Despite COVID jab roll-out in South Africa, frustrations remain msn.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from msn.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The #PayTheGrants campaign for the extension and increase of the Social Relief of Distress grant has been signed by more than 180 civil society organisations and makes the following demands:
Extension and increase of the Covid-19 Social Relief of Distress grant (SRD) to at least the food poverty line of R585 per person per month;
Unduly harsh and narrow criteria for accessing the grant to be reassessed;
Inclusion of caregivers for the SRD grant regardless of whether they are receiving a child support grant on behalf of their children; and
Urgent progress towards implementation of the long overdue Basic Income Guarantee (grant).
Ekurhuleni to pay constitutional damages amounting to R15m over housing delay
By Loyiso Sidimba
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Johannesburg - Ekurhuleni Metropolitan municipality has failed to build houses for 133 residents that it had promised in 1994 and is now blaming Covid-19 for the delay.
The delay is now going to force the country’s fourth biggest metro, to pay constitutional damages amounting to R15 million to the residents of Winnie Mandela Informal Settlement in Tembisa, who have been without electricity, water and adequate sanitation since 1994.
Ekurhuleni has missed several deadlines to build the houses, which were initially imposed by North Gauteng High Court Judge Mmonoa Teffo in December 2017.
Towards a People’s Vaccine Campaign: A call to action
15 Jan 2021
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The Covid-19 pandemic is wreaking havoc millions in South Africa and globally are being infected and dying. Vaccinating a significant part of the population is the only realistic way to defeat the pandemic. Achieving this will require international co-operation and solidarity. Unity in action across all sectors of our society is now paramount. We need vigilance and solidarity to slow the rate of infection and to unburden health facilities. The reported acquisition of 1.5 million doses of C-19 vaccines for frontline healthcare workers is welcomed, but this must be the start of urgently acquiring millions more. An estimated 40 to 80 million doses will be needed, along with a massive roll-out effort to achieve herd immunity. This cannot be done by the government alone. We, the people, especially the millions of poor and working-class people, must be central to this effort.