There have been protests over the Government's promised food parcels in Mthatha and a mini riot in Mitchell's Plain. Hands up those who didn't see this coming.... anyone?..... no-one? Of course not, such actions are inevitable (but wrong) when people are given hope and then let down.The Government promised R53m for food parcels to be distributed by the Department for Social Development, the same Dept that administrates NPO registration. So as a registered NPO The Gathering made an approach to the Dept offering to be one of the organisations that would undertake the needs assessments and then distribute the food parcels. And we've heard absolutely nothing!
Has the govt reneged on the R53m? Do the food parcels actually exist? Are the govt dept inept? Who knows!?!
What we do know is that there are growing numbers of people who are getting hungrier and more desperate by the day and if nothing happens soon the lives saved by the lockdown will be totally negated by the lives lost to hunger and the inevitable rioting that will follow.
As a church we've done all we can to get involved but sadly we've had no response from the Dept for Social Development and our interactions with the political parties have resulted in absolutely nothing.
All in all it's very depressing and the immediate future looks very bleak for a lot of very vulnerable people who are the very same people the lockdown is supposed to be protecting.
Only Jesus and the local church can truly offer any genuine hope!
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