Johannesburg - The Gauteng Provincial Government is in the process of filling about 8 000 funded vacancies through the “Nasi Ispani” programme that exists across various provincial departments.
On Youth Day, Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi announced the start of the application process for the previously declared thousands of vacancies across the Gauteng Provincial Government departments.
Young people in the province queued up to submit job applications at the Nasi Ispani initiative and some grew impatient while waiting for Lesufi to arrive.
According to the EFF, this staffing process is important for the capacity of departments so they can effectively execute their mandate.
The party’s provincial chairperson, CMSR Nkululeko Dunga, said the EFF had long been calling for this to take place, as these vacancies had existed and accumulated for many years.
“However, the ANC government has seized the opportunity and is using these jobs for political electioneering by presenting them as their party programmes.
“By advertising these government jobs through and as ANC programmes, Premier Panyaza Lesufi has muddied the recruitment process, brought confusion and blurred the dividing line between government and party functions. In the process, the unemployed people of Gauteng are the biggest losers.
“We call for the establishment of an independent body to monitor the human resources process for the filling of the vacancies advertised by the Gauteng Provincial Government.”
Dunga added that as the 2024 general elections drew nearer, the ANC could not conceal its desperation.
He said: “The abuse of the Extended Public Works Programmes through the back door hiring of ANC card-carrying members as Crime Prevention Wardens and Cleaning and Greening Army, while denying the rest of the people of Gauteng a fair application process, bears evidence to this fact.
“The EFF Gauteng has committed to enforcing accountability, openness and fairness in the process of filling these vacancies.
“While the EFF public representatives monitored the registration and submission process in all walk-in centres, which took place on Friday, we reiterate our call for the establishment of an independent body to oversee the process of short-listing and appointments to make sure that these jobs are given to the citizens of Gauteng who have applied and meet the requirements regardless of partisanship,” said Dunga.
Gauteng Provincial Government spokesperson, Vuyo Mhaga, said that when Lesufi delivered his State of the Province Address (SOPA) address, he made a commitment to deliver 152 000 jobs.
“At the time, political parties said its all talk, even referred to Premier’s speech as Lesufism (All talk no Action). Now that he is fulfilling his commitments, they say it’s a political agenda. I hope they don’t suggest that government must wait until elections happen,” said Mhaga.
The Star