Residents who illegally occupy an incomplete housing project in KwaDukuza, KwaZulu-Natal, have refused to vacate the apartments despite being deemed unsafe, saying they have been waiting more than 13 years for its completion.
Last week, KZN premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube told the residents to vacate the flats immediately or face eviction, to allow the human settlements department to complete the project without any further delays.
Residents told TimesLIVE Premium that Dube-Ncube’s order, would not make them leave.
One of the residents, who asked not to be named for fear of being victimised, said after registering to be a beneficiary in 2010, she did not anticipate waiting “this long” to be allocated houses.
She said they were informed that the project would be completed in 2013.
“We have waited enough, and we are tired. In 2013, the first group was already moving into some buildings. After waiting for so many years and seeing no progress, we decided to move in because it was clear that the wait would be forever. There is a building that has yet to be completed, but people decided to buy their own material to complete the flats and moved in.
“We don’t have anywhere to go now, and we are not moving out. If they force me out, they must provide me with an alternative place to stay while they finish these flats. These flats are our homes now,” said a resident.
In 2010, the provincial department launched a multimillion-rand pilot housing project in Pietermaritzburg and KwaDukuza, where they planned to build mixed-income flats.
However, the project came to a standstill a year later after suspicions of fraud and corruption allegedly committed by the contractor. Hundreds of locals who were on the beneficiary list waited in limbo with hopes the matter would be resolved soon and houses would be provided as promised.
Fed-up residents decided to move into the incomplete flats. While some are still being held up by scaffolding, others are illegally connected to water and electricity.
Dube-Ncube had said the flats were not fit for human habitation and prone to structural collapse in the event of a disaster.
She added that the preliminary risk assessments concluded that further occupation could result in the possible collapse of some units.
Dube-Ncube said the department of human settlements was going to open criminal cases against the illegal occupants should they not heed the call to vacate during the stipulated period.
She said state agencies such as the SAPS, National Prosecuting Authority and provincial Treasury would be consulted during this period.
Meanwhile, another aggrieved resident, said the Dube-Ncube’s statement was inhumane and irrational.
“It’s not like we are random people or vagrants who decided to invade this flat. We’re the rightful beneficiaries and have been waiting since 2010 to be allocated. My son was 10 years old when I registered for housing, now he is 23. We will fight with our lives if need be, and they must kill us all if they want to.
“The premier and department should be ashamed of themselves. They are the ones that have allowed these buildings to rot. They must give us proper paperwork so that we will pay the municipality rates and leave us in peace,” he said.
The residents said they found Dube-Ncube’s remarks shocking after the alleged recent visit of the KZN MEC for human settlements and public works, Sipho “KK” Nkosi, who “promised” to find a resolution in three weeks.
“They should focus on recovering the stolen funds rather than fighting with us. There are buildings that should have been completed a long time ago, yet their structures are abandoned. There are building materials that were left to rot, and criminals helped themselves. Bear in mind, it’s the taxpayers’ money that is wasted in such a manner. Had they completed the project on time and not stolen money, we wouldn’t be here today. We are here because of government officials’ corruption,” said another resident.
The residents claim that local ward councillor Dolly Govender was involved in a syndicate that was allegedly renting out some units to people from outside the area.
Govender refused to comment on the matter and directed the publication to the KwaDukuza local municipality.
Municipality spokesperson Sipho Mkhize said the matter was being dealt with at a provincial level as the project belonged to the department of human settlements.
Mkhize said they were, however, concerned about people moving into the flats before they pass the safety test.
He said in 2020 they called for an independent investigation into the mismanagement of the project’s funds, and three years later, the investigation reports are yet to be finalised.
Human settlements spokesperson Mlungisi Khumalo refused to respond to the list of questions sent to him and said the department was yet to finalise their investigation and once finalised, they will be able to comment on the matter.
Khumalo said they share Dube-Ncube’s view that illegal occupants must vacate the flats.
“We still stand by premier’s statement and we are not going to respond to any questions until the MEC revisits the place and takes the next step. We will conclude our investigation and the MEC has committed to ensuring that the project is completed accordingly,” said Khumalo.
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