EFF demands government advertise and fill the over 166 000 government department vacancies within three months
22 June 2023
The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) demands that government must fill all roughly 166 000 job vacancies identified by the Department of Public Service and Administration within three months.
The Department of Public Service and Administration recently provided a resounding confirmation that our nation and its provinces suffer from a staggering void of potential, with a daunting breakdown of 166,365 vacant positions within national and provincial departments, begging to be filled.
In a nation gripped by high levels of graduate unemployment, towering at an alarming 10.6%, and plagued by a general unemployment rate soaring at 32.7%, it is an affront to the people of South Africa that these vacant positions have endured for such a duration.
In a country where the public service and its administration shamelessly flaunt their abysmal service record, leaving citizens underserved, this protracted absence of action is a spit in the face of every South African demanding change and meaningful opportunities for their livelihoods.
The ANC government's immense failure to address these lingering vacancies is a testament to its unscrupulous practice of cadre deployment, prioritising internal party dynamics and electioneering tactics ahead of the people's welfare. It is a shame that while opportunities lie vacant, thousands of young individuals are condemned to meagre R350 social grants, their potential squandered, and their families left to languish.
The very families that invested their hopes in education as a catalyst for change are now forced to witness their dreams shattered by the callous indifference of those in power. The ANC government must hang its head in shame for perpetuating this cycle of despair and denying countless lives the chance for a brighter future.
Within the national and provincial departments, a multitude of positions exist across the spectrum of unskilled, semi-skilled, and highly skilled domains. It is therefore imperative for the government to conduct a comprehensive review of the requirements, making certain that opportunities are accessible to individuals without matric, those equipped with matric, and those possessing specialised skills and qualifications.
The swift and resolute filling of these vacancies possesses the power to change the lives of countless South Africans, bringing hope to their families, empowering communities, and alleviating the pervasive scourge of unemployment that cripples our nation. Cyril Ramaphosa and the National Treasury need to fill these vacancies within three months and fund the filling of these vacancies.
The EFF, as an anti-corruption movement, will closely monitor this process to also ensure that ANC crooks do not fill vacancies based on party allegiance and other forms of corruption and misuse of power.
Moreover, the age for employment should not remained limited to 35, employment opportunities must be open for all, as we come from a dark period where many skilled and experienced people faced retrenchment because of the Covid-19 pandemic, while others have been waiting to be employed since the dawn of democracy to no avail.
The EFF will not hesitate to rally our people to physically go to these departments and occupy them until they advertise these jobs should this deadline not be met.
Issued by Sinawo Thambo, National Spokesperson, EFF, 22 June 2023
