Kenny Kunene to evict residents from buildings during his two-day stint as Joburg mayor

Transport MMC in the City of Joburg, Kenny Kunene, is planning to get his hands dirty as he leads efforts to reclaim dilapidated buildings in the metro.

Kunene, who is the deputy president of the Patriotic Alliance (PA), was appointed acting mayor for two days, while Kabelo Gwamanda is out of town on official business.

The acting mayor has already turned his focus on hijacked buildings in the city despite his short stint.

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Kunene on Sunday visited the Casa Mia building in Berea, where he was joined by the MMCs of public safety and human settlements and CEO of the Johannesburg Social Housing Company (Joshco)

He told residents that rent should only be paid to Joshco, which manages the building, and indicated that the authorities would evict people from property.

Kunene, however, said residents who are unemployed and those with children would be given temporary shelter.

Crime hotspots

Speaking to Newzroom Afrika on Monday, Kunene said the buildings in Johannesburg CBD have become crime hotspots where people get mugged.

“If you go through these buildings you will realise the state that these buildings are in… most of them actually have got dumping sites inside the buildings [and] children are being raised in these buildings,” he said.

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Kunene pointed out that some of the buildings have been declared unsafe by health officials.

“So we really have to act and make sure the safety of the people comes first. The city also suffers a great loss of revenue due to these hijacked buildings because they don’t pay for services. Electricity and water have been connected illegally,” the MMC said.

“Some of the buildings are not owned by one entity… this particular one is owned by Joshco [but] most of them are under JPC [Johannesburg Property Company]. We will be visiting some buildings again today… our intentions are very clear [and] it is to remove the people who have hijacked these buildings.”

Gwamanda allegations

Meanwhile, there has been questions around whether Gwamanda was qualified to be Joburg mayor.

A Carte Blanche episode, which aired on Sunday, has brought Gwamanda’s qualifications into the spotlight as well as the vetting process used by his party Al Jama-ah to elevate him as a candidate for the position.

He has also been accused of allegedly running a funeral insurance scam through his investment company, iThemba Lama Afrika.

The allegations were brought to light by former Joburg mayor and Democratic Allliance (DA) councillor Mpho Phalatse.

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Al Jama-ah leader Ganief Hendricks has denied the claims, saying Gwamanda was vetted by both the party and the African National Congress (ANC) before being elected.

Gwamanda was expected to address the media hosted by Al Jama-ah on Saturday to address allegations.

However, the mayor did not pitch up at the briefing because he feared for his safety.

ActionSA’s national chairperson, Michael Beaumont has since criticised the ANC and Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) backing Gwamanda.

“This is how the ANC and EFF have compromised the residents of Joburg – with mayors that have no constituency, no vision for a complex city and now who have been vetted by their mothers? Joburg deserves better,” Beaumont said in a tweet.

Gwamanda became the second person from Al Jama-ah to be elected as mayor following the resignation of the party’s Gauteng leader Thapelo Amad earlier this month.

He is the ninth executive mayor of the City of Joburg since 2016.