'Delft residents on their own'

Thubelisha Homes, the company responsible for the N2 Gateway housing project, has appealed to the City of Cape Town to provide basic services for nearly 5,000 families living in temporary accommodation in Delft and surrounding areas.

But the city said it only has a contract to provide services for the first three temporary relocation areas it set up with Thubelisha.

Thubelisha regional manager Xhanti Sigcawu said conditions in the temporary relocation areas were so dire that the housing agent was forced to send in its own team to clean up the streets.

He said the city had failed to main the sewerage systems in the area and refuse was not collected for weeks.

This was a "dereliction of the constitutional and legislative obligations of local government", said Sigcawu.

The relocation areas were supposed to be provided with basic services while waiting for permanent homes in the national government's N2 Gateway housing development.

But the city spokesperson, Charles Cooper, said the council's water and sanitation department had a contractor with a cleaning unit on site in Delft to clean all sewer blockages. A daily cleaning contractor was also on site.

Cooper said the poor workmanship and materials used in the construction of the ablution blocks had added to the high maintenance costs. "This will be the second time in two months that the sewer lines will be cleaned at a cost of about R25 000."

City officials said on Wednesday the original agreement be-tween Thubelisha and the city only applies to Delft temporary relocation areas one, two and three.

For any sites established after these, the responsibility for management and maintenance lies with Thubelisha.

"The city was not party to the Delft phase 4 site developed by Thubelisha."

The city was stripped of all responsibility for the N2 Gateway project in June 2006, following clashes between the municipality and the national government about the overrun costs of the project and other allegations of mismanagement.

Cooper confirmed that solid waste does a weekly bin collection in all formal areas, including Delft, and a black bag collection in informal areas.

"The city does not sweep suburban streets. We rely on residents to assist us by not littering or dumping, using the bins provided and cleaning the street in front of their property," said Cooper.

But Sigcawu said: "It is embarrassing to hear that (Cape Town Mayor Helen) Zille has won the World Mayor award, but back home the streets are dirty."

Sigcawu said Thubelisha did not have the budget for its own cleaning service. However, if the city did not pull its weight with the provision of essential services, the Section 21 company would have to appoint its own cleaning service.

- Cape Times

The poor must be part of anti-poverty drive: Mbete

Mbete says the success of an anti-poverty strategy will rely on its inclusion of the poor

Deputy President Baleka Mbete says the success of an anti-poverty strategy for South Africa will be judged on its ability to ensure that poor people are part of the process of drawing it up. She was speaking during a dialogue at the Union Buildings between government, business, labour and civil society organisations.

The debate is aimed at paving the way for the adoption and implementation of a co-ordinated, multi-sectoral strategy to fight poverty in the country. Poor people still generally receive poorer quality services, often in ways that undermine their ability to take advantage of economic policies.

Addressing the launch, Mbete said at the centre of poverty eradication is the creation of economic opportunities and enabling or empowering communities and individuals to access these opportunities. However, she said government cannot do it alone. She called on other structures, including Non-Government organisations (NGOs) and other community-based organisations to bring poverty into the mainstream of economic structures.

Strategy could be a success
The minister in the Presidency, Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, echoed her sentiments as well. She said there’s a need to reverse the poverty situation that many young people are likely to inherit from their parents. Namhla Mniki from the African Monitor is of the view that if business partnerships, civil society and government are to effectively work together, the strategy could be a success.

But ineffective institutions are some of the challenges that government needs to address. Among those that need attention are some local government structures that are characterised by red tape, corruption and inefficiency.

- SABC

Cape shack fire leaves 60 people homeless

About 60 people have been left homeless after their shacks burnt down earlier this morning along the N2 in the Western Cape. Cape Town Fire Rescue Services says 18 shacks were destroyed by flames that raged through Europa Informal Settlement near Nyanga. The cause of the fire is not known.

Emergency Fire Services have managed to extinguish the fire. The City of Cape Town's Disaster Management spokesperson, Wilfred Johannes-Solomons says no one was hurt. Johannes-Solomons says the police will launch an investigation into the incident. Disaster management will provide the necessary disaster relief to the affected community as well as building material this morning.

On Monday three people died in two separate shack fires at New Brighton in Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape. Four adjoining shacks were also destroyed by the fires. In the first incident and elderly couple burnt to death. The man was 88-years-old and the woman 68.

- SABC

UN-HABITAT: State of the World’s Cities report

Mrs. Anna Tibaijuka, Executive Director of UN-HABITAT said that the crisis should be viewed as a “housing finance crisis” in which the poorest of poor were left to fend for themselves.

"Clearly you cannot have a harmonious society if people are not secure in their homes," she told reporters at news conference to launch of the State of the World's Cities 2008/2009 , a flagship report published every two years by the UN agency.

"The financial crisis we are facing today cannot be seen as an event -- it is a process that has been building up over time and this process now has bust." She said governments had to provide cheaper homes for those on lower incomes because the supply of affordable housing could not be left entirely to the market.

The UN-HABITAT said income distribution (measured through Gini coefficient levels) varies considerably among less-developed regions with the divide most noticeable in African and Latin American cities. In both regions, the gulf is often extreme compared to Europe and Asia, where urban inequality levels are relatively low.

South African cities top the list of the world’s most unequal cities,
followed by Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Guatemala and Mexico. Urban inequalities in this highly unequal region are not only increasing, but are becoming more entrenched, which suggests that failures in wealth distribution are largely the result of structural or systemic flaws.

Mrs. Tibaijuka said the proportion of people living in slum conditions in wealthy countries could rise because of the credit crunch. With 1 billion people already living in slums at the dawn of the new urban era, the report warned of unrest should governments fail to tackle the urban poverty crisis more seriously.

