Most municipalities "dysfunctional": Gift of the Givers' founder

PRETORIA - In the face of an electricity crisis, a water crisis and a cost of living crisis, humanitarian group Gift of the Givers is scathing in its criticism of all levels of government - they simply don't care.

READ: Gift of the Givers provides aid in Kakamas

Founder Imtiaz Sooliman says as they are increasingly called in to assist with crises, government continues to shift blame and do nothing.

He says drastic changes are needed to the way this country is governed.

Sooliman said, "[the] government has to relook at the entire way it functions. You know, municipalities, most of them are bankrupt. 267 municipalities, most of them are dysfunctional, qualified audits, you know, no proper reporting, no proper delivery of services."

"There has to be a new way in which we do business. Business cannot go on the way it's going on right now. Potholes in the road. Verges not cut. Streetlights not working. Water systems not working. And it seems those who are councillors in many cases just don't care."

"You know they've got the wrong people in the job and they need to be replaced or government needs to have a different system where national government takes much more interest. The problem with our system and government is that it passes the buck. It kicks the can forward," Sooliman said.

"National says, "no it's not our responsibility, it's provincial." Provincial says, "it's not our responsibility, it's local." Local says, "it's not our responsibility, it's disaster management," and they keep passing the can."

He continued, "if you're the head of the state, you need to take your cabinet and sit together, what is our problem? We've got a dysfunctional system of electricity, what do we do?"

"We have municipalities that are not working, what do we do? Do we leave it to them or do we intervene nationally. You have to be serious about running the country and you are not doing the job properly right now."

"We have to look at health, we've got no registrars at hospitals, you've cut the registrar post. There's no proper healthcare. There's no water support in so many parts. People are desperate."

"Is this the way to live? That every single day you have to walk to a water tanker to collect water? I mean it's not something that's happening yesterday, it's happening for years and you still don't have a solution because no, it's not nationals problem, it's provincial. No it's not provincial's problem, it's local."

"That argument has to stop and you have to get down and seriously think about how to run the country and how to run it properly," Sooliman said.