SEDIBENG. – Churches that illegally occupy stands in our townships will soon be a thing of the past. This was revealed by Emfuleni Local Municipality (ELM) Executive Mayor, Reverend Gift Moerane during a visit by the Gauteng MEC of Finance and e-government, Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko at the Vereeniging Civic Theatre recently. Ralehoko met different Pastors, Reverends and members of the faith based organisations where she encouraged them to work together with communities and start projects such as in agriculture, and to open NPO’s and NGO’s, and to also ask for support from her office. “You need to have an operations and programs where you plant food for the community and have feeding schemes for our children, to feed them after school and let them be taken care of.” Moerane touched the burning issue of church sites that are illegally occupying stands in the surrounding townships and he said, “I am sitting with letters of evictions for churches because some of you have illegally occupied spaces that were supposed to be used for community development programs. Some of those places were supposed to be parks for your children but you have occupied them and do not pay anything at all.”
Moerane stated that churches cannot occupy land where houses are also meant to be built. “People must refrain from taking land for themselves. We are able to rezone certain spaces, however we cannot rezone all of you. Please contact my office so that we can discuss this.”