"I would not be surprised that, if we did another global survey on people living in slum conditions without security of tenure, this number will have increased in developed countries as a result of this crisis," she said referring to a recipe for riots and social upheaval to which the financial turmoil might lead.

"I am not surprised that world leaders are now seizing on the matter because without leadership, without governance, it is a clear test of social tensions," she said.

Background - Not so harmonious cities

In many cities around the world, wealth and poverty coexist in close proximity: rich, well-serviced neighbourhoods and gated residential communities are often situated near dense inner-city or peri-urban slum communities that lack even the most basic of services. Here the expert in charge of UN-HABITAT’s State of the World’s Cities report, Eduardo Lopez Moreno, explains the report’s latest research on a divide so prominently marked by electrified fences and high walls often patrolled by armed private security companies with killer dogs.

Income distribution (measured through Gini coefficient levels) varies considerably among less-developed regions with the divide most noticeable in African and Latin American cities. In both regions, the gulf is often extreme compared to Europe and Asia, where urban inequality levels are relatively low.

All too often it is not the actual degrees of inequality that matter, but the perceptions of it. And nothing defines that perception better perhaps than the example of a sign with a skull and cross bones carrying the warning “armed reaction” on a high electrified fence cocooning a suburban Johannesburg home.

When gross inequalities are associated with unjust systems that perpetuate poverty, curb upward mobility and exclude the majority, you have a formula for trouble. Put another way: when inequalities are perceived as the result of unfair processes or the unequal distribution of opportunities, people are less likely to accept them. Indeed such perceptions can nurture high crime rates, social unrest or even conflict.

There is no doubt that social unrest and insecurity reduce incentives for investment and force governments to increase the amount of public resources devoted to internal security – resources that might have otherwise been spent on more productive sectors of the economy or on social services and infrastructure.

Inequalities take various forms, ranging from different levels of human capabilities and opportunities, participation in political life, consumption, and income, to disparities in living standards and access to resources, basic services and utilities. Although the traditional causes of inequality – such as spatial segregation, unequal access to education and control of resources and labour markets – have persisted, new causes of inequality have emerged. These include inequalities in access to communication technologies and skills, among others.

A society simply cannot claim to be harmonious if large portions of its population are deprived of basic needs while others live in opulence. A city cannot be harmonious if some groups concentrate resources and opportunities while others remain impoverished and deprived.

Income inequalities not only threaten the harmony of cities, but also put the harmony and stability of countries at risk, as they create social and political fractures within society that threaten to develop into social unrest or full-blown conflicts. An excessive distributive polarization of income and wealth challenges social cohesion in many parts of the world, and the demands for narrowing social distance are in fact demands for social inclusion, social mobility and equal opportunities; in short they are demands for human dignity.

In Africa, urban income inequalities are highest in Southern Africa. South Africa stands out as a country that has yet to break out of an economic and political model that concentrates resources, although the adoption of redistributive strategies and policies in recent years have reduced inequalities slightly.

Unfortunately, rising economic growth rates in several African countries have not reduced income or consumption disparities. Instead, urban inequalities in many African cities, including Maputo, Nairobi and Abidjan, remain high as wealth becomes more concentrated. In general, urban income inequalities in African countries tend to be higher than rural income inequalities, and Northern African cities tend to be more equal than sub-Saharan African cities.

From many countries around the worlds, the evidence suggests that the benefits of economic growth are not realized in societies experiencing extremely high levels of inequality and poverty. Societies that have low levels of inequality are more effective in reducing poverty levels than those that are highly unequal.

Inequalities also have a dampening effect on economic efficiency as they raise the cost of redistribution and affect the allocation of resources for investment.

Levels of inequality can be controlled or reduced by forward-looking mitigation efforts on the part of governments. UN-HABITAT analysis of urban inequalities in 28 developing countries indicates that since the 1980s, nearly half of these countries managed to reduce levels of urban inequality while enjoying positive economic growth.

- UN-Habitat.org

Housing to blame for Xenophobia

Housing policy was identified as a trigger for the outbreak of xenophobic attacks, a report by the Human Science Research Council (HSRC) revealed on Wednesday.

The report, in response to the outbreak of violence in May, was based on a roundtable discussion involving 50 key stakeholders from government, civil society and affected communities.

"The housing policy needs to be revisited urgently. Housing is a complex issue and is one of the issues that sparked xenophobic violence in various areas around country," said HSRC director Adrian Hadland at the launch of the report in Alexandra.

Some of the recommendations made by the council was to convene a national indaba on xenophobia, open channels of communication among residents, through the empowering or establishment of local community forums, and the revision of the migration policy.

"Immigrants should be regulated. They need to be introduced to customs, practice and sensitivities of the country. The local councillors need to be educated about migration and South Africa's role globally," said Hadland.

South Africa was in need of immigrants because they brought skills resources.

British high commissioner Paul Boateng said xenophobia was a "weeping wound in the body of society" and it required attention.

"The UK can learn a lot from South Africa's experience... the dual purpose is for the issue to remain on the international agenda to ensure that there is no repeat to what happened," said Boateng.

- SAPA

Delft residents demand houses

A group of disgruntled residents protested in Delft outside the gates of the area where Housing Minister, Lindiwe Sisulu, handed over a thousand homes to new beneficiaries.

The group accused the officials of overlooking them in the allocation of new houses. They were part of those who invaded about 2 000 unfinished houses in Delft last December.

A few minutes before the Minister arrived to hand over the homes to N2 Gateway beneficiaries, department officials struggled to stop protesters forcing their way through the gates. The protesters accused them of unsystematic allocation of houses. The officials convinced them to come to a meeting tomorrow where their grievances will be addressed.

While the new homes were handed over, other families are still without electricity. However, the department promised to strive to deliver a thousand new houses every month.

