Councillor criticised over link to psych patients NGO is an unpaid volunteer‚ says ANC

14 February 2017 - 13:39 By TMG Digital
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The African National Congress Tshwane Caucus says it is "vexed by the unfortunate‚ misplaced and political grandstanding" that sought to question a councillor's involvement with a non-governmental organisation.

Nozipho Tyobeka-Makeke
Nozipho Tyobeka-Makeke
Image: Twitter/City of Tshwane

The Rebafaneyi home is for victims of domestic violence but a presentation from the home that the Democratic Alliance's Jack Bloom has accessed shows that they received more than 100 mentally ill patients. They then sent the patients onwards to two other NGOs.

  • Claims that ANC councillor and top cop benefited from Esidimeni patients ‘baseless’‚ says health project directorThe director of the Rebafenyi mental health project that housed patients from a Life Esidimeni centre for a few months says allegations that an ANC councillor and a policewomen were involved in dodgy NGOs are baseless. 

Police Major-General Sandra Malebe-Themba is the executive chairman of this home. Tshwane ANC councillor and former Gauteng MMC for sports and recreation Nosipho Makeke-Tyobeka is listed as a committee member.

The home earned more than R270‚000 from R2‚700 for patients it was given a month.

The ANC in Tshwane has jumped to the defence of the councillor‚ saying the party expects all its members to participate in the life of communities they are part of.

  • ANC councillor and police general implicated in unlicensed premises for psychiatric patientsA policewoman under investigation for racism and an ANC councillor used an NGO for domestic violence they were involved with to take patients from Life Esidimeni health centres. This is according to the Democratic Alliance's Gauteng spokesman on health‚ Jack Bloom. 

"It is for those reasons that Councillor Nozipho Tyobeka Makeke is a non executive member of Rebafenyi NGO. Rebafenyi is an NGO that successfully operated a victim empowerment programme for abused women and children under social development since 2011.

"It is also worth mentioning that Ms. Makeke was involved with the NGO long before its expansion into the mental health programmes and that she was a mere volunteer who does not receive any form of remuneration."

The ANC added that she is not involved in the day to day running of the NGO.

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