Note to Broadcasters: Please find attached soundbite in English by Freddy Sonakile MPL
The Democratic Alliance (DA) in the North West welcomes the South African Human Rights Commission’s (SAHRC) findings on the chronic shortage of social workers in the province, marking a major step forward for communities who have long been deprived of essential social services.
This investigation followed a formal complaint lodged by DA Mahikeng Local Municipality Councillor Kopano Gaebee on Freedom Day, 27 April 2023, after residents from villages in and around Mahikeng repeatedly raised concerns about children, families, and vulnerable individuals being left without timely support due to severe understaffing within the Department of Social Development (DSD).
The SAHRC’s inquiry revealed 44 funded but vacant posts, 71 unfunded posts, and a history of the Department returning unspent funds to the National Treasury, an indictment of poor financial management (see letter here). The termination of the social worker scholarship programme further deepened the crisis.
Only after persistent pressure from the DA and the Commission did the Department table a concrete plan to correct these failures. This plan includes renewed funding for 96% of NPOs serving as frontline social service partners, improved financial and administrative systems to prevent delays in filling posts, and targeted interventions to rebuild the province’s weakened social work capacity.
While the SAHRC has closed the complaint as resolved, both the Commission and the DA will continue monitoring progress to ensure full implementation. This outcome is a victory for rural and peri-urban communities across the North West and a testament to the DA’s relentless advocacy for those who have been ignored for far too long. We commend Cllr Kopano Gaebee for her leadership in driving this issue to national oversight level.
The DA’s Members in the North West Provincial Legislature will now intensify oversight through committees, budget scrutiny, and on-the-ground assessments. We will not allow the Department to regress or delay action.
Residents deserve a functional, compassionate, and responsive social service system and the DA will continue fighting to ensure exactly that.