AfriForum has accused Gauteng Housing MMC Dan Bovu of acting irresponsibly and promoting illegal squatting.
The Forum’s Provincial Coordinator for Gauteng South, Chris Fourie said at various public meetings Bovu promised landseekers a government-owned property.
Fourie said AfriForum and property owners from Wilgespruit met with officials from the City of Johannesburg’s Department of Housing on 4 November to discuss property owners’ concerns about the planned informal settlement on portion 323 in Wilgespruit.
He said Bovu was once again conspicuously absent, instead, two officials from his department were delegated to address the meeting.
“For the last few weeks Bovu has been informing landseekers at various public meetings that portion 323 of Farm Wilgespruit is earmarked for an informal settlement and that people would be able to move onto the property in the near future,” said Fourie.
However, he added that this property is registered in the name of the Provincial Government of Gauteng and the property is also reserved for the planned PWV 5 road and Metro Boulevard.
Fourie said Sello Mothotoana from Region C’s Housing Regional Office made it very clear that the City of Joburg is not considering portion 323 to be declared as a township, but are currently investigating portions 187 and 240 of Farm Ruimsig for their planned low-cost housing projects.
He said this comes after Bovu said at a previous meeting that if people with large plots did not line up to respond to the crisis, their land would be expropriated.
Fourie said, while also alluding that the City considered environmental and road issues before declaring a township, Bovu also stated that the City might do certain things not according to the ‘book’ when responding to an emergency.
AfriForum wrote to MMC Bovu to confirm that the City has agreed that portion 323, Wilgespruit will not be declared a township. AfriForum also demanded that he communicated the City’s decision to landseekers with the next seven days.
The MMC’s spokespersn Dikeledi Mashile acknowledged receiving our email request for comment and said they were busy working on the comments.
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