'No money for climate jobs'

SOUTH Africa has spent R70billion on the arms deal, R40.3billion on the 2010 Fifa World Cup and committed R1.5trillion on future electricity production. But the government will not finance climate jobs, delegates at the One Million Climate Jobs conference heard yesterday.

SA had R70bn for arms deal, R40bn for World Cup and R1.5tn on future electricity production - but no money for climate jobs

Trade unions, social movements and environmental organisations met to discuss an alliance to campaign for the creation of one million jobs, which they believe would address both the country's unemployment crisis and curb climate change.

Under the banner One Million Climate jobs, the alliance is demanding that the South African government release funds to create jobs as it works towards a greener economy.

Said the alliance in a statement: "One million climate jobs would cost R9-billion. Research shows that there is more that R250-billion available annually to finance climate jobs.

"There is also at least R200-billion available to kick-start investment in renewable energy and other climate-friendly developments."

Speakers at the conference said there was a lack of political will to do so.

"It is clear that South Africa has money. The challenge is to channel this money into providing for our most pressing needs as people and to withstand the pressure from the minerals energy complex and international lobby to expand electricity production with no regard to climate change, human wellbeing, environmental risks or resource depletion," the statement said.

The alliance proposed that the country moves towards renewable energy, which it estimates would create more than 150,000 direct and permanent jobs in the manufacture, installation, maintenance and extension of the electricity grid to link renewable energy plants.

More than 700,000 jobs would be created if the country's transport system goes green with the expansion of the rail passenger and general freight network, upgrade of existing fleets to become more energy efficient, construction of bus rapid transit lanes, manufacture of bicycles and the construction of cycle lanes, green spaces and safe pedestrian walkways.

The alliance wants government to provide "energy-efficient, good quality" low cost housing which it estimates would create 250,000 jobs.

Jane Barrett of the SA Transport and Allied Workers Union said the reality was that at least 40% of South Africans were unemployed.

"This is not an official figure. This is a real figure," Barrett said.

- Sowetan

20 die in shack fires

Ten people died and hundreds are homeless after weekend fires tore through informal settlements and razed countless homes across Cape Town.

Since Friday, the Cape Town Fire and Rescue Service had been battling major fires in Khayelitsha, Langa, Mfuleni and Lwandle, said the city’s disaster management centre.

On Sunday, residents guarded the few possessions they had saved while others got to work rebuilding after a fire in Lwandle, Strand claimed three lives and left nearly 500 people homeless.

In other weekend incidents:

* A fire in the Taiwan informal settlement in Khayelitsha destroyed 40 wooden structures, leaving 160 people homeless.

* Two people died and eight were displaced after a fire in Solomon Tshuku Road in Mfuleni.

* Two people died and 16 were left homeless after a blaze swept through Khayelitsha’s TR Section.

* One man died and 40 people were displaced in Langa.

* A fire in Langa’s Joe Slovo informal settlement on Saturday morning gutted about 20 shacks and left about 100 people homeless, reported the Weekend Argus.

* On Friday, two men died and six people were left homeless when a fire gutted three shacks in Khayelitsha’s Site C.

In Lwandle, stunned residents sat with their belongings on the pavement in Onverwacht Road after a fire destroyed their homes in the early hours.

Cape Town Fire and Rescue spokesman Theo Layne said close to 200 shacks had been gutted by the fire, which started at about 1am. He said 466 people had been displaced and three men had died.

It had taken firefighters nearly five hours to contain the blaze, which was believed to have been caused by a paraffin stove that caught alight.

Piles of corrugated iron and debris were swept aside to make way for new structures.

Andiswa Madanda, 26, stood with a baby bag, gas stove and some belongings she had rescued along with her two children.

“I was asleep and around 1am I saw the fire. I put my baby on my back and grabbed the other one by the arm to get them out. It was so windy and the fire just got bigger.”

Dimpho Lmoshoeshoe, 34, said his plans to spend Christmas in the Eastern Cape with his family were now ruined.

“I was preparing to go home... but now there’s no way out because I have no money. I spent so much already on the Christmas trip and now I will have to stay in Cape Town to rebuild my house again,” he said.

Some residents made a desperate plea to the government to fast-track the building of houses.

“This thing must come to an end. People lose their IDs, lives, everything. It’s such a disaster. People are voting every time when they say we must vote, so government must build houses for the people. It’s sad when this happens because our families don’t know what they are going to eat, wear, or where they are going to stay tonight,” said Chippa Mbala, 24.

