Deputy President David Mabuza says government is determined to assist families who were severely affected by the deadly floods that swept KwaZulu-Natal.

“We are recommitting to remedying the situation that was caused by the floods by ensuring that we urgently put an end to the misery currently faced by communities, families and individuals affected by the disaster in eThekwini,” he said.

The Deputy President was answering questions in the National Assembly on Thursday.

The so-called “April floods” killed more than 400 people, and destroyed thousands of homes and infrastructure, while dozens of victims are still missing.

According to Deputy President Mabuza, the critical infrastructure that was damaged including power lines and pipelines, affected the delivery of basic services by government in the eThekwini Municipality.

Meanwhile, he said National Treasury and the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) have worked with the KwaZulu-Natal government to identify and reprioritise resources to respond to the crisis and cover any shortfalls.

In addition, various programmes, which are in various stages of being implemented, are being rolled out to affected communities.

“We want to confirm that the process hasn’t been as smooth as anticipated to be even though we have a multidisciplinary system. There were still problems with planning, execution and keeping track of projects,” he admitted.

According to the Deputy President, these issues including poor project management and policy red tape, caused the delays.

“We want to take this opportunity to apologise to all affected communities, families and individuals who have been subjected to this situation for a long time.”

Meanwhile, he said government would strengthen intergovernmental coordination between the three spheres of government and commit to taking action on a set timeline.

“We have located land for sustainable human settlement near the places of work.”

The Deputy President has since called on all stakeholders to hold hands with government and commit to sustainable and disaster-proof environments.

In addition, he acknowledged that the release of funds in disaster areas should be “quick” while allowing no room for corruption.

“Again, we want to say, apologies for these delays and we hope to see improvements,” said the Deputy President.

Source: South African Government News Agency