Project to improve Thulasiwe afoot, but all is not yet clear

They claim the farmer instructed them to remain on the area where he had built them houses.

April 29, 2019

Zaid Khumalo 2 minutes read

Residents also fear they will be forced to leave their dead loved ones behind if the Ekurhuleni Metro relocates them elsewhere. A descendant of the original farm labourers, Hlupho Motaung (left), with two other local residents, Khabonina Nkosi, (middle) and Zodwa Nene, visit the local cemetery where their ancestors are buried.

The Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality has, in a Q&A format, responded to an inquiry about the fate of the community of Thulasizwe, a semi-rural settlement east of Kathorus.

This follows an article which appeared in the April 10 edition of Kathorus MAIL. In the article, the community of Thulasizwe raised their fears of living under the threat of eviction from the only place many of them have known as their home. Most of the residents are second and third generation descendants of farm labourers of the original farm known as Tambokiesfontein in the late 1800s.

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Thank you for highlighting Thulasizwe’s plight

Some residents told Kathorus MAIL that they have been threatened under threat of eviction by various Ekurhuleni Municipality ward councillors ever since the farm was abandoned by its white owner in 1990.

Since then, the community of Thulasizwe have grown in numbers and so have their need for the provision of communal services to sustain them.

Running water and sanitation remain the second biggest problems affecting the residents, after housing. The majority of the homes are old, many propped up with corrugated iron and plastic.

Caught up in this lack of new development, the community fear of being relocated and resettled in RDP houses. Their hope, though, is to see the area developed with new houses and a proper infrastructure built to improve their lives.

In a Q&A interview with Metro, the following points were elicited:MAIL: What is the future of this informal housing complex?

Metro: The community is earmarked to benefit from the Zwartkoppies Project which is still at its planning

stage.

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Eviction stare the people of Thulasizwe in the eye

MAIL: Is the Metro planning to relocate these families?

Metro: The City of Ekurhuleni, in the short-term, does not have immediate plans to relocate the community. However, there is a private project undertaken by Tambo Springs Development Company (TSDC) which is the current owner of the farm. The company has for the past seven years been working towards the development of Tambo Springs Inland Port. According to the company, the community of Thulasizwe will be directly impacted and affected by the project.

MAIL: How soon can they expect to be moved from where they are?

Metro: The movement of the community is being led by TSDC) and they are currently engaging with CoE (City of Ekurhuleni) with a view to getting the project integrated onto the CoE Housing Development Programme.

MAIL: If not, what is going to happen to the families living on the settlement ?

Metro: The outcomes of the engagement between CoE and TSDC will determine the way forward on the settlement of the community. In the meantime, CoE is coordinating the provision of basic services in order to make the area habitable.