence on the government and will do nothing to create the independent communities our country needs. For the Minister, however, the ANC's debilitating policy is more important than the country.
The Minister's competence was recently called into question after she received a thorough scolding in the High Court when the closure of private schools for early childhood development was declared unlawful.
The Department's ideology is flawed and dangerous.
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