Since February this year, Gauteng has had over 210 cases of suspected food poisoning with 16 resulting in fatalities of children, the vast majority of which were under 10 years of age. ActionSA, therefore, welcomes the promise made by Premier Panyaza Lesufi to deploy food inspectors to monitor townships’ spaza shops which have been the alleged contributor to this scourge. And we do so with extreme caution.
The scourge of food poisoning affects many facets of our communities, especially in impoverished areas. Besides the emotional and financial strains on families, food poisoning puts a new dimension of strain on public health resources and results in much school time being lost. These avoidable strains have far-reaching consequences on the province’s fiscus and educational achievements, to name just a few. It is also important to note that foreign-owned spaza shops do not create any employment opportunities for South African citizens as they bring other foreigners to staff them, which does not benefit the communities they serve in the long-term, except as consumers.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), there must be one health inspector for every 10,000 people. Yet in Gauteng’s two biggest metros, Johannesburg and Tshwane, the number of health inspectors is not even close to the minimum requirements of WHO. Johannesburg only has
221 health inspectors, a ratio of one inspector for 27,000 people, whilst Tshwane is even worse off, with only 77 health inspectors consisting of 64 functional inspectors and 13 managers, giving the city a ratio of one inspector for every 60,000 people. For any meaningful and impactful monitoring to happen, it’s blatantly clear that the number of inspectors must exponentially increase to meet the demand.
ActionSA Gauteng’s Call to Action:
1. We demand that Premier Lesufi devise a comprehensive, multi-pronged plan that will not only inspect food but look at the holistic impact of spaza shops being dominated by foreigners.
2. We demand that the Executive cease being reactive after-the-fact but take proactive measures to prevent this scourge from continuing and take necessary, punitive steps against those who do not act in accordance with the prescripts of South African laws.
3. Since foreign-owned spaza shops have become a mainstay of the Kasi township, an SMME programme needs to be developed that will assist homeowners and their families to be integrated into being able to successfully run the spaza shops, including financial assistance. This will not only ensure that the scales are tilted in favour of SA residents but will ensure that sustainable supply of goods is maintained, thus reducing reliance on foreign-owned spaza shops.
Benefits of ActionSA Gauteng’s Call to Action:
1. Since SA citizens will be running these spaza shops, revenue generated will be able to filter down to the fiscus and employment opportunities created.
2. An increase in disposable income will be realized, thereby stimulating the much-needed economic activity’
3. With an annual contribution of over R 178 billion and a customer base of over 80% daily, realigning spaza shops in favour of South Africans could be the injection that our economy needs to grow beyond 2% in the province.
Whilst Premier Lesufi’s call might be well-meaning, it falls very short on addressing the underlying factors that are the root causes of this scourge. As a party that wants to play its role as a constructive opposition, we’re willing to assist in implementing tangible solutions for our communities and the betterment of our province.
ActionSA Gauteng is committed to ensuring the the government is held accountable and that workable solutions are implemented. To prevent further deterioration, we implore the province’s leaders to take prompt, decisive and meaningful action.
ActionSA Welcomes with Extreme Caution the Promise to Deploy Food Inspectors to Monitor Spaza Shops in Townships
Since February this year, Gauteng has had over 210 cases of suspected food poisoning with 16 resulting in fatalities of children, the vast majority of which were under 10 years of age. ActionSA, therefore, welcomes the promise made by Premier Panyaza Lesufi to deploy food inspectors to monitor townships’ spaza shops which have been the alleged contributor to this scourge. And we do so with extreme caution.
The scourge of food poisoning affects many facets of our communities, especially in impoverished areas. Besides the emotional and financial strains on families, food poisoning puts a new dimension of strain on public health resources and results in much school time being lost. These avoidable strains have far-reaching consequences on the province’s fiscus and educational achievements, to name just a few. It is also important to note that foreign-owned spaza shops do not create any employment opportunities for South African citizens as they bring other foreigners to staff them, which does not benefit the communities they serve in the long-term, except as consumers.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), there must be one health inspector for every 10,000 people. Yet in Gauteng’s two biggest metros, Johannesburg and Tshwane, the number of health inspectors is not even close to the minimum requirements of WHO. Johannesburg only has
221 health inspectors, a ratio of one inspector for 27,000 people, whilst Tshwane is even worse off, with only 77 health inspectors consisting of 64 functional inspectors and 13 managers, giving the city a ratio of one inspector for every 60,000 people. For any meaningful and impactful monitoring to happen, it’s blatantly clear that the number of inspectors must exponentially increase to meet the demand.
ActionSA Gauteng’s Call to Action:
1. We demand that Premier Lesufi devise a comprehensive, multi-pronged plan that will not only inspect food but look at the holistic impact of spaza shops being dominated by foreigners.
2. We demand that the Executive cease being reactive after-the-fact but take proactive measures to prevent this scourge from continuing and take necessary, punitive steps against those who do not act in accordance with the prescripts of South African laws.
3. Since foreign-owned spaza shops have become a mainstay of the Kasi township, an SMME programme needs to be developed that will assist homeowners and their families to be integrated into being able to successfully run the spaza shops, including financial assistance. This will not only ensure that the scales are tilted in favour of SA residents but will ensure that sustainable supply of goods is maintained, thus reducing reliance on foreign-owned spaza shops.
Benefits of ActionSA Gauteng’s Call to Action:
1. Since SA citizens will be running these spaza shops, revenue generated will be able to filter down to the fiscus and employment opportunities created.
2. An increase in disposable income will be realized, thereby stimulating the much-needed economic activity’
3. With an annual contribution of over R 178 billion and a customer base of over 80% daily, realigning spaza shops in favour of South Africans could be the injection that our economy needs to grow beyond 2% in the province.
Whilst Premier Lesufi’s call might be well-meaning, it falls very short on addressing the underlying factors that are the root causes of this scourge. As a party that wants to play its role as a constructive opposition, we’re willing to assist in implementing tangible solutions for our communities and the betterment of our province.
ActionSA Gauteng is committed to ensuring the the government is held accountable and that workable solutions are implemented. To prevent further deterioration, we implore the province’s leaders to take prompt, decisive and meaningful action.