Meanwhile, there have been allegations that Eskom has underestimated the housing development in the area. Eskom denied the allegation, saying that the houses need to be properly wired first. - SABC

Sisulu: Don't jump the queue

Government was committed to providing homes for all who needed them, and jumping housing queues would not solve anything, Housing Minister Lindiwe Sisulu said on Thursday.

She was speaking at the ceremonial handover of a batch of N2 Gateway project homes at Delft Symphony in Cape Town.

The houses hit the headlines when they were invaded by backyard dwellers in December last year.

Some were damaged before the illegal occupants were evicted, and have now been repaired.

They were built to house backyard dwellers on a waiting list and residents of the overcrowded Joe Slovo squatter settlement.

Sisulu said housing delivery depended on all citizens being responsible and not jumping queues.

"We will give a house to all who are eligible... please co-operate with us," she said.

That is once she has removed those names she deemed unfit for her housing list... EG: Irene Grootboom

A total of 11 000 homes are being built in the Delft area, of which 9 000 are free, government-subsidised "breaking new ground" (BNG) units, and the rest low-cost bonded houses being built in conjunction with banks.

The BNG homes are at least 40 square metres in area, and have a full bathroom, kitchen and two bedrooms.

Sisulu warned beneficiaries that the government would act against those who sold their houses before the expiry of the statutory eight-year period. - Sapa

African Urban Slums, Informal settlements and political prose

RECENTLY, Ministers of Housing and Urban Development from 34 African countries converged in Abuja to seek ways to minimise the rise in urban slums on the continent.

According to the organisers, the conference was a reaction to a recent report released by the UN-HABITAT, the global organisation which promotes sustainable environment and human settlement.

The report indicates that sub-Saharan African countries host the highest number of urban slum households in the world. UN-HABITAT, in that report, states that between 60 per cent and 70 per cent of urban residents in the region live in slums.

It says further that slums are emerging as dominant settlements in many cities.

''Contrary to conventional wisdom, we now know that slum dwellers are just as vulnerable as their rural counterparts to the incidence of hunger and diseases.
''They have less education and very high unemployment rates,'' the report adds.
In his address to the conference, President Umaru Yar'Adua blamed African cities for failing to act as engines of economic development in addressing the situation.

''The cities should provide avenues for national prosperity, but instead of that, they only breed slums,'' he said.

According to him, the cities should evolve and implement policies that will attract industrial investments.
''They should be centres of opportunity and creativity and not the centres of misery, squalor, crime, violence, insecurity and social exclusion that they have become,'' he said.

He advised African cities to take a cue from urban centres in the Middle East and Asia which lead in terms of commercial, trade, tourism and technological drive.

According to Yar'Adua, ''African cities must be strengthened to generate substantial income if city managers are to meet the ever increasing demand for better infrastructure and enhanced services.'' He called for new approaches to urban governance and city management that would improve the delivery of facilities such as water, education, sewage and health services.

''We must take the urban slum crisis serious because tackling it is critical to meeting the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs),'' the Nigerian leader said.

Painting a picture of the situation, UN-HABIBAT Executive Director, Dr Anna Tibaijuka, said that about eight per cent of African populations had no homes.She said that the situation was ''particularly serious'' in large cities such as Lagos and Kinshasa whose populations would reach a record high of 12 million and 11 million people respectively by 2025.

''There is a housing deficit of 12 million, yet our policies to tackle that have been rather haphazard,'' she said. Tibaijuka explained that more than half of African urban dwellers lacked one of the five basic conditions required for a decent housing.

She listed the conditions as water supply, adequate sanitation, durable housing, adequate living space and secure tenure. ''Even if the rate of slum formation drops, we need to be under no illusion that the continuing fast expansion of towns and cities will make itdifficult to improve living conditions quick enough to meet the MDGs,'' she said.

Tibaijuka, however, said that her organisation was prepared to work in active collaboration with African governments to develop and implement programmes capable of eliminating slums on the continent.

''UN-HABITAT has designed the Slum Upgrading Facility to test the assumption that lending to community groups of the urban poor is not as risky as many people believe,'' she said.

Nigeria's Housing and Urban Development Minister Chuka Odom, decried the rising number of such settlements in the country, noting that they had become centres of misery and poverty, as well as a breeding ground for social ills.

Odom said that the menace of slums, if not properly tackled, could aggravate cases of crime, disease and poverty. For Mrs Soita Shitanda, Kenya's Minister of Housing, Africa's best solution to the slum issue is for governments to invest substantially in low income housing.

Shitanda suggested that African governments should dedicate five per cent of their GDP to the building of massive decent housing for their citizens. he also called for incentives and measures that would attract active participation of the private sector in the provision of houses.

''There is a need to remove taxes from building materials. We must also ensure adequate support for research on low cost materials and building technologies,'' she said. Shitanda said that Kenya was poised to improve the livelihood of 5.4 million slum dwellers by 2020. Already, Kenya has signed an MOU with UN-HABITAT for the formulation and implementation of a nationwide slum upgrading programme.

''The programme is aimed at improving the lives of people living and working in slums and informal settlements in all urban areas of Kenya,'' the minister said. She said that the Kenyan government had contributed more than 14 million dollars to the programme so far.

In his remarks, Mr Roy Commsy, Malawi's Deputy Minister of Transport, said that the home government acknowledged the prevalence of slums and the dangers they posed since 2002. Commsy said that a slum dwellers association had been set up to partner with government on ways to tackle the problem. ''We are doing that with the active participation of the civil society groups,'' he said.

As part of measures to address the problem, the Malawian government had developed building standards and regulation that supported low-cost housing for slum dwellers, he said.

But the South African government (thinks it appears) on top of the situation.

Its Minister of Housing, Mrs Lindiwe Sisulu, told the meeting that the country (sic South Africa) had committed six billion dollars (sic African Zimbabwe Dollars) to tackle the problem of slums and low income housing.