Meanwhile, other families were left reeling, reliving the horror of losing their loves ones.

Bongani Phatsoane, 42, said that after the fire broke out he rushed to check on his brother-in-law, Thembinkosi Dose, 37.

“Everything was on fire when I got here, there was smoke everywhere... I saw his bike he used to go to work with and just felt something was wrong here,” he said.

He tried Dose’s cellphone but got his voicemail.

“I ran back home to tell my wife I couldn’t find him. I told her something wrong happened there, and then came back. The firemen stopped me when I tried to get in, they told me the body was there. I told them I don’t believe them.”

Dose’s wife, Nomsa, son, Athenkosi, and daughter, Khanyisa, live in the Eastern Cape.

Eunice Dangazele, 33, lost her brother, Bulelani Dangazele, 26.

“We got the call from one of the neighbours that he had burnt to death... ” she said.

At the time of going to press the disaster management centre was unable to confirm the details of those who had died

- Cape Argus

10 die as fires blaze through Cape settlements

Ten people were killed and close to 2,000 people were displaced in five separate fires across the Western Cape.

Disaster officials said least 23 homes were destroyed in fires in Du Noon, Strand, Wallacedene, Khayelitsha and Langa.

All five fires occurred between Sunday night and Monday morning.

In the most recent incident, three people died when their shack caught alight in Du Doon.

Disaster Management's Wilfred Solomons Johannes said, “Ten people lost their lives in fires across the City of Cape Town. Disaster Management appeals to residents to exercise caution when dealing with fires and extinguish them when they go to bed.”

It is understood that several structures were damaged in the Du Noon blaze while other settlements assess the damage.

- Eyewitness News

6 die in Cape Peninsula shack fires

Western Cape authorities are adamant they are doing their utmost to raise awareness about the dangers of fire in homes, especially informal settlements.

At least six people died in separate shack fires in the Cape Peninsula this past weekend.

In one blaze in Lwandle near Strand, about 200 shacks were gutted, leaving dozens of residents homeless.

Western Cape Social Development MEC Albert Fritz said they are schooling communities on fire safety.

“One of our projects, we specifically look at issues around fire prevention. It is important. That is where we spread the news. To do everything in people’s power to prevent fires,” he said.

Meanwhile, Cape Town firefighters said they are still investigating the cause of a fire on a ship in Table Bay Harbour.

The fire apparently started in the hold of the Chinese vessel on Friday.

- Eyewitness News

Jobs promise gives SA green fever

SOUTH Africa is hoping to capitalise on a "green revolution" that could boost the economy and generate hundreds of thousands of jobs within 10 years.

Key government, civil society and business players at the COP17 climate talks on Friday night were all pushing for the country's transition towards a more eco-friendly and sustainable economy.

Renewable sources of energy and materials form the basis of a green economy, in which industries commit to limiting their harmful carbon emissions.

South Africa currently produces more than 90% of its electricity from coal-fired power stations and accounts for just over 1% of man-made greenhouse gases in the world.

The government, through its "green" tax system, collected nearly R700-million over the past year from levies and taxes on plastic bags, fuel, electricity, vehicle emissions and air travel.

The taxes are aimed at reducing the negative impact on the environment.

Now the government is intensifying plans to move to a low-carbon economy within the next decade, with the recent signing of the national green economy accord in Pretoria.

The accord binds government, business and labour to creating 300000 jobs by building a green industrial base in South Africa.

Experts believe the new accord has the potential to significantly change the country's current carbon and capital-intensive economic framework.

Economic Development Minister Ebrahim Patel said this week that South Africa had to make the move towards a green economy as quickly as possible.

"As a considerable emitter of greenhouse gases, South Africa faces the challenge of transitioning to a less carbon-intensive growth trajectory without delay."

At a round-table discussion hosted by the Financial Times and Brand SA on Friday, Environment Minister Edna Molewa said she welcomed South Africa's "confident move into a green economy", with the creation of jobs in the next 10 years.

"At COP18 we will stand up proud and say to the world, 'yes, we are doing our bit'," Molewa said.

"We have stressed that there will be creation of jobs. This is not just an effort that is jobless, we will be getting into sustainable development, that talks to our people, our economy and takes care of our environment."

