Pearl Thusi calls on government to help artists

The coronavirus has not only led to the deaths of millions of people around the world, but it has also contributed to the loss of jobs for many people. 

Several sectors, including the entertainment industry, have been hard hit by the pandemic. 

Artists have suffered great loss of income as gatherings have been banned to try and reduce the spread of the coronavirus in the country. The gig economy came to a standstill under lockdown.

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Many have taken to Twitter to talk about the challenges they have been facing. 

Pearl Thusi, a media personality, has also raised her voice in calling on government to assist. 

The actress asked the Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture, Nathi Mthethwa, to intervene. 

"Dear Minister @NathiMthethwaSA , I say this in the sincerely way… artists are struggling… can you assist with actual support/ money like how you tweet us congrats and condolences," she wrote on Twitter. 

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R300m artist relief fund

Government set aside R300-million for the Presidential Employment Stimulus Package to help artists following the coronavirus pandemic, but there have been concerns about mismanagement. 

In March, Mthethwa denied the looting of millions in relief funds by the department. 

“I want to clarify this point because we’ve heard in the media that there’s R300 million that is missing. Money is not missing. People over-committed the funds that were given to them. The R300 million is still there – part of it is still there, part of it has been disbursed already and part of it is being disbursed. There’s no money that disappeared,” Mthethwa said.

READ: Mthethwa: R300m artist relief fund 'not missing, just mismanaged'

Image courtesy of Instagram/@ PearlThusi