Sisulu said that government was partnering with the financial sector by augmenting loans given to slum dwellers to build houses. Noteworthy is the American Housing credit crunch; and how this was a bad idea for them and the rest of the world...

''We have established significant partnership with a number of banks and developers who are already developing housing projects that will be sold at subsidised costs,'' she said.

To effectively tackle the issue in Nigeria, the Minister of Housing, Environment and Urban Development, Mrs Halima Alao, suggested a joint effort by states, local governments and the private sector.

''All stakeholders must be directly involved in decision making because cooperation and partnership are fundamental and crucial in getting a solution to the problem of slums,'' she said But as a first step, she suggested that everything must be done to minimise the growth of slums in Africa.

To do this, the minister called for improved facilities that would keep people in the rural areas and minimise the temptation to move to the cities in search of non-existent white collar jobs.

Analysts suggest better remuneration that will make it possible for workers in the lower rungs to afford better living conditions.

As African governments strive to check the menace of urban slums, special attention should given to policies that minimise poverty and enable the average citizen to own decent accommodation. - Daily Triumph

Witsand woman forced to flee home

A resident of Witsand in Atlantis claims she was forced to flee her home when a group of weapon-wielding people, allegedly from a nearby informal settlement, trashed her house.

Noluvo Tsule, 42, who uses her Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) house as both a home and a church, said her home had been trashed with bricks that destroyed furniture, walls and all the windows.

She had been inside when a crowd gathered and damaged her house.

"I was so shocked I did not know what to do. I ran out to the freeway and I just wanted to die.

"I thought they were going to kill me with the weapons they had," said Tsule.

The attack followed the demolition of shacks in the informal settlement by officials from the city's property control department on Wednesday. The shacks were destroyed after the settlement's residents allegedly reneged on a deal with local concillors to stop building more shacks so land could be kept to build proper houses on.

An official from property control, who did not want to be named, said they had destroyed about 20 shacks last Wednesday.

"Those were illegal extensions and we assigned people to destroy the shacks," he said.

Now the Witsand residents in RDP homes say they are living in fear as the shack dwellers have vowed to cause more damage.

The residents claimed that the shack dwellers said they would come at night to demolish their houses.

Last week the same crowd that trashed Tsule's home allegedly also burnt down a house used by the ward councillor, Lubabalo Yiba, as an office and targeted houses owned by residents who worked closely with the ward councillor.

The shack dwellers had allegedly claimed that Yiba had invited officials from Property Control to destroy their shacks.

Two houses were burnt down and five were damaged with bricks.

Except for Tsule, who has returned home, all the other residents whose houses were damaged fled in fear that the attackers might return.

Thobinceba Tshabiso, a relative of a man who works for Property Control and whose house also came under attack, said it was better if his cousin left Witsand because it was too dangerous.

"He is in hiding because I just knew he would die here because these people are violent and nothing stops them, not even the police," said the 37-year old.

A firm believer in God, Tsule said she had now given up everything to her faith and could not keep on asking neighbours for a place to sleep.

"This is my house.

"I did nothing to them (the shack dwellers) and I know I'm not guilty of anything," said Tsule.

- Cape Argus

Fire ravages 100 shacks in settlement

Hours after their homes were destroyed in a fire that raged through the KTC informal settlement, residents had already started to rebuild.

Disaster Risk Management spokesperson Charlotte Powell said some 35 shacks had been quickly destroyed by the fire in the early hours of Monday morning. A hundred people were left homeless, she said.

The stench of burnt wood and wet blankets, the sounds of hammering and lively chatting filled the air as men, women and children worked together.

There was a sense of urgency as they quickly hammered wooden frames into the place where their homes had been just hours before.

Officials from the city's housing department distributed the materials necessary to rebuild. Powell said these starter kits consisted of plastic sheeting, planks of wood, nails and sheets of corrugated iron.

KTC resident Letticia Lumani woke up to the sound of someone shouting: "Fire! Fire!" All of the family's belongings were ruined. Even their fridge and stove had been burnt, she said while standing among the charred remains of her home.

Lumani said it would take the community at least three weeks to rebuild their homes.

Neighbour Judith Mtyidwa believed that the fire had been caused by a candle that had been knocked over. She had opened her door early on Monday morning and "just saw red".

"It was bad. The fire was so strong."

She immediately woke up her two children and escaped. They weren't able to take any of their belongings, she said.

Relief organisation Mustadafin Foundation's spokesperson, Alia Lambada, said they had provided relief to those affected.

"We provide food parcels to every household and blankets for each person. The food lasts for three days, until the situation can be re-assessed," Lambada said.

Meanwhile, four people died and 40 shacks were destroyed in another fire in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Residents of the Hadji Ebrahim informal settlement in Rylands were also beginning to rebuild their homes.

Ishmaeel Saeed and his wife Gena, Jennifer Links and Links's friend, who was only identified as Chantel, died in the blaze, said Athlone police spokesperson Andre Venter.

Arthur Jantjies, whose own shack was not burnt, was helping to rebuild a neighbour's home.

The fire had also been caused by a candle, Jantjies said.

A double-storey business premises next door to the settlement had also been burnt in the fire.

Venter confirmed the fire had been caused by a candle that had fallen over.

"No arrests have been made but the investigation would continue," said Venter.

- Cape Times

Ash Monday

Four people were killed and about 60 shacks destroyed when fires broke out in Athlone and KTC.

In KTC more than 35 shacks were destroyed and hundreds of residents were left homeless after a fire raged through the informal settlement early this morning.

Like the fire that destroyed about 25 shacks in the Violet Cottage informal settlement in Athlone on Monday, the KTC fire is also believed to have been started by a candle that had been left burning.

