IT is a matter of pulling all the ropes in efforts to keep the doors of the ever-so-committed Uitenhage & District SPCA open.
The dire financial situation is due to the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality’s non-payment to the association for its services rendered since April 2020.
“It is an ongoing frustration. They (the municipality) still have not paid us for any costs since April. The result was that we could not pay our monthly staff last week or our weekly staff this week. And there is no money to do so,” said Deirdré Swift, manager of the Uitenhage & Distrct SPCA.
“It is pure incompetency and basically they just do not care. The non-payment by the municipality is unlawful, as the consequences are that we are now not able to pay SARS which will affect our tax compliancy, we can’t pay the employers legal obligations like retirement benefits for the staff, our fuel bill, nor can we pay our insurance.”
According to Swift the municipality is in arrears by more than R210 000.
“We cannot forsake our duties. We have to continue with our services to animals in need and to our community,” said Swift.
Book sale to raise funds
A book sale, to raise much needed funds, will be held in front of the Mosel liquor store on Saturday from 08:00 to 15:00.
The store is closed over weekends in adhering to the COVID-19 regulations.
“We urge the public to please support our book sale. The public and local businesses are our last hope for financial support. We cannot forsake our jobs, we are responsible for helping those who cannot speak for themselves, the animals in need,” said Swift.
She thanked the public and local businesses for their continued support.
“We have been blessed with wonderful donations of food, blankets and medication. So our animals on site are taken good care of. Our desperate need is financial,” said Swift.
At the time of going to print, the municipality had not responded to the UD Express’ request for comment about the non-payment.
