Durban — Lifesaving South Africa has hit back at ActionSA for the statements it made regarding its alleged appointment and its accreditation.
Lifesaving South Africa was responding to ActionSA KwaZulu-Natal chairperson Zwakele Mncwango who on Wednesday called for the eThekwini municipality to close all beaches pending an investigation into the recent drownings at North Beach which claimed the lives of three people and left 17 injured.
The party also said that Lifesaving South Africa was irregularly appointed and that it was not accredited.
Lifesaving South Africa (LSA) voluntary president Dhaya Sewduth said LSA noted that the statements were made by a political party with no experience in or knowledge of lifesaving or the training of lifeguards.
Sewduth said LSA has no contractual relationship whatsoever with the eThekwini Municipality or any municipality in South Africa.
“The allegation that LSA was somehow involved in irregular procurement is not only slanderous but completely false. LSA refutes the statements made by ActionSA about the “appointment” of Lifesaving South Africa as a training service provider for the eThekwini Municipality,” Sewduth said.
He said LSA is affiliated with the International Life Saving Federation (ILS) of which the headquarters are in Leuven, Belgium. All LSA Lifeguard Qualifications are accredited and recognised by ILS and are therefore on par with international standards. Furthermore, the LSA lifeguard qualifications are also registered with CATHSSETA and accredited by the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA).
Moreover, LSA over its 113-year history built relationships with other countries which enabled LSA to improve its standards and qualifications.
“The attempt by ActionSA to cast suspicion on the qualifications of LSA, is, to say the very least, misguided and uninformed,” Sewduth said.
He said that LSA is a federation of provincial and local bodies, all of them comprising volunteers.
“It is regrettable that such an honourable association with a track record of noble service to the community had to fall victim to political opportunism,” Sewduth said.
“Lifesaving South Africa rejects the misinformation that it is not registered with any SETA (Sector Education and Training Authority) and provides evidence that we are in all probability the only organisation which is registered to provide lifeguard training and qualifications.
“In fact, it is Lifesaving South Africa which has over the 113 years of its existence, developed the unit standards with CATHSSETA to what they are today, and these have been registered with SAQA. The relevant registration certificate has the relevant SAQA ID stated as well,” Sewduth said.
He said the Government Gazette No 45181 promulgated by the Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister, on September 21, 2021, states the requirements for municipal employee appointment, calling for all lifeguards to hold the appropriate Lifeguard Award and current annual retest.
“We call on Action SA to withdraw its statements and to publicly apologise for bringing our voluntary Lifesaving SA into disrepute,” Sewduth concluded.
Mncwango said that while they did not want lifeguards to lose their jobs and individuals whose livelihood depends on the opening of beaches to be without a means to support themselves, ActionSA believed that there were measures that should have been put in place to avoid the accident from occurring. Sadly, the municipality failed to put these measures in place.
He said that in a leaked report, the City’s Integrity and Investigation Unit received an anonymous complaint alleging irregular appointment of a service provider, Lifesaving South Africa, a non-profit organisation (NPO) used by the municipality to train lifeguards.
“It was brought forward that the NPO was not accredited by the South African Qualifications Authority, Health & Welfare Sector Education and Training Authority, nor the Department of Labour,” Mncwango said.
“The report concluded that the lifeguard certificates issued by Lifesaving SA do not meet the standards of the Department of Labour, and therefore should be considered invalid.”
Mncwango said that the report recommended appointing an accredited service provider.
“However, the municipality did not adhere to its own recommendations, and for this reason, ActionSA strongly advocates for the closure of beaches while we await investigation findings, to avoid putting more lives at risk,” Mncwango said.
He said that ActionSA would work tirelessly to uproot issues of incompetence within the municipality in an effort to fight unethical leadership that has brought the city to its knees.
Daily News