The KTC fire started at 12,45am and residents say they were woken by screams and the smell of smoke before fleeing their shacks, many with only the clothes on their backs.

A 69-year-old grandmother, Edith Maqungo, who only managed to grab her grandson and a jacket, said this morning that she had lost everything.

"We have nowhere to go now, the government can't expect us to live like this forever. They should build houses for us here. Every year shacks are destroyed in fires. People lose everything and we can't go on like this."

Maqungo's 16-year-old grandson, Lubabalo, lost all his school books and clothes in the blaze, just weeks before the start of the final exams.

Meanwhile, 18-year-old Jennifer Links's mother is battling to come to terms with her daughter's death after she and three others were killed in the Athlone fire in the early hours of of Sunday.

Christine Links said she woke on Sunday to cries for help from fellow residents at about 4am, but was unaware that the fire had already claimed her daughter's life.

Jennifer, who celebrated her birthday last month, had been living with her boyfriend, Amadi Norbet.

"I can't believe she burnt to death. I feel so sad that she isn't here anymore," said Links.

According to Links, Jennifer's friend, who is only known as Chantal, had been visiting from Bellville-South for the weekend and was also killed. The other two victims were Ishmaeel Saeed and his wife Gena.

By Sunday morning only charred debris littered the area, while a building adjacent to the settlement in Hadji Ebrahim Crescent, Athlone was partially gutted.

The building belongs to businessman Mukhtar Karbary, who is owner of nearby Mukhtar's Hiring Services.

Karbary said this was the fourth fire in the informal settlement but the first time a fire had reached his warehouse. The first floor of the building was destroyed and Karbary estimated property damage and the loss of stock to be around R1-million.

Athlone police spokesperson Captain Andre Venter confirmed the deaths and said the fire is believed to have started from a candle that had fallen over.

Disaster Risk Management spokesperson Charlotte Powell said the displaced people had been offered refuge in the Athlone Civic Centre.

- Cape Argus

E-Cape housing dept takes over failed projects

The Eastern Cape housing department will take over all projects where contractors have failed to meet quality standards, it said on Saturday.

"The shoddy workmanship, slow delivery rate and administration blunders by contractors affecting the delivery of houses will not be tolerated," said department spokesperson Lwandile Sicwetsha in a
statement.

The department had so far taken over 60 of 140 "blocked" housing projects and was considering assuming responsibility for all projects in the province.

"The department is considering available options within legal and policy parameters to assume overall responsibility for housing projects in the province."

Sicwetsha said this was aimed at improving delivery.

Sicwetsha said contractors would now be paid only once the houses had been inspected and had met all requirements. Contractors running behind schedule had been asked to submit turnaround plans and would work during the December holidays.

Others could see their projects handed to better-performing contractors.

Seventy-five unemployed graduates had been appointed to work with project managers as site supervisors throughout the province.

The province's housing department intended completing 15 000 houses by March next year. It was confident it would exceed this target and spend a R1,2-billion conditional grant. - Sapa

Spotlight on irregular housing subsidies

Court proceedings against a string of public servants suspected of robbing the state of millions of taxpayers' rands through claiming subsidised houses they weren't entitled to have got under way.

This follows a massive forensic analysis of housing data by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) which identified more than 31,000 potentially irregular housing subsidies awarded to government employees across the country since 1994.

The audit was ordered by Housing Minister Lindiwe Sisulu, who announced "significant progress" in dealing with (this) thorn in the flesh" when delivering her budget speech in parliament in May.

Sisulu said then 29 cases had already been finalised with sentences that included repayment of the value of the houses - and that the department expected to rake back nearly R7-million.

She expected about 200 cases against corrupt civil servants to make their way onto the court rolls and hoped this would deter others from trying their luck.

Department of housing spokesperson Ndivuhwo Mabaya told Independent Newspapers the 84 state employees implicated included school teachers and principals, police officers, members of the SANDF as well as municipal councillors and "one or two" mayors.

They come from Gauteng, the Eastern and Western Cape, Mpumalanga , the North West and KwaZulu-Natal.

Some have already appeared in court this month and been found guilty, while others have had their cases postponed.

Still others will appear in court for the first time next week.

Mabaya said the forensic probe had revealed widespread collusion among government officials.

"You need to earn less than R3 500 a month to qualify," he said.

"Some lied, saying they were unemployed when they had jobs. Some colluded with other government officials to get false information (to support their applications).

"That means someone at Home Affairs helped them.

"Or they were supplied with false affidavits saying their ID books or birth certificates had been lost."

Corruption was found right in the heart of the department itself, according to Mabaya. In some cases, where the system reflected someone did not qualify, officials simply over-rode it.

Mabaya said between 1994 and 1999 the department's systems were compromised and lacked the security features they now have.

- Prestoria News

KTC marchers step up call for houses

Vivien Damba, 64, who has lived in the KTC informal settlement near Gugulethu for 26 years, shares a one-roomed shack with her seven children and grandchildren.

She says she has been on the housing list for 25 years, but now she is tired of waiting. Damba was one of 200 KTC residents who marched to the Fezeka Municipality buildings on Wednesday to highlight their desperate need for houses.

The protesters, organised by the Concerned Residents Movement (CRM) and KTC Crisis Committee, claimed that the city had done nothing to improve their lives and they had been promised houses since 2001.

Carrying placards that read "We want houses now!" they gathered in front of the building, holding a petition they said they wanted to be signed by Chris Jaka, the city's manager of sub council 14, responsible for housing.

She says she has been on the housing list for 25 years

They said they wanted Jaka to acknowledge their concerns, including a lack of flushing toilets and the fact about 20 people depended on one tap for water.

Ben Londzi, secretary of CRM who handed over the petition, said they were giving Jaka only seven days to respond to the petition.