According to a "green jobs" report released on Friday, the largest contribution to the job market would come from natural resource management "due to the rich endowment that SA has in terms of solar and wind power".

The report - compiled by the Industrial Development Council and the Development Bank of South Africa - estimates that as many as 500000 jobs could be created in a greener economy.

"As more and more businesses, households and the public sector begin to embrace green technologies and practices, the potential exists to create a sustainable number of new job opportunities and to facilitate reskilling," the report said.

It showed that other jobs would come from green building activities, recycling, the conversion of waste to energy, the production of batteries for electric vehicles, soil and land management and renewable energy generation.

Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan said South Africa needed to find more effective economic models to address the issue of climate change.

"We must convert opportunities into actuality," he said. "What we have witnessed now as a result of the climate crisis is the inability of the current economic models to create jobs ... Greening the economy is a huge opportunity."

Cosatu is backing the move towards a greener economy.

Said its spokesman Patrick Craven: "In the long run it is essential for the survival of the planet, that we have an economy which is not dependent on the burning of fossil fuels.

"Of course some jobs will be lost in some sectors. We believe that many, if not more, could be created in other sectors."

- Timeslive

3 die in shack fire

Two men died in a fire that destroyed three shacks in Khayelitsha, outside Cape Town on Friday morning.

City of Cape Town disaster management spokesman Wilfred Solomons said the fire started at 2.30am at Site C in Gubayo Street.

“The blaze destroyed three shacks, leaving six people displaced. In the fire two adult males were burnt beyond recognition.”

The city had arranged humanitarian relief for the families affected by the fire. Solomons said the cause of the fire was to be determined. – Sapa

Protestors burn tyres in housing protest, demand meeting with MEC

An angry crowd of about 200 residents blocked Pama Road in Khayelitsha Site B with burning tyres, rocks and rubbish yesterday morning in protest against a lack of housing opportunities.

The residents, who came from S-informal settlement disrupted traffic between the major thoroughfare of Lansdowne Road and Pama road from about 4am until police arrived shortly before 5.30am.

Police used a water cannon to disperse the protestors and six people were arrested and charged with public violence.

“I have been living in this place for more than 20 years. The place is not safe, it’s dirty, my house is leaking, there are no toilets, I’m using my bucket to relieve my self. I was once robbed on my way from the stand pipe taps because they far from our homes. Government must build us house I don’t want to die here,” said Protesting resident Nomisile Gawulani, 71.

S informal settlement residents’ committee chairperson Thando Mpengezi said the community was tired of “empty promises” from government.

He said S informal settlement, which had 460 shacks, was over crowded.

“We want the Human Settlement MEC Bonginkosi Madikizela to come and see where we stay. This place is very dirty. We don’t get any service delivery here. The previous ward councillor promised to get us houses but nothing has happened.”

Mpengezi said the community would protest again until they got Madikizela’s attention.

Madikizela’s spokesperson Bruce Oom said the Department was aware of the protest.

However, he said Madikizela was in Brazil this week and would not be able to accommodate the protestors’ demands for him to meet them with the six-hour timeframe they provided.

“The point must be made that the Department supports the right for people to voice their opinions, but does not support any threats of violence in order to make sure demands are met,” said Oom.

Provincial police spokesperson Frederick Van Wyk said about 200 people started protesting and burning tyres early yesterday morning.

He said the incident happened on the corner of Pama and Mew Way Roads and the corner of Pama and Kusasa Roads in Khayelitsha’s Lingelethu-West Area.

Van Wyk said the protestors dispersed peacefully by 8.30 am and no shots were fired but they returned two hours later and again started to burn tyres and throw stones at passing vehicles.

Police then blocked the roads off and used a water cannon and two stun grenades to disperse the protestors.

He said six protestors were arrested and detained at the Lingelethu West police station. “POPS members and Metro Police are monitoring and patrolling the area. The situation is under control.”

City of Cape Town Mayoral Committee member for Human Settlements, Ernest Sonnenberg, said he was aware of the protest and would be attending a community meeting tonight (Tuesday).

Sonnenberg said the S-informal Settlement, which consisted of 565 dwellings, was not identified for current housing projects or formal upgrading but the city would “continue to deliver basic services in the area”

- Westcapenews

Gov Funds██ █ ████ ███ Cannabis (sic ████) research

The South African government will ██ █ ████ ███ █████ ████ ████ today.

