Gauteng resident’s human rights infringed by poor service delivery

By Solly Msimanga MPL, DA Gauteng Leader of the Official Opposition

As we commemorate Human Rights Day, we reflect on the profound sacrifices that accompanied South Africa's struggle for democracy. Our hard-won rights emerged from strife and bloodshed, culminating in one of the world's most progressive constitutions. Our Constitution affirms the democratic values of human dignity, equality, and freedom. Yet, despite these legal protections, human rights violations remain a pervasive issue in South Africa, particularly in Gauteng.

In Gauteng, many of these rights are undermined by poor service delivery, corruption, unemployment, and crime. While Premier Lesufi makes grand promises, the reality and lived experiences of our residents tell a different story.

Gauteng faces overwhelming service delivery challenges which directly affect our citizens' constitutional rights. Water shortages, electricity interruptions and deteriorating infrastructure, from pothole-riddled roads to ageing water systems, have become normalised features of our daily life. Our townships and central business districts are plagued by neglect, while many municipalities are on the verge of collapse. These problems are further exacerbated by poor governance, a lack of accountability from elected officials, rampant financial mismanagement, escalating crime rates, and catastrophic unemployment levels, particularly among our youth.

When service delivery fails, it undermines the rights of our people. What does the right to dignity mean when citizens live without reliable water or electricity? What is the right to education worth when children learn in overcrowded classrooms? How meaningful is the right to healthcare when hospitals postpone critical surgeries for months on end?

Education is a fundamental right, yet many of Gauteng’s children are denied a quality learning environment in which they can thrive and reach their full potential. Despite promises to address overcrowding and demolish asbestos schools, learners continue to study in overcrowded classrooms that pose a threat to their health and safety. The existence of 29 asbestos-built schools in Gauteng, years after government commitments to eradicate them, is an indictment of failed leadership.

The overcrowding crisis is particularly dire, with schools like Cosmo Junior Primary in Johannesburg forcing 92 Grade 1 learners into a single classroom. At Randvaal Primary School in Sedibeng, 53 Grade 1 learners share a classroom while contending with outdated infrastructure. The Gauteng government’s failure to meet the 2013 Basic Education norms and standards for public infrastructure is a direct violation of the right to education and the right to a safe learning environment.

Residents of Gauteng live in constant fear as crime spirals out of control and criminals run amok. According to the SAPS third-quarter crime statistics, there were 1,741 reported murders and 1,820 attempted murders. In addition, Gauteng was the highest contributor to sexual offences, rape, and sexual assault in the country. These statistics paint a grim picture of the country’s economic powerhouse. The 2023/24 GCRO Quality of Life Survey revealed that 48% of respondents believed the crime situation was worsening while satisfaction with safety and security services decreased from 27% to 23%.

Despite this dire situation, the Gauteng government prioritises wasteful expenditure over meaningful and effective crime-fighting initiatives. R10.8 million was irregularly spent on drones while the much-touted "state-of-the-art" provincial integrated command centre remains incomplete. Furthermore, R9.7 million was spent on just 124 pistols at an exorbitant cost of R78,000 per pistol while the provinces 143 police stations serving 16 million people remain under-resourced.

Poverty strips people of their dignity. It is both inhuman and degrading. The significant delays in the Gauteng Social Development 2024/25 adjudication process have left many NPOs without their allocated funds despite court orders, disrupting critical services to our most vulnerable communities. The e-indigent register which was meant to streamline assistance to our most impoverished citizens has to date not been launched. Premier Panyaza Lesufi's flagship employment programme, Nasi Ispani, has failed to meaningfully address unemployment. According to the latest Quarter Labour Force Survey (QLFS), Gauteng's unemployment rate worsened to 34.4% in the fourth quarter of 2024. The number of unemployed people increased from 2,593,000 to 2,667,000, with an additional 602,000 discouraged work-seekers.

These aren't mere statistics. These numbers represent human beings with untapped potential who cannot contribute to our economy or support their families. These are parents struggling to provide for their children, young graduates unable to find jobs and families trapped in a cycle of dependency. Unemployment strips away dignity and self-worth, forcing capable citizens to rely on social grants rather than their abilities.

Industrial parks, which were meant to stimulate economic growth and job creation, remain poorly managed. Despite Premier Lesufi’s promises to support small businesses and entrepreneurs, those doing business with the Gauteng Department of Health continue to struggle to survive because the department fails to pay for the goods and services rendered within the stipulated 30-day period. According to the Public Service Commission, the department owes suppliers a staggering R4.8 billion.

Gauteng’s healthcare system is crumbling due to mismanagement and neglect. The proposed acquisition of 18 private hospitals through a public-private partnership is a misplaced priority when existing hospitals lack resources, staff, and adequate infrastructure. The failure to complete the Johannesburg forensic pathology laboratory four years past its deadline illustrates the system's incompetence.

The backlog of 38,000 surgeries, compounded by the Gauteng Health Department’s failure to spend R250 million allocated for cancer treatment, endangers the lives of people who rely on the healthcare system for services. Several public hospitals, including Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic and Helen Joseph Hospitals, have postponed elective surgeries for four and a half months, with some procedures not expected to resume until April 2025. While elective or non-emergency surgeries such as orthopaedic surgery and knee and hip replacements may not be life-threatening, they can severely impact a patient’s quality of life.

Since becoming Premier in 2022, Panyaza Lesufi has repeatedly spoken about transforming hostels. He celebrates fully installed Wi-Fi in "six government hostels" while hostels across the province remain uninhabitable and in dire need of maintenance. Residents continue to live in inhumane and unsanitary conditions that pose severe health and safety risks. This occurs against a housing crisis with a waiting list of 1.2 million residents. According to MEC Tanseen Motara, 45 housing projects initiated as far back as 2008 remain blocked and incomplete. Housing mega-projects have been plagued by delays, poor construction quality, inadequate infrastructure, theft, vandalism, and illegal occupation.

Despite the Premier's promise to roll out connectivity across all townships, the e-Government Department has consistently underperformed on Wide Area Network (WAN), Local Area Network (LAN) coverage, and Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) targets. Despite receiving an additional R152.8 million in the adjustment budget, 473 fewer schools, clinics, and public facilities will receive broadband access than originally promised. The failure of the e-Government Department to roll out broadband access across townships has further deepened the digital divide. Internet connectivity is no longer a luxury but a necessity for education, job hunting, and economic participation.

Corruption undermines efforts to protect human rights and deliver services. It also leads to the misuse of public funds that could otherwise be used to provide essential services. The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng has exposed the Premier's role in hiding 177 forensic investigation reports. Despite committing to transparency, the Premier continues to shield corrupt officials from scrutiny.

As we commemorate Human Rights Day, we must recognise that rights without implementation are merely words on paper. The DA Gauteng remains committed to ensuring that service delivery improves so that the legacies of the past are meaningfully addressed. The marginalised and vulnerable in our society deserve to enjoy the rights afforded by our Constitution. We will therefore continue our fight to ensure that these rights are not only protected but upheld by those voted into office. We will remain the voice for the voiceless, advocating for a Gauteng where constitutional promises translate into lived realities for all residents. Furthermore, a DA-led Gauteng Provincial Government will ensure that human rights are upheld by improving service delivery, fighting corruption, and running a clean and transparent government.

The fight for human rights did not end with the dawn of democracy; it continues today. When government fails to deliver services, it violates the fundamental rights of its citizens. Gauteng deserves a government that upholds the principles of dignity, equality, and freedom.