"We will decide what to do if they do not respond within seven days, and I promise something major will be done," said Londzi.

Jaka was not present at the protest, but another city official Lunga Bobo signed the petition on behalf of Jaka.

"I understand what you all are going through, therefore I will personally hand this petition to Jaka," said Bobo.

'I am heartbroken that these people do not fulfil their promises'

Some of the residents told the Cape Argus they could not sit around and do nothing, otherwise nothing would be done about their dire situation.

Grandmother Damba said: "I am heartbroken that these people do not fulfil their promises. It is so unbearable to live in a one-room shack with so many people. There is no water and no toilets."

She said her shack was too small for the extended family and that it became waterlogged when it rained. She has a 33-year-old son who suffers from seizures and when he had a seizure, Damba said, he broke everything in the tiny shack.

"I wish these people could see where I live and then tell me if they can live in that small shack," she said, her eyes filled with tears.

Another resident Mathews Lacky said they would continue to protest until they achieved results. "We're going to do this every day, even if we still don't get answers after showing them this petition, because the way we live is not even a place where pigs can live," he said.

Noluthando Fuma, 27, said she had a one-year-old daughter who had a skin rash as a result of living in a waterlogged shack at KTC.

The rain water caused stagnant pools to form inside the shack, she said. "The nurses said my child had a skin rash because of the conditions we live in," said Fuma.

- Cape Argus

Housing firm floods site with security guards

Thubelisha Homes has come out with all guns blazing over the invasion of partially built houses in Khayelitsha's Mandela Park, warning occupants that they will not get away with their takeover and hiring 60 security guards to stop anyone else moving in.

Now, according to the housing agent, there are two to three guards per house to keep watch seven days a week.

On Tuesday the security guards were on site to ensure the houses were not invaded or vandalised.

The housing agent's regional general manager Prince Xhanti Sigcawu, said: "We are trying to prevent people from forcing their way into the unfinished houses," he said, adding that those who had already moved into unfinished houses would be issued with eviction letters soon.

"As soon as the court process is finished we will distribute the letters ordering them to move out within 30 days of receiving the eviction orders," Sigcawu said.

One homeowner in the area, who did not want to be named, said the security guards were doing a great job.

"It's a good thing they are there at night as well because that is the time when the invaders like to come and all of a sudden we wake up to a new neighbour," he said.

Ward councillor for Mandela Park, Rhyder Mkutswana, agreed that the new security was good for the area.

"Rightful owners of those houses wait for years to get their houses, and all we want is for people to be happy," he said.

The invasions in Mandela Park started in February when the first round of houses were built.

Invaders kicked in doors, demanding they be allowed to live in them, and arrests and court appearances followed.

Nearly 50 invaders were warned at a meeting with their ward councillor that they would receive eviction letters soon.

The invaders promised to vacate the houses as long as an acceptable alternative was offered.

One, Luyanda Senteni, 27, said at the meeting that he was willing to move "on condition they pay back the money I've spent getting this house into shape".

"When I moved in it was incomplete and I spent more than R10 000 on this house," he claimed.

"They must also know that they are increasing the number of homeless people because now I won't have a place to stay," he said. - Cape Argus

Vandalism threatens new Gugs mall

The construction of a Gugulethu shopping centre will be halted on Thursday morning by Anti-Eviction Campaign (AEC) protesters if property developer Mzoli Ngcauzele does not meet their demands.

If there was no action from Ngcauzele, the AEC threatened to vandalise his home and popular Gugulethu butchery and restaurant, Mzoli's Place.

Mncedisi Twalo, AEC spokesperson, said step two would be to bring "chocolate buckets" from the informal settlements and empty them on his properties. As a last resort they would burn tyres in the streets.

The war of words erupted on Tuesday as the AEC and about 60 residents marched on Ngcauzele and called him a "black wolf in sheep's clothing".

Ngcauzele hit back, calling them "criminal thugs".

The ongoing feud is over a shopping centre being built by Mzoli Properties.

The AEC claim there was no proper consultation with the community and that locals were not being employed for the development.

They also accused Ngcauzele of intimidating residents.

Ngcauzele dismissed the claims as lies.

The AEC demanded that he stop the alleged intimidation, guarantee informal traders space to do business at the new mall, and hold meaningful discussions with residents.

Twalo said business owners from the former Eyona Mall, demolished to make way for Ngcauzele's new mall, had been negatively affected by the construction.

Thobeka Myoli, one of the people whose business was not relocated before the demolition of Eyona Mall, represents Eyona business owners and says they are not against the new development, but believe there has not been enough communication.

But Ngcauzele, who claims to have relocated most of the tenants from the previous centre to temporary trading spaces rent-free for the duration of the construction, said he would not listen to the demands of the AEC.

"We can't be forced by criminal thugs to do things the way they want us to.

"We have worked with councillors and street committees and have ensured that no one is left out of the process. We are doing everything by the book," he said.

Construction is expected to be completed in September next year.

- Cape Argus

KTC residents to protest against services

Residents of KTC near Gugulethu in Cape Town were expected to take to the streets on Wednesday morning in protest against poor service delivery in their area.

"Most people are still living in appalling conditions and we are therefore demanding houses. It is also very dark at night and this impacts on the rate of crime especially burglaries happening in the developed area," said community crisis committee spokesperson Ben Londzi.

He said residents would also be protesting against lack of police presence in their area.

"They (police) don't involve community structures at all. There is an underground gang operating in the area, terrorising community members and killing people but police don't talk to residents about those things," Londzi said.

He said residents would meet at the Fezeka Municipality Buildings from 10am.

Despite Londzi's insistence that theirs was a protected march, Western Cape police said they knew nothing of a planned protest.

"There was never a letter sent to the station regarding the march... we are not aware of it," said Captain Elliot Sinyangana.