01/11/1995 ████ ███ Others ARC – Rustenberg Tobacco & Cotton Research Institute Published Research Response of hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) varieties to conditions in Northwest Province, South Africa Cost: ████ ███

13/09/1998 SAHC ████ ███heim Agriculture, CSIR, ARC Cost: R25 Million Tobacco & Cotton Research Institute ████

22/06/2000 Max Mamase Minister Agriculture EC ████ ███ corruption ████ ███ farmers in the province to be granted a special license by year's end that would allow them to grow hemp commercially. Cost: ████████

10/05/2001 HOH HPA ████ ███ DR BEN NGUBANE Minister DASCT CSIR House of Hemp SA (Ltd) launches its first retail outlet in Gandhi Square, Johannesburg Key stakeholders in the national hemp project include various government departments (DACST, Agriculture, Health, Trade & Industry, Environmental Affairs & Tourism); provincial and national research institutions (CSIR, ARC-IIC, MRC); private sector (Hooked on Hemp, SAHC); development agencies (ECSECC, CIMEC); rural communities (Qamata, Libode, Mtiza, Idutywa, Maluti) and tertiary institutions (████, ████, ████, ████, ████), amongst others. Cost: ████ ███

08/03/2002 ████ ███ Dr Joubert ARC-IIC NW Province Institute for Industrial Crops ████████

23/09/2005 Sunshine ████ ███, ████ ███ ARC-IIC, CSIR Dhone Agricultural Development Institute Published Research Performance of four European hemp cultivars cultivated under different agronomic experimental conditions in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa

Cost: ████ ███

03/03/2008 Sunshine ████ ███ CSIR Cost: multi-billion-rand ████████ ███ THE Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) is piloting a multi-billion-rand agri-business project that could encourage Eastern Cape farmers to grow hemp and flax for the textile industry.

31/03/2008 ████-███ ████ Former Advisor Agriculture Cost: R65 Million ████ ███ ARC, Agriculture, Health

19/10/2009 ████ ███ Minister Social Development R20 Million Judging by the long list of government departments and agencies involved in this project, Launch of The Hemp Project, Maponya Mall, Soweto DBSA, CSIR, ARC, Departments of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Department of Trade and Industry.

14/10/2010 Sunshine ████ ███ CSIR Cost: multi-billion-rand Pictures

01/01/2010 - 31/12/2013 ███ 4 licenses ███████████ 10/10/2012 Click to Hear ~ Hemp in South Africa - 567 Cape Talk Calls Government█████████████████ ███████████████ ██████████

Some NEC members are snakes - Gwede

ANC secretary-general Gwede Mantashe has called party leaders who leak confidential information to the media snakes.

"Leaders who go on public platforms to criticise the ANC are like a snake that bites itself to try and heal itself," Mantashe said.

Addressing journalists at Luthuli House yesterday, Mantashe said the NEC meeting which was held at the weekend also raised serious concerns about media leakages.

'This tendency was strongly criticised as it reduced national leaders of the ANC to being sources of journalists. Concern was also raised on the conduct of some members and leaders of the ANC who use public platforms to attack the organisation.

"If, as a leader, you leak confidential information you are like an agent that has infiltrated the party," he said.

Mantashe did not mention names of ANC leaders who had criticised the party publicly, but there is speculation that he could have been referring to Minister of Human Settlements Tokyo Sexwale and Winnie Madikizela-Mandela.

Sexwale and Madikizela-Mandela were both witnesses in the disciplinary case of ANC Youth League (ANCYL) president Julius Malema, and have on several occasions spoken against the party's decision to charge Malema and the league. Mantashe said the NEC meeting did not discuss the ANCYL nor its president Malema.

He said the ANC would only raise issues affecting the ANCYL during a bilateral meeting with the league.

Mantashe said the ANC in Parliament would decide on the action that would be taken against party members who abstained or voted against the information bill last week. ANC MPs Gloria Bosman and Ben Turok did not vote for the bill.

'The conduct of members acting as free agents is not an option. Public representatives of the ANC hold public office at the instance of the ANC," he said.

He said members of the ANC were bound by policy directives of the party and not their individual thoughts.

'The bill is not a media bill, it is a security bill. It is about peddlers of information and not about whistle blowers.

"There are processes the ANC will follow in Parliament. I cannot pre-empt," Mantashe said.

