Councillors serving on the public health portfolio committee have called on the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality to name funeral parlours that are not complying with the city’s burial regulations.
The call from various political parties was made at the public health portfolio committee meeting on Friday.
A report tabled in the committee details how several funeral parlours had been found to be non-compliant with regulations.
But councillors said the report lacked the relevant information.
It is unclear how many funeral parlours had been inspected by officials.
In the report, acting public health executive director Andile Tolom wrote that while some funeral parlours were found to be compliant, several parlours were not.
“The public health and environmental health sub-departments evaluated all local funeral undertakers’ premises during 2018, with a number found to be non-compliant.
“Based on its evaluation and the non-conformities identified, the sub-department hosted a workshop for all local funeral undertakers to inform them of the legal requirements for conducting a funeral undertakers’ business,” Tolom wrote.
He wrote that compliance notices were issued to the noncompliant funeral parlours.
Tolom was, however, not at the meeting, with environmental health director Dr Patrick Nodwele standing in for him.
The councillors asked that the funeral parlours found to have contravened regulations be named.
In October, the city hosted a workshop for funeral undertakers, which focused mainly on certification, general requirements of funeral parlour premises, transportation of human remains, crematoriums and unclaimed bodies, fines, and different types of burial.
ACDP councillor Lance Grootboom said he wanted to know how many funeral parlours were not compliant.
“This report doesn’t help the committee in the oversight that we have to do.
“I also understand that funeral undertakers were trained but what are we doing about the undertakers who are not compliant?” Grootboom asked.
“We want to know which funeral parlours are not compliant.
“We also want to know the severity of the non-compliance as well as what has been done.
“This is important because we want to know so that if the situation is bad we need to close those parlours down.”
The committee agreed with Tolom’s recommendations that a blitz operation to funeral parlours be organised.