He disputed claims that police neglected to involve community structures in the fight against crime.

"From what I know we have a very good relationship with the Community Policing Forum in Gugulethu.

"Our sector managers constantly hold meetings with the community and no one has ever consulted the station commissioner to complain about poor consultation. But anyone is welcome to voice their grievances with the station if they have problems," Sinyangana said. - Sapa

Street children document their lives

More than 100 children living on the pavement in Symphony Way in Delft have called upon the government to respect their rights and provide them with decent shelter.

In the past week, the children spent time with Antonio Angelucci, a freelance photographer from Italy, who taught them to photograph their own lives living with their families on the pavement.

"The idea is for the children to have fun while they document their lives," said Angelucci.

For the past eight months, 139 families have been staying on the pavement after being evicted from the N2 Gateway houses they had occupied.

On Sunday the children held their first pavement photography exhibition dubbed: A pavement exhibition, the heart of struggle.

Through pictures, letters and narratives, hung on the barbed wire fence separating them from the houses from which they were evicted, the children reflected on the trauma, pain and suffering they and their parents had endured as a result of the forced eviction.

Some of the pictures they took were of city authorities who they accused of demolishing a neighbour's shelter two weeks ago.

Other pictures and stories reflected some lighter moments the close-knit community has experienced while living on the pavement. The children said life was more difficult during the cold rainy winter season as their shelters were cold and they struggled to keep warm.

"I don't think it is fair for people to be on the road. Grannies and grandpas are getting sick on the road. Two grannies have already died, while waiting for houses and one of them is mine," wrote Lee-Andre Johnson, who is in grade one.

"Its bad for us here, we need better shelter," Johnson told the Cape Argus.

"My first day in Symphony Way was like living in a camp.

"It was hard settling down because everything was in a mess.

" People were worried and did not know where they were going to sleep," wrote Nimco Hir, 8.

Ashraf Cassiem, a spokesperson for the Anti-Eviction Campaign who attended the exhibition, said it was important for children to grow up understanding the issues that affected their lives.

- Cape Argus

Townships condemn feuding ANC

South Africans are rapidly losing patience with a divided ruling party seen as arrogant and greedy.

Amid repetitive rows of housing units, Ncedo Kanti's yellow container stands out as a burst of colour and modernity. The young entrepreneur's phone centre has linked Gugulethu to the outside world. And that, says customer Zola Ndzengu, 'is more than our politicians have done'.

In the worst political crisis since the end of apartheid 14 years ago, the African National Congress is tearing itself apart. Retired archbishop Desmond Tutu has threatened to withhold his vote in next year's elections. And in Cape Town's Gugulethu township - where hundreds lost their lives in pursuit of black government - a tearful young woman comes running to Kanti's container to phone a relative who might be able to transport her sick brother to hospital.

'Look at our terrible healthcare system, the crime and the pitiful state of our schools,' said Zola Ndzengu, a pharmaceuticals machine operator. 'In Gugulethu there are people going to bed on empty stomachs. I am so upset by our party. I am a member of the ANC, but I am so sad and confused. Things were bad already. And now to see the politicians behaving so badly. It's just too much.'

Supporters of the former President, Thabo Mbeki, who was deposed last month by the ANC's national executive, say they are ready to form a new party. The ANC, now led by Mbeki's rumbustious rival, Jacob Zuma, insists it will meet the dissidents' leader, former deputy defence minister Mosiuoa 'Terror' Lekota, tomorrow to solve differences.

While economic indicators show that black South Africans have become better off in the past 14 years, they also show that one in 10 homes depends on state grants for at least half the household's income. Crime, running at a national rate of 50 murders and 99 reported rapes a day, is still heavily concentrated on the townships and people in Gugulethu say it has got worse with the advent of small pockets of township wealth. Zuma's ANC has relaunched 'street committees' based on the vigilante groups that imposed party discipline during apartheid. But many residents fear this could lead to political violence. Gugulethu, which means 'our pride' in Xhosa, was established in the 1950s when the apartheid authorities expelled blacks from central Cape Town. It has a population of about 300,000, 40 per cent of whom are estimated to be unemployed, and one of the highest HIV rates in South Africa.

To Sizwe Batwa, 32, an alcohol sales rep, the ANC factions are irreconcilable. 'In the ANC you have a group who served time in Robben Island jail [the apartheid prison], you have the group who were in London like Mbeki, and those who were in Tanzania. Then you have the communists who funded the armed wing of the party and who think they should have a say. These guys do not even know one another. It's natural that they do not get on. The movement is just too big, and some of them have become arrogant about their two-thirds majority. They have forgotten that the majority comes from me, the voter,' said Batwa. 'And when I complain they say "go to your branch", but I don't have a branch. I am just a voter.'

Fourteen years after the first all-race elections, the ANC is only now going through a painful transition from being a 96-year-old centralised liberation movement to becoming a democratic home for diverse ideas. Neither the Mbeki wing - which brooked no dissent while in power - nor Zuma's vociferous supporters appear to have understood the profound transformation under way.

In 1994, 60 per cent of South Africans voted for the ANC, with 28 per cent backing the mainly white opposition and 12 per cent supporting independent parties. In 2004 only 44 per cent voted for the ANC, with 14 per cent voting for the opposition and 42 per cent backing independent candidates. Voter registration for the next elections, expected in April 2009, begins on 8 November and will be a test of the electorate's patience.

Even as voters press for true multi-party democracy, the ANC monolith is blocking the path. The best it is offering is the assumed prospect of interim President Kgalema Motlanthe handing over to Zuma. But Zuma is seen by many as a bumptious Zulu whose only priority is to ascend to the presidency to avoid going to prison for alleged corruption. In the Western Cape, where the ANC rift is at its most bitter and pro-Zuma provincial secretary Mcebisi Skwatsha was stabbed in the neck at a party meeting in June, voters insist that tribalism is at work.