He said research on nationalisation of mines had been completed but the party had referred the report back for simplification before it could be distributed to ANC structures for debate.

He said ANC sub-committees were assessed and found to be functional.

- Sowetan

City vows to act after deadly fires

A special task team will be set up to curb fires this festive season following a series of shack fires at the weekend which left one man dead and 150 people displaced, the city’s Disaster Risk Management Centre has said.

Centre spokesman Wilfred Solomons-Johannes said the team would intensify efforts to raise awareness in communities most at risk.

Food parcels, blankets and building starter kits were distributed to the victims yesterday after 13 fires destroyed homes across the city.

Solomons-Johannes said the authorities were still to investigate the causes of the fires.

On Sunday, 19 shacks and six backyard dwellings were gutted by five separate fires in Gugulethu, the Freedom Farm informal settlement in Belhar, Netreg, Kalkfontein and Nyanga.

Solomons-Johannes said 97 people had been displaced by those fires.

On Friday three shacks were razed in Gugulethu leaving three people homeless.

Two homes were also gutted by a fire in Khayelitsha’s BM section, leaving 16 people homeless, while another fire destroyed a shack in the Sweet Home informal settlement.

During the early hours of Saturday, five shacks burnt down in the Witsand informal settlement in Atlantis, which left six people without homes. One of the victims, 67-year-old Harold Fransman, died after sustaining serious burn wounds, said Solomons-Johannes.

During two other incidents, 16 people were left homeless when a fire destroyed four shacks in Church Circle in Vrygond, Muizenberg, and a backyard dwelling at 65 Junker Road in The Hague, Delft, was gutted.

Another 10 people were displaced by fires which burnt down three shacks in the Barcelona informal settlement in Gugulethu as well as a shack in Pumlani Village, Lotus River.

“The city’s Disaster Risk Management Centre encourages residents to be fire-safe when working with open flames. When going to bed, residents should isolate electrical devices and extinguish gas burners, candles, lamps and paraffin stoves to prevent fires,” he added.

Meanwhile, another 16 people were left homeless in Witsand after a large tree was uprooted by gale-force winds, damaging their homes.

The incident occurred on Saturday following a warning issued by the SA Weather Service of strong south-easterly winds on the Peninsula.

Solomons-Johannes said that on Saturday evening the tree had fallen on to four shacks, damaging them.

He said 16 people had been displaced but no one had been injured. A response team had helped to remove the tree.

Solomons-Johannes said the families had been given building starter kits, food, clothing and blankets.

- Cape Argus

Low-cost housing boom

THE affordable housing sector is the future lifeblood of the market. Major banks are now waking up to this reality and focusing on this segment of the housing market.

The affordable housing bracket caters for households with a monthly income from R8,000 to R15,733.

These usually also get a full loan for their bond and can typically afford a house of up to R500,000.

Currently the South African bond market is sitting at more than R900billion and Standard Bank has a good share with about R250-billion of the market.

The bank claims to be the leading financier of the affordable housing sector, with bonds to the value of R10.7-billion.

The bank is housing about 10,000 families.

"Of the bank's 9million clients, 7million fall in this category. Keep in mind that many of these clients are young people," said Nicholas Nkosi, director for affordable housing at Standard Bank.

He said this sector of the market was most active right now.

"Two years ago an affordable house was R250,000.

At present, the going price for a house is R320,000.

Funeka Ntombela, director of home loans at Standard Bank, said: "The demand is there. Capacity is the issue so we are working with developers. Developers are very keen and many are almost exclusively focusing on affordable housing.

"Land is an issue, though. To find suitable land and bulk infrastructure developers have to do the bulk infrastructure themselves - sewage pipes, roads, storm water drainage - that pushes the price up."

Ntombela said banks assessed developers and have in the past rejected many developments because they are not satisfied with the quality of the material or cost of development and therefore price of the house among other factors.

She said clients should, however, do their own quality assurance.

Ntombela said the R1-billion insurance for the gap market - households with an income of less than R8,000 - referred to by Minister of Human Settlements Tokyo Sexwale, was still under discussion.

- Sowetan

One killed, 150 homeless after Cape Town fires

A man was killed and 150 people were left homeless in separate shack fires across Cape Town, the city said on Sunday.

Spokesman Wilfred Solomons-Johannes said 13 fires broke out in different areas on the weekend.

