ACTIONSA has called for the closure of Durban beaches.
On Wednesday, ActionSA KZN called for eThekwini Municipality to close all beaches.
This is pending an investigation into drownings at North Beach on Saturday, 17 December, which claimed the lives of three people and injured 17.
ActionSA KZN chairman Zwakele Mncwango said according to a leaked report, the he municipality failed to put safety measures in place. Mncwango said in the report, city’s Integrity and Investigation Unit got an anonymous complaint alleging the irregular appointment of Lifesaving SA, used by the city to train lifeguards.
“It was brought forward that the NPO was not accredited by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA), Health and Welfare Sector Education and Training Authority or Labour Department,” he said.
Mncwango said the report concluded that the lifeguard certificates issued by Lifesaving South Africa should be considered invalid. did not meet the standards of the Department of Labour and therefore should be considered invalid. He added that the reportrecommended that an accredited service provider be used.
“With these recent findings, it has become evident that incompetency in the eThekwini Municipality runs deep.The municipality did not adhere to the recommendations and for this reason, ActionSA advocates for the closure of beaches while we await investigation findings,” he said.
to avoid putting more lives at risk,” he said. HBut the municipality tweeted that it was ready to host visitors.
“We have plenty to offer our visitors.Most of our beaches are open and safe for swimming,” read part of the tweet. We offer best township experiences, nightlife and adrenaline packed adventure activities to name a few,” read the tweet.
He concluded that ActionSA will work tirelessly to uproot issues of incompetency within the municipality in an effort to fight an unethical leadership that has brought the city to its knees.
General manager of Lifesaving SA, Helen Herbert, said they have been registered with the Culture, Arts, Tourism, Hospitality and Sport Sector Education and Training Authority since 2014where the Lifeguard Qualification resides and accredited by SAQA.
“We are not required to be registered with HWSETA for our training. We are registered with the Department of Labour. Proof of this has been submitted to the city, numerous times and was done again following the allegations raised at the city.The unsubstantiated claims are refuted. We’re taking legal counsel,” said Herbert
