The
former archbishop of the Anglican Church of South Africa has compared
the claim by the Minister of Social Development, Bathabile Dlamini, that
social grant beneficiaries can live on R753 a month, with that of Marie
Antoinette on the eve of the French Revolution who, when told there was
no bread for the poor, dismissively told them to eat cake.
Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane said the statement was not only ridiculous, but an insult to the dignity of poor people.
He added that the minister should do the honourable thing and resign.
In Durban, NGOs involved in feeding the poor explained the difficulty in providing meals on that amount.
Dlamini was answering a question put to her by the DA in Parliament about how a household of five, supported by two child care grants, could sustain themselves on recently increased payouts.
She said social grant beneficiaries should be able to live on R753 a month to buy “adequate food as well as additional non-food items”.
“In most countries such an insensitive statement would be greeted by outrage, and demands for the resignation of the minister concerned,” archbishop Ndungane said.
He added that the drought had caused prices to skyrocket.
“It is an insult for minister Dlamini to suggest it is possible to live sustainably on this amount, never mind emphatically declare that it is.”
Food parcels
The archbishop noted a study by Standard Bank which found that 62.3 percent of South African households are low-income earners, but which spend up to one-third of their available income on food.
“It’s clear that the poor, while earning the least, are most hit by food inflation.”
Meanwhile, Noleen Walker, president of the Women’s Institute in KwaZulu-Natal, asked: “How are people supposed to live on that?”
Sharon Quail, who runs Sharing and Caring in Yellowwood Park, said food parcels she puts together to last a week cost R200 at the end of last year but now cost around R800.
“Each box contains a litre of milk, a bar of soap, 500g sugar, two toilet rolls, 500g rice, two packets of soup, a small packet of washing powder, one packet of macaroni, two boxes of soya mince, 100 tea bags, a small tin of coffee (10 cups), a tin of baked beans, a tin of vegetables, a tin of tomato and onion mix, sometimes an extra tin of pilchards or bully beef, and a juice.”
She distributes these mainly in Montclair, Woodlands, Woodhurst and Yellowwood Park. She raises money for the parcels from the sale of old clothes people donate in response to her requests on Facebook. “But this month I am battling for clothes. People who used to give me clothes are selling them themselves.
“People who were middle of the road before are now seriously battling.”
She said households trying to grow vegetable gardens were frustrated by monkeys.
A different opinion came from Pietermaritzburg-based Dr Imtiaz Sooliman, founder, director and chairman of the Gift of Givers organisation.
“It’s better to pool money to buy in greater quantities.
He said 1kg of rice could feed eight people and that it cost R60 to buy 10kg.
“When people add things they may grow in their gardens, like spinach and cabbage, it bulks up in the water. It may not offer three decent meals a day but it does offer one.”
Femada Shamam, of the Association for the Aged, said people struggled with old age grants to meet their rent and food needs.
“There is little in terms of concessions for elderly people.” Independent on Saturday
Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane said the statement was not only ridiculous, but an insult to the dignity of poor people.
He added that the minister should do the honourable thing and resign.
In Durban, NGOs involved in feeding the poor explained the difficulty in providing meals on that amount.
Dlamini was answering a question put to her by the DA in Parliament about how a household of five, supported by two child care grants, could sustain themselves on recently increased payouts.
She said social grant beneficiaries should be able to live on R753 a month to buy “adequate food as well as additional non-food items”.
“In most countries such an insensitive statement would be greeted by outrage, and demands for the resignation of the minister concerned,” archbishop Ndungane said.
He added that the drought had caused prices to skyrocket.
“It is an insult for minister Dlamini to suggest it is possible to live sustainably on this amount, never mind emphatically declare that it is.”
Food parcels
The archbishop noted a study by Standard Bank which found that 62.3 percent of South African households are low-income earners, but which spend up to one-third of their available income on food.
“It’s clear that the poor, while earning the least, are most hit by food inflation.”
Meanwhile, Noleen Walker, president of the Women’s Institute in KwaZulu-Natal, asked: “How are people supposed to live on that?”
Sharon Quail, who runs Sharing and Caring in Yellowwood Park, said food parcels she puts together to last a week cost R200 at the end of last year but now cost around R800.
“Each box contains a litre of milk, a bar of soap, 500g sugar, two toilet rolls, 500g rice, two packets of soup, a small packet of washing powder, one packet of macaroni, two boxes of soya mince, 100 tea bags, a small tin of coffee (10 cups), a tin of baked beans, a tin of vegetables, a tin of tomato and onion mix, sometimes an extra tin of pilchards or bully beef, and a juice.”
She distributes these mainly in Montclair, Woodlands, Woodhurst and Yellowwood Park. She raises money for the parcels from the sale of old clothes people donate in response to her requests on Facebook. “But this month I am battling for clothes. People who used to give me clothes are selling them themselves.
“People who were middle of the road before are now seriously battling.”
She said households trying to grow vegetable gardens were frustrated by monkeys.
A different opinion came from Pietermaritzburg-based Dr Imtiaz Sooliman, founder, director and chairman of the Gift of Givers organisation.
“It’s better to pool money to buy in greater quantities.
He said 1kg of rice could feed eight people and that it cost R60 to buy 10kg.
“When people add things they may grow in their gardens, like spinach and cabbage, it bulks up in the water. It may not offer three decent meals a day but it does offer one.”
Femada Shamam, of the Association for the Aged, said people struggled with old age grants to meet their rent and food needs.
“There is little in terms of concessions for elderly people.” Independent on Saturday
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