Defaulting tenants of the N2 Gateway project in Langa have been threatened with evictions if they can no longer afford the rent.
Prince Xhanti Sigcawu, Thubelisha's general manager for the Gateway project, issued the stern warning at a public debate at the Centre for the Book on whether the pilot project was a model or a fiasco.
"There are about 150 tenants in arrears and we will have to ask people to leave if they cannot afford rent.
He then left the podium for members of the N2 Gateway Ratepayers Association and Professor Mark Swilling of the University of Stellenbosch, who criticised the project and management of the property by Thubelisha.
The N2 Gateway Project in Langa has been plagued by delays, slow delivery, poor workmanship and dissatisfaction.
The association's Livingstone Hlawula said Sigcawu "gave himself a timeframe and deadlines that all the defects and problems in the units would have been solved on April 22".
"But nothing has happened. Some engineers who inspected the units said the structures wouldn't last for five years.
"Now we hear threats of eviction.
"That's not new ..."
Swilling argued that one of the major shortcomings of the national housing policy adopted by the government after 1994 was its failure to address the land problem.
As a result, the social integration of the poor in affluent areas remains merely a concept.
"What about bringing the poor to the city?" he asked.
Referring to the Gateway project in Langa, he said if authorities expected good results they should not treat people as objects.
"You can't treat people as things to be relocated, evicted and moved," said Swilling.
He criticised Thubelisha for not being available for tenants' complaints.
"As a result of that, trust is lost. People also become vulnerable to political exploitation," he said.
The project was lambasted as a failure and for not being a model for future developments.
People said it would have been appropriate for Housing Minister Lindiwe Sisulu to have been present so that she could clarify the issues.
The department's chief director Litha Jolobe told people to leave "the minister" out of the mess.
"These are operational matters and the department does not feature at all. Take the department and the minister (Lindiwe Sisulu) out of this," he said, before storming out of the meeting.
Most people labelled the project a failure.
"This is an ugly project marred by divisions between locals and migrants. The government has not owned up entirely to the shortcomings," said Simon Eppel.
Sigcawu acknowledged the N2 Gateway project's shortcomings, but argued that "it was a pilot project and we will learn along the way". - Cape Argus
Prince Xhanti Sigcawu, Thubelisha's general manager for the Gateway project, issued the stern warning at a public debate at the Centre for the Book on whether the pilot project was a model or a fiasco.
"There are about 150 tenants in arrears and we will have to ask people to leave if they cannot afford rent.
'You can't treat people as things to be relocated, evicted and moved'"We'll have to take drastic steps with regards to those who fail to pay rent. All the tenants were interviewed before they moved in to their units to ensure that they would be able to afford rent," said Sigcawu.
He then left the podium for members of the N2 Gateway Ratepayers Association and Professor Mark Swilling of the University of Stellenbosch, who criticised the project and management of the property by Thubelisha.
The N2 Gateway Project in Langa has been plagued by delays, slow delivery, poor workmanship and dissatisfaction.
The association's Livingstone Hlawula said Sigcawu "gave himself a timeframe and deadlines that all the defects and problems in the units would have been solved on April 22".
"But nothing has happened. Some engineers who inspected the units said the structures wouldn't last for five years.
"Now we hear threats of eviction.
"That's not new ..."
Swilling argued that one of the major shortcomings of the national housing policy adopted by the government after 1994 was its failure to address the land problem.
As a result, the social integration of the poor in affluent areas remains merely a concept.
"What about bringing the poor to the city?" he asked.
Referring to the Gateway project in Langa, he said if authorities expected good results they should not treat people as objects.
"You can't treat people as things to be relocated, evicted and moved," said Swilling.
He criticised Thubelisha for not being available for tenants' complaints.
"As a result of that, trust is lost. People also become vulnerable to political exploitation," he said.
The project was lambasted as a failure and for not being a model for future developments.
People said it would have been appropriate for Housing Minister Lindiwe Sisulu to have been present so that she could clarify the issues.
The department's chief director Litha Jolobe told people to leave "the minister" out of the mess.
"These are operational matters and the department does not feature at all. Take the department and the minister (Lindiwe Sisulu) out of this," he said, before storming out of the meeting.
Most people labelled the project a failure.
"This is an ugly project marred by divisions between locals and migrants. The government has not owned up entirely to the shortcomings," said Simon Eppel.
Sigcawu acknowledged the N2 Gateway project's shortcomings, but argued that "it was a pilot project and we will learn along the way". - Cape Argus
No comments:
Post a Comment