The City of Cape Town’s Human Settlements Department has reiterated its appeal to the National Human Settlements Department for direct access to disaster funding.
The City has emphasised the need for expedited fire and flood relief for affected residents, especially during the current fire season in the Western Cape.
According to the provincial department, granting direct access to disaster funding would enable the city to deliver prompt assistance to residents in need.
Member of the Mayoral Committee for Human Settlements, Carl Pophaim, says that allowing the City to manage disaster relief funds would facilitate quicker reconstruction of homes for affected residents.
Pophaim says, “I’ve written to the Minister (Mmamoloko Kubayi) on two occasions, saying that I understand the Minister’s decision to centralise emergency relief. She’s made it very clear she needs to make sure that delivery takes place across the country, which I accept, but there are metros and municipalities that have done it and done it well.”
“The City of Cape Town is one of them. We have shown a response time of between 12 and 36 hours typically when we used to manage it, but I haven’t gotten a response to those letters and that’s fine. I’m going back after this to engage with my senior management. I’ve called an urgent meeting to say we need to scrape resources together on our own so we can deliver starter kits more urgently because the rebuilding process is actually the most traumatic,” added Pophaim.
Pringle Bay blaze spreading towards Betty’s Bay
