City of Johannesburg Executive Mayor, Herman Mashaba, will embark on an audit to ensure that only lawful occupants are being housed in RDP and Social housing. Illegal occupants will be evicted.
“Since entering office, I have received repeated complaints that some of these properties are currently housing unlawful occupiers, including undocumented persons, who are not permitted, by law, to occupy those properties,” Mashaba said.
He explained that the audit of persons currently housed in these properties will provide a departure point for verifying the claims made and for taking any intervention to address any unlawful conduct.
“In my view, Johannesburg Social Housing Company (JOSCHO)’s provision of housing is one of the pivotal interventions for providing residents with the dignity of a roof over their heads, with over 3 000 units at their disposal. The same goes for the provision of RDP housing.This is why we cannot allow lawlessness to undermine our efforts to provide proper housing.
“It is no secret that as a City, we face a housing crisis, one where approximately 300 000 units are required urgently if we are to make inroads into the housing backlog,” he added.
According to him, this is coupled by a monthly urban migration of 3 000 people to Johannesburg and an indication that urgent intervention is required to manage the pressures faced by the City.
“Indeed, some residents have been on the housing list since the mid-nineties. This makes the investigation into the claims made by residents all the more pressing. More importantly, should the claims prove substantially true, we need to not only understand how this happened, but also to hold those responsible to account,” he said.
“With this said, I have requested that the final report on this audit be provided to me by the end of October 2018,” he added.
Earlier this year, the City of Johannesburg launched Operation Buya Mthetho as a campaign to restore the rule of law in the city and to ensure that resident stay in safe communities.
He also mentioned that over 8 000 arrests have been made by the city’s law enforcement officials since January. This is the kind of momentum the City needs to sustain if it is indeed to fight against crime and lawlessness
Recently, Mashaba also launched the 71 Buildings Inner City Prospectus that will turn Johannesburg into a construction site. These buildings are the conduit through which Johannesburg can live up to its reputation as Africa’s melting pot. It is expected that at least 4 000 units will be developed for student accommodation, small business premises and affordable accommodation for some of the poorest residents.
“This marks a new chapter, not just for Johannesburg’s inner city, but other city development nodes such as Randburg and Roodepoort.
“I assure residents that I will leave no stone unturned in ridding this city of the criminal elements that leave our residents vulnerable. I am committed to serving our people within the budgetary constraints at our disposal,” he concluded.
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