The protest came after residents noticed several people apparently holding keys to the houses and moving in on Tuesday, April 12, without the communities’ knowledge, as no launch of the houses was ever conducted.
According to residents, the people they saw last week moving into the RDP houses aren’t known to the locals.
Community leader Maxwell Mdlungu said those houses are for the people of Ward 99 and not for people from other wards.
“People have been waiting for houses for ages; now that the houses are here they are not being properly allocated,” he added.
The residents allege that, among the people who wanted to move into the RDP houses are foreigners.
Another community leader, Themba Nkani, said they are tired of this situation and empty promises.
“The mayor comes here to inform us about the budget and the process of the development of houses but, when they are placing people in those houses they don’t inform us,” he said.
The community has since met with officials from the Department of Human Settlement to discuss the matter, requesting to see a list of the people who will be staying in the RPD houses.
Residents are also demanding clarity on the selection process.
They have pleaded with the department to explain how they made their decisions on who gets a house.
Ward 99’s Clr Claud Mabaso and Ward 45’s Clr Sarona Malope refused to comment on the matter.
