almost a month, speaks to a system that is struggling and on the verge of collapse. Hon House Chairperson, let me point out further gaps: This department has made little to no progress in the fight against gender-based violence or in protecting the rights of children or in protecting the rights of the elderly. The Department of Social Development, DSD, has failed to make any progress in employing the thousands of trained social workers who are sitting at home. Let me remind you, we need these social workers to protect children at schools, to fight substance abuse in our communities and to protect the children on gangsters that are in Cape Flats and in Wentworth.

As the IFP stands ready to govern in KwaZulu-Natal in 2024, we as a government in KwaZulu-Natal will support nonprofit organisations, NPOs, who are facing closure because the Department of Social Development in KwaZulu-Natal are paying them late, thereby forcing them to close their doors and failing the most vulnerable who rely on their services. We, as the IFP, will rise to protect abandoned babies by legalising baby savers. We will protect our children. We will protect those living with disabilities and we will lead the fight against gender-based violence. Simply put, an IFP in government will do what the ANC is not doing, prioritising the marginalised and poor just like Prince Buthelezi did. I thank you. Ms T BREEDT: Hon House Chair, this department and its entities have more than half of South Africans reliant on them in some form or another, yet challenges continue to persist. The challenges being faced by DSD and Sassa are so great that one almost forgets about the National Development Agency, NDA, also being an entity of this department.

There are but a number of positives that vaguely improve the standing of this department, like the improved audit outcome, but when it comes to boots on the ground service delivery the same cannot be said. There is still a number of critical vacancies in this department. We have seen an acting Director- General, DG, in this department for many years now, and every year it is in the Auditor- General of South Africa, AGSA report.

There are many committee observations that are quite worrying. Struggles with NPO funding and appeals is one such challenge, and the continuing service delivery woes that are still hampering Sassa is another. The move from South African Post Office, Sapo, to the Postbank was marred by issues that started even before the ink on the new agreement between Sassa and the Postbank had time to dry. We have now had a number of network challenges, discontinuations of systems, system glitches, and other oopsie daisies that have seen our Sassa beneficiaries not receiving their payments.

What is further worrying about the whole Postbank debacle is that not once was sufficient communication given to anyone. Telephone lines that had eventually started working, could not take the number of calls and also crashed, leaving beneficiaries without answers. Many of us as members were also contacted by these beneficiaries who had exhausted all avenues and could also not assist, because we also did not have the answers.

The Postbank is now making promises that the issues are sorted, but I am not holding my breath. The only question that begs to be asked is: How long will our most vulnerable suffer before this government starts acting and addressing problems in a proactive manner instead of having it fall apart first and then being reactive? South Africans deserve better. I thank you.

Mrs MESUKERS: Hon House Chairperson, the ACDP rises in this budget debate in solidarity with ordinary South Africans who are facing the normal daily crisis of poverty. A crisis that is not improving but getting worse as our state appears incapable of driving the necessary societal and economic change that will make the work of the DSD less rather than more important.

This daily or ordinary crisis is, however, dwarfed by what befalls our vulnerable communities when an extraordinary crisis strikes them. Communities that I represent, both in the Western and Northern Cape, have recently been struck by floods, and on both occasions, we saw the disaster of poverty being turned into a community devastating event. The vulnerable became sick, key family members died and whole families now face devastating circumstances as a result. As I speak to you, my