A community project leaves residents with more questions than answers as the need for adequate housing remains concerning.
The Capex Project which was initiated in 2019 was meant to last only for a year according to statements from officials, however, three years later residents are still baffled and demand answers as to what the hold-up may be.
What was meant to be temporary accommodation is now a display of turmoil faced by residents who must battle with daily electricity problems, inadequate toilet systems, and lack of proper running water, with families squashed in make-shift yards containing shacks accommodating about four families.
“Our biggest concerns are that three households are sharing one yard, and when you live with different people who have different habits, it is difficult to co-exist. Had we had our own stands, it would have been different with privacy and everything,” Innocent Monamoloi, a concerned resident said.
Residents cited that they are becoming impatient with the multitude of promises made by ward councillors and speculated that the said allocated budget has not all been spent on the project and tenders were speculatively issued to family members.
“These government officials have squandered the money and are doing things of their own accord. The project is not aligned with provisions stipulated in the Integrated Development Planning,” Michael Chalimans, another concerned resident said, and claims that the electricity poles are ‘just for display’ as residents must resort to illegal connections due to power officials seemingly being unbothered.
The Roodepoort Record spoke to City Power, who had referred us back to Capex Projects, however, they were unavailable for comment at the time of going to print.
This, despite countless outcries to the powers reigning over the project, yet nothing has been heard back except for the fact that residents would need to move again in eight months.
Residents said that adequate toilets are also an issue as they still make use of pit toilets, which they cite pose a danger for their children who play in the area .
“After 21 years of living here, we were promised proper stands, however, we have to live like this as you can see, we have two, three families’ shacks in one yard and it is troubling because we were promised adequate accommodation,” Susan Mabatha, a frustrated resident of Lindelani said.
Another concerning issue was also highlighted during the community grievance meeting which was that of a frail, mid-sixty-year-old resident who had perished due to lack of electricity as it was alleged that his oxygen tank failed.
The Record spoke to Mafutha Gosiame, a 63-year-old resident who has been living in a rondawel (hut) for nearly 20 years now. When questioned about the status of his housing application, it was found that he has not been allocated and does not have a house, despite registering in 2013.
Another elderly woman, who is also frail and has undergone a leg amputation, Eunice Rasmeni, said that she has the same problem. Furthermore, she cited that the mobility to and from her shack to the toilet causes great strain and must rely on her niece for assistance.
ActionSA councillor, Lwanda Bini said that they will be escalating the matter to the council and will hold the MMC for Human Settlements as well as the MMC for Environmental and Infrastructure Services Department accountable ‘if they fail to give us the answers we so desperately seek’.
Pertinent questions were posed to the councillor and residents said that their concerns are that their current leadership have failed them. According to Monamoloi who is also part of the concern group of the area, several meetings were called with the ward councillor, who, they say deliberately brushed them off by citing that he was in meetings, while he was attending other meetings.
Despite the political back and forth, the Record spoke to the official Ward 127 councillor, Keke Tabane who attributed the delay with the coalition party at some point in time and said that only 40% of the said allocated budget was used, and the rest returned to the national treasury.
“From a ward councillor’s perspective, the delay arises from back and forth with the coalition party at the time, with no interest in spending the allocated money, however, I can confirm at this stage that the government is working to catch up on the lost time,” Tabane said and reiterated that layout plans have been submitted, awaiting confirmation.
The councillor also cited that community involvement is imperative and said that numerous workshops were set up to facilitate residents’ input and ideas and made mention of several progress reports tabled by a steering committee, and public meetings called, with no attendees.
“We have also tried to communicate with officials who were in charge of the first and second phase of the project, housing officials, external consultants and stakeholders, but no communication and it has been three years,” Monamoloi reiterated.
The project is currently in its third phase, however, according to residents, nothing is happening.
