By CASEY NEILL
SPRINGVALE Benevolent Society has welcomed a month’s extra funding from the Federal Government – a ray of hope after losing its $70,000 lifeline.
But other groups providing emergency relief in Greater Dandenong remain fearful that Department of Social Services (DSS) cuts will hurt a municipality already struggling to help its needy.
The Journal reported on 26 January that the society had missed out on the DSS funding it had been receiving for the past 20 years.
Last week, president Joe Rechichi said the department had guaranteed his funding for an extra month, until the end of March.
“For them to do that, they haven’t made up their mind of what they’re going to do, I think,” he said.
“I feel they maybe haven’t got a transition agency in the City of Greater Dandenong.
“There’s no one in the City of Greater Dandenong that can do the work we do. There’s nobody.”
Mr Rechichi joined local MPs and relief organisation representatives to discuss the issue at City of Greater Dandenong’s Springvale offices last Friday, 6 February.
“I hope that from this meeting something will come up. Maybe if we join as a group, we may have some input,” he said.
“Maybe (Social Services Minister) Scott Morrison will have a change of mind, a change of heart.”
The society last week received an average of 11 calls for help per day.
“I will not shut. But a lot of people are going to miss out,” Mr Rechichi said.
A spokeswoman for another relief organisation said the government hadn’t revealed who would get funding, and was concerned there’d be a substantial emergency relief cut across the municipality.
“We’ve got no idea if there’s a new player that’s been funded,” she said.
“We understand there has been a 20 per cent cut in emergency relief funding in Victoria.
“City of Greater Dandenong is the highest on the SEIFA scale, which measures disadvantage.
“This may have a major impact on our community.”
Cambodian Association of Victoria co-ordinator Leang Kong attended the meeting last Friday.
She said the Federal Government reduced the Springvale centre’s funding from $110,000 per year to $75,000 then cut it altogether at the start of last year.
“It impacts a lot to our community, because without that we had to cut some of our staff, but our services are still the same,” Ms Kong said.
“We rely a lot on volunteers, but it’s still hard. A volunteer cannot do the big projects. We need permanent staff to organise and control everything.”
Dandenong Community Advisory Bureau, Casey Cardinia Legal Service, Vietnamese Community in Victoria and Dads in Distress also took part in the meeting alongside Isaacs MP Mark Dreyfus, Hotham MP Clare O’Neil, Bruce MP Alan Griffin, Clayton MP Hong Lim and Keysborough MP Martin Pakula.
Mr Dreyfus said cuts to volunteer-run groups like the Springvale Benevolent Society showed just how out of touch the Federal Government was.
“Local Labor MPs will work with community groups to have their funding restored, so that they can continue to serve our community,” he said.