He said a 67-year-old man died after he sustained serious burn injuries when his shack in Atlantis caught fire.

A total of 150 people were left homeless in areas including Gugulethu, Atlantis, Phillipi and Delft.

- Sapa

SA's green economy could create 460,000 jobs

Greening South Africa's economy could create 460,000 new jobs by 2025, according to a report released on Friday.

"The experience of several advanced and emerging countries that have been adopting green initiatives point towards an extraordinary opportunity for South Africa as it pursues a job-rich new growth path," Economic Development Minister Ebrahim Patel said at the launch of the report in Johannesburg.

The green jobs report was compiled by the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), Development Bank of South Africa (DBSA), and Trade and Industrial Policy Strategies (Tips).

The report estimates that 98,000 new jobs could be created in the short-term and around 255,000 in the medium term.

Long-term, 462,000 employment opportunities could be created in the formal economy.

The greening of the economy could create jobs in the primary, secondary, and tertiary sectors.

"As a considerable emitter of greenhouse gases, South Africa faces the challenge of transitioning to a less carbon-intensive growth trajectory without delay," Patel was reported as saying in a statement issued by the IDC and DBSA.

"In short, our challenge is to use less carbons and more people in our economic growth."

Employment challenges
Head of IDC's research and information department and co-author of the report, Jorge Maia, said a greening economy should result in expanded productive capacity.

"This should be progressively supported by investment activity and result in considerable employment creation ... the momentum provided by the greening of an economy is being increasingly exploited in countries such as the United States of America, the United Kingdom, China, and Brazil, among many others, especially in light of the employment challenges faced at national level."

The DBSA's divisional executive of strategic operations, David Jarvis, said the green economy was complex, new, diverse, and fast-evolving.

"South Africa will be dealing with the progressive and simultaneous introduction of technologies that are being improved, developed, or commercialised ... the economic merit of many of these technologies may only be fully established in years to come, opening up opportunities for the establishment of infant industries over time, but placing a requirement on countries to invest now to realise any first-mover advantages," he said.

The report's research team looked at four broad types of activities that could create jobs.

These are energy generation, energy and resource efficiency, emissions and pollution mitigation, and natural resource management.

South Africa's new growth path aims to create five million jobs by 2020, while its national development plan proposes creating 11-million jobs by 2030.

- Sapa

Stepped up security irks protesters

People visiting Cape Town’s Civic Centre without proof of appointments were furious when they were prevented from entering the area by security guards.

From early morning, visitors were turned away as a result of an illegal protest staged by 15 leaders of informal settlements and backyarders across Cape Town.

The rainy and windy weather would not stop Tafelsig Backyarders Association, Abahlali BaseMjondolo, Mitchells Plain Backyarders, Kensington Backyarders Association and the Western Cape Anti-Eviction Campaign from gathering outside the Civic Centre yesterday.

There was a heavy security presence with guards and Metro police officials making sure no-one entered the building.

The 15 people who attended, contrary to the numbers expected by the city and the media, made their presence felt as onlookers stopped for a glimpse of what was happening.

The 15 leaders carrying placards formed a line and blocked motorists from passing through Hertzog Boulevard, though some motorists forced their way through. According to the organisers, the protests follow a number of attempts to secure an open public meeting with the mayor, Patricia de Lille.

Mzonke Poni, coordinator for Abahlali BaseMjondolo said his organisation had in the past asked the mayor to address public meetings about issues that affect informal settlements and backyarders such as floods, shack fires, water cutoffs and the role of law enforcement.

He said yesterday’s protest was one of a number of protests they would embark on until De Lille addresses issues affecting them.

“Should the mayor fail to meet with us then we will be left with no option but to go back to our members and communities,” he said, adding that the only way forward was to make Cape Town’s informal settlements ungovernable.

He said today they would be protesting outside the human settlement department and tomorrow outside Premier Helen Zille’s office.

Charles Abrahams, from Mitchells Plain Backyarders Association, said De Lille “failed to respond to memorandums submitted previously and should she not respond to our demands we will be left we no choice but to make the city ungovernable.

“Anything will be possible and might have a huge economic impact,” said Abrahams.

Lwandiso Stofile, from De Lille’s office, said if the community wanted to engage with De Lille they were free to do so, but they needed to follow the right channels and procedures. “It is not going to help if we continue the way we do, because we have always opened the door for engagements,” said Stofile. – WCN