by Ilyaas Bassardien, Heart FM News

Cape Town’s opposition parties argue that temporary work isn’t enough for the City’s residents.

It comes as the DA-led municipality released a statement that it provided over 35-thousand temporary jobs last year.

The opportunities were administered through the EPWP project, an initiative started by National Government to alleviate unemployment and poverty.

The GOOD party’s Brett Herron says resident’s deserve more…

The City has no reason to congratulate itself for these figures. The reality on the ground…is that EPWP is not creating employment. They are not jobs, they are [at] most, a very small reprieve from abject poverty and hunger.

Despite the programme, food insecurity has worsened and families are hungry. There’s nothing to be congratulated about.

– Brett Herron, GOOD Party Mayoral Candidate for Cape Town

Meanwhile ActionSA’s spokesperson Anslin Gysman says young people can’t rely only on temporary jobs…

EPWP, although it provides short-term relief…. when the placement ends and unemployment returns, poverty remains. People cannot create livelihoods on jobs that come with an expiry date.

The real measurement of success is not how many temporary jobs the City creates, but how many people move into permanent employment, viable businesses and economic independence.

–Anslin Gysman, ActionSA spokesperson

What should be done?

Both opposition parties agreed that more should be done for unemployed residents.

ActionSA’s Gysman elaborates…

Meanwhile, GOOD’s Herron says the City should create jobs through meaningful investment….