Parliament, Friday, 13 May 2022 – Parliament’s recently established Ad-Hoc Joint Committee on Flood Disaster Relief and Recovery has today elected Mr Cedric Frolick and Mr Jomo Nyambi as its Co-Chairpersons.
Parliament established the committee following the destruction caused by the recent floods that took place in KwaZulu-Natal, North West and the Eastern Cape to, among others, assess the overall impact of the damage, monitor response and relief measures by government, and oversee the response and implementation of government relief measures.
Members of this multi-party committee have agreed that the dire situation in the areas that are affected by floods has made the work of the committee more urgent. Furthermore, they said that the committee’s resolutions should not be decided by a vote, as that will promote partisanship to the detriment of those affected by floods.
Members of the committee raised concerns about communities becoming impatient with living in halls and slow intervention. The committee agreed that its work needed to be broader and encompass climate change strategies in order to adequately advise government on possible future disasters.
Mr Nyambi said the establishment of the committee will help streamline the work of Parliament related to the floods, and that will cut duplication as so many committees had sought to visit the affected areas to monitor similar challenges.
He said the committee will work to make sure that all relevant stakeholders assess the overall impact of the damage in all the provinces, and that the work the committee does would take into consideration the challenges that ordinary people face.
“The committee was established for performance of a basic task and we hope to complete it during the timeframe of the committee’s lifespan. This will be possible when all stakeholders work together with the committee,” said Mr Nyambi.
Mr Frolick said the Ad hoc committee will deal with matters as reflected on the terms of reference. He added: “The committee should be led by what we find on the ground, what was promised to the people and what is delivered.” He said the committee will schedule its meetings and its draft programme will be ready on Monday.
ISSUED BY THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMUNICATION SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE CO-CHAIRPERSONS OF THE AD HOC JOINT COMMITTEE ON FLOOD DISASTER RELIEF AND RECOVERY, MR CEDRIC FROLICK AND JOMO NYAMBI.
For media enquiries or interviews with the Chairpersons, please contact the committee’s Media Officer:
Name: Sibongile Maputi (Mr)
Parliamentary Communication Services
Cell: 081 052 6060
E-mail: smaputi@parliament.gov.za
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