The indigent policy of Drakenstein Municipality, which offers financial assistance in the form of a subsidy for households that struggle financially, was under the spotlight at a recent council meeting.
Opposition parties aired their grievances about certain benefits of this policy that were reduced.
According to the municipality the objective of the policy is to provide a financial assistance subsidy in line with national government regulations and guidelines to assist indigent households in the Drakenstein municipal area. It is provided by means of a rebate basket of basic municipal services to residents who meets the qualification criteria.
Mayor Conrad Poole, in his budget speech, said Drakenstein had 17 292 indigent households on its database.
In the previous financial year indigent beneficiaries who registered in the A and B category for support received 100 free electricity units, but from 1 July this year they will receive only 85 free units.
Category C and D beneficiaries will still receive 50 free units of electricity every month plus basic charges for up to 30 amps of single-phase, pre-paid or conventionally metered electricity. This will also apply to category A and B.
Since July 2019 qualifying indigent residents was subsidised for property rates to a maximum value of R950 000, but this will change to R750 000 per erf from 1 July this year.
The Indigent Support Policy makes provision for the following other benefits: 6 kilolitres free water every month; refuse removal charges (once a week for one refuse bin); sewerage charge levy for 1 toilet plus basic charges for erf size up to 550 m² every month.
The ANC and CDR raised their concern about the changes and their possible impacts the poorer communities.
“While the DA municipality is rewarding the rich with no property rates increase, they will punish the poor and already suffering beneficiaries of the national governments indigent grant,” ANC Cllr Moutie Richards said. “Pensioners who qualify for an indigent subsidy on their property rates will again face an extra increase in their municipal account because their subsidy will now be based on R750 000 instead of R950 000. Indigent qualifiers will be further punished with a reduction in the free electricity units that they receive monthly. National government subsidises the indigent beneficiaries with about R170 million per year. The national equitable share grant will increase to about R195 million for the new financial year.”
Poole said in his speech that the municipality would continue to assist vulnerable households, in line with the Municipalities Indigent Support Policy.
“In an ongoing effort to assist the most vulnerable it must be mentioned that Drakenstein’s indigent support is in excess of the national norm by almost three times compared to our neighbouring municipalities,” Poole said.
He also said the current vetting process to verify which registered indigent households still qualify for the municipality’s indigent subsidy will be done every six months, instead of annually.
