Some disgruntled Jika Joe shack dwellers in Pietermaritzburg slammed the handover of 404 residential units on Monday, accusing government of misleading them into thinking they too would have homes.
Informal settlement resident Sindisiwe Shezi said they should have been allowed to occupy the housing despite not being able to afford the nominal rental of R500.
Amid protest action on Monday morning, there have been threats “to storm” the newly occupied flats.
“We fully understand that these flats are for those who are able to pay rent. But where does this leave us?” said Ngcobo.
He said they were upset about the selection of beneficiaries — also residents at Jika Joe.
Human settlements MEC Sipho Nkosi said the initiative would be a big help to community members, who will now live closer to work.
“We will soon be demolishing a portion of the existing Jika Joe settlement to make way for phase 2 of the project,” said Nkosi.
“Our people are no longer going to perish as a result of fires and flooding. We hope that most people will have some shelter before the rainy season begins.”
The project, less than 3km from the CBD, is expected to breathe new life into the capital city.
It has often been plagued by protests by informal settlement dwellers, who have blocked roads and burnt tyres.
Msunduzi mayor Mzi Thebolla said the move would go a long way towards addressing apartheid spatial planning.
“Today we have broken that. This is part of our project of clearing the slums. We are very excited and we are looking forward to implementing phase 1B. This is also offering people their basic human rights,” said Thebolla.
He said it was worrying that some people would resort to destroying the infrastructure to have their voices heard.
“Tomorrow they will be the same people who would lament the poor service delivery.”
He will be working with police to ensure those who have occupied the flats are safe.
“Until there is 100% occupancy here we will ensure that everyone is kept safe. During the two-year construction of the flats we had ensured that the project was not marred by criminality,” said Thebolla.
He said while the housing project is a step in the right direction, the municipality faced a mammoth task coping with rapid urbanisation.
Pensioner Sylvia Ndlela, who has moved into the housing unit with her four grandchildren and daughter, said her dignity has been restored.
“I am very happy for this. This will help me because I will now be safe from flooding,” said Ndlela.
Ward councillor Suraya Reddy welcomed the initiative, saying it is a much-needed investment.
She voiced concern about the “lack of transparent beneficiary lists”, saying she had often raised this during council meetings. She said beneficiaries should only be from the informal settlement and not from anywhere else.
TimesLIVE
Support independent journalism by subscribing to the Sunday Times. Just R20 for the first month.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.