The recent rains – which were a welcome respite for residents after the dangerously high temperatures which threatened the water supply and caused severe bodily discomfort to many – have devastated many lives.
Delight at the much-needed rain turned to sorrow and huge losses from deaths to damages. In Setswetla informal settlement, the flood saw a child disappear into the flooded Jukskei River, and damage to valuable property and shacks washed away, which were home to the now desperate homeless residents.
The damage resembled Tsunami-like scenes of uprooted trees piled on the riverbank, with mangled corrugated iron sheets, mattresses, beds, stoves, tables and clothes, and some motor vehicles which had been washed off low-lying bridges. Extensive environmental damage was also caused with deep gulleys that have reshaped the landscape, which now requires rehabilitation.
Read: Body of 3-year-old child found along Jukskei River
Some unaffected residents – who requested anonymity – said the incident helped to revive talk on the most pressing issue in the township … housing. They said it was an opportunity for the government to provide a permanent and expeditious solution before more anticipated rains fell and cause further havoc for the remaining residents on the riverbank, below the flood line.
This as thousands of residents are on the government’s housing list, compiled 20 years ago. This, they said, has led to desperation and the construction of shacks on any available small space along the river. Some say this would have been stopped or controlled, had government fulfilled its commitment to provide the badly needed houses.
“The flooding is not new and shacks have been washed away before because of government’s lack of a conclusive and long-term strategy to stop construction along the riverbank by enforcing bylaws,” said a resident, James Sedibe, who claimed to have moved to a safer place and is on the housing waiting list.
“We lived in constant fear of floods every rainy season, as promises to relocate us were made and broken.”
Read: Jukskei River E.coli threat
The residents allege that government either has no plan or interest to provide a long-term solution and wondered why it failed to also enforce environmental and housing bylaws. This, they said, created an opportunity for some township residents to build shacks to rent out for an income, while others sold patches of land illegally to those who were desperate.
They said without any legal standing, the flood victims won’t be able to hold the shack lords accountable.
Also, the residents rebuffed a promise by the Provincial MEC for Housing, Paul Mashatile, to fence off and enforce trespass bylaws along the riverbank, saying it was an old but broken promise made whenever there was a crisis along the river.
They questioned where the victims and all other residents on the waiting list will be relocated after years of seemingly stalled attempts to acquire land for housing development. President Jacob Zuma’s promise to solve the problem through medium-term plans were equally rebuffed for the lack of specific details, save for short-term plans to accommodate the victims elsewhere, pending a long-term solution. This, as charitable organisations, individuals and government departments donated the usual emergency relief and social support to the victims.
In all, they urged for a comprehensive solution that included the flood victims in an overall housing solution to avoid creating tension and accusations of favouritism. Sedibe summed this up as a challenging, balancing act, which required a united and committed leadership of the provincial government and Joburg City Council.
