Download PDFOn Wednesday, 22 September 2021, the Covid-19 Working Class Campaign (CWCC) held a mass meeting at the open space opposite Mayfield Square Shopping Centre in Daveyton. The meeting was held to address the government’s rejection of those eligible for the COVID-19 Social Relief Grant and the general corruption around the grant.
The meeting was attended by 81 members of the community. Many of the people in the meeting qualify on paper to receive the grant but they were rejected on grounds that are seemingly unfair.
“I applied for the grant and I was declined and the reason I got was that I am registered for UIF. In 2017 I resigned from my job at Shoprite as a cashier. I then applied for UIF but I was declined. They said that I absconded from work. I never followed up on my UIF matter and I just let it go. Now I am shocked to learn that I cannot receive the grant due to the UIF application that I never received,” said Nobuntu Ntuka, a 39 year old woman from Daveyton.
Ntuka is just one of many people who are eligible to receive the SRD Grant but have been rejected.
24-year-old Nompumelelo Banda said, “I was declined and the reason I got was that there is a problem with my identity verification. I really don’t understand because I am a South African citizen and I have a valid ID document with a valid ID number.”
“I didn’t know that I could appeal against this until I came to this meeting. I truly appreciate the information because I would have just let this go,” she aid.
When addressing the community Edgar Matume, from the Casual Workers Advice Office (CWAO) emphasised the importance of mobilising the community, especially the youth, to strengthen the campaign and deliver to the working class what belongs to the working class.
“On 20 September we held a mass meeting in Katlehong and we found out that community members were being charged R50 and sometimes R70 in order to receive help from SASSA officials with the Grant application. The community plans to march to the SASSA offices in Thokoza (east of Johannesburg), so that these officials can be exposed and brought to book for their crimes against the people,” said comrade Khongelani, also from CWAO. “Community members here in Daveyton experience similar problems and are keen to join the march in solidarity with the people of Katlehong. We [also held] another meeting in Katlehong on 27 September to decide about the march,” cde Khongelani said.
It seems as if the government is intentionally rejecting people’s applications just to keep the number of beneficiaries low, a direct attack on the working class yet again. Many community members are happy for the CWCC’s R350 Implementation Campaign as many have no way of responding to a system that is clearly designed to undermine the working class. For the working class, organising is extremely important, and especially now during a pandemic, solidarity is key if the working class is to survive this difficult time.
This article was submitted on 27 September 2021. You may republish this article, so long as you credit the authors and Karibu! Online (www.Karibu.org.za), and do not change the text. Please include a link back to the original article (https://karibu.org.za/cwcc-hosts-mass-meeting-in-daveyton-as-part-of-r350-implementation-campaign/).
