Temporary shelter for families whose shacks were demolished in Alex

Gauteng's human settlements department will erect temporary structures to accommodate residents whose shacks were demolished in Alexandra.

The City of Johannesburg demolished about 80 shacks built on illegally occupied land there on Friday.

“We are going to build temporary structures where the 80 families will be accommodated for now, then look for suitable land where we can place them while we are building more than 30 mega human settlements that will ensure that Gauteng’s housing backlog is alleviated,” said human settlements MEC Lebohang Maile.

Maile said government was working with disaster management, NGOs, and churches to provide blankets, food and accommodation for affected residents.

He said while it was illegal to occupy land without following proper procedures, the demolitions should not have been carried out without proper engagement to find alternative accommodation for the residents.

“We have never instructed anybody to demolish those homes on Friday. We would have never intentionally robbed our people of their homes without seeking temporary accommodation for them,” said Maile.

Maile added that government was aware that the structures were erected on land unsuitable for accommodation.