Kanti, 25, who leases his phone container but hopes to buy it next year, said: 'The ANC has gone crazy. Mbeki made mistakes, but the way in which he was thrown out like a dirty rag was a disgrace. I do not blame Tutu if he does not vote. He was there back then in the struggle and we take his views very seriously. I could never vote for Zuma or his sidekick [ANC Youth League leader] Julius Malema, who says he will kill anyone who does not support his boss. In the Western Cape we are Xhosas. We are known as the politicians, the smart, educated ones. Those guys with Zuma are not clever, they are just boys.'

As the tearful woman finished her phone call in the yellow container, community worker Thabita Mseleni, 50, came running to see if she could help. 'Aids, the girl's brother has it. It makes me weep,' she said. 'We need drugs. We need help from the rest of the world. But all our politicians are thinking about is how to keep in power for long enough to make sure they get next year's latest model of car.

'How can I vote for Zuma? If he is innocent, why are his supporters being so rude? Motlanthe seems to have good manners, but we do not know him. Tutu is right to speak out. I have not been able to vote many times in my life, but I am already having doubts about doing so.'

- Guardian

Welcome to the Mother Shitty

You need a peg on your nose and a strong stomach to handle the sights, sounds and smells at the toilets serving some of the main tourist spots in and around Cape Town.

Two locals who recently visited popular spots said they found it hard to explain just how appalled they were at the state of the toilets.

Quinton Lodewyk of Grassy Park visited Tokai Forest with his family for a braai on Sunday and said he was "disgusted" by the state of the toilets.

"The ladies toilets were overflowing and they (female relatives) had to use the men's toilet. When I got to the male toilets there were ladies and children queueing and even the men's urinals were disgusting.

"It smelt and the faeces were coming up to the top.

"I was concerned with women and children using the men's toilets because what if someone gets raped. Anything could have happened because people get so intoxicated there and they do what they do in front of the kids.

"There were people using the bush because the toilets were so disgusting."

Lodewyk said on another occasion he heard about a group of Australian tourists who went to braai at Tokai Forest and fled after a group from several taxis got drunk and started running around the area with knives.

Even during the week, when Tokai Forest is virtually empty, a Weekend Argus team found the stench from the toilet unbearable; toilet paper, sanitary towels and broken beer bottles were lying around the fetid facilities.

Other visitors to the busy braai spot said lousy lavatories were a regular feature of Tokai every weekend and the pong was enough to make even the most hardy wince.

Another Capetonian, Helen Logie, said she had recently visited two major tourist spots in Cape Town where the facilities were "unacceptable".

She took her 90-year-old mother-in-law and friends to Chapman's Peak, what she called "one of the most beautiful spots in the world".

"I cannot find enough words to express my utter disgust at the state of the toilets. They are sophisticated long drops. There is no toilet paper, no basin to wash your hands and you need to gag yourself before you walk in."

Later in the week she went to Signal Hill and again reeled in horror during a visit to the toilets. "This was even worse than Chapman's Peak and other people in there were just as disgusted. The floors were wet and the long drop was just as disgusting, but the smell was nauseating to the point that I nearly got sick.

"I had no overseas visitors with me on the day - I would have been so embarrassed.

"There was no cistern and no chain so you can't flush, it was just disgusting; just this long porcelain bowl that never gets cleaned because water never gets washed over it."

Table Mountain National Park spokesperson Phumeza Mgxashe said: "We thank the public for bringing our attention to the matter and we will investigate and make sure the facilities are well maintained."

- Cape Argus

Iron homes to replace burned shacks

Corrugated iron homes are to replace the almost 800 shacks destroyed in the Foreman Road informal settlement, but it has taken more than a month and comes after wrangling over construction materials.

About 800 shacks were destroyed by fire in early September, leaving 3,000 residents homeless and virtually destitute.

Bulldozers and building materials, including poles, planks, cement, nails, doors and windows are already on site. The eThekwini housing department has supplied these free of charge to the displaced residents.

'I could not stay in a tent for too long for reasons of safety and hygiene'

While the initial plan was to supply the materials only, and allow residents to rebuild their homes themselves, it was felt that the system might cause conflict.

Shack dwellers who previously had larger homes, might have felt entitled to the lion's share of the available resources, leaving a shortfall for others.

Residents therefore requested that a contractor be hired to ensure uniformity of design and size.

The Al-Imdaad Foundation, a Muslim NGO, is financing the cost of hiring the contractor, and also underpinning construction costs. The development will be done in four phases, starting with a block of 150 dwellings.

On Friday the area councillor, Yacoob Baig, will hold a meeting with representatives of the eThekwini housing department, the Al-Imdaad Foundation and shack dwellers to provide clarity on the exact date on which building will start.

Nonhle Pepu, community development spokesperson for the Foreman Road settlement, said residents were eagerly awaiting the outcome of the meeting.

She explained that living conditions were squalid, and the past few weeks had been very trying because more than 500 people shared 12 tents.

Lungisani Dlamini is one of many residents who took the initiative to rebuild his shack himself, rather than wait for council assistance.

"I could not stay in a tent for too long for reasons of safety and hygiene," he said.

"Although I rebuilt my shack, I would still very much like to have one of the more stable houses that the council will be building," Dlamini said.

- Daily Voice

Flood victims fear shelter may become home

Residents of Kosovo informal settlement in Philippi who were displaced by floods a month ago said on Wednesday they were concerned that the temporary area they had been allocated by the city could become a permanent home.

The residents were relocated to an area in Philippi which was identified for them by local ward councillor Monwabisi Mbaliswana after their homes were flooded.

They were supposed to be living there temporarily to allow contractors to level their own area to prevent water from flooding their shacks again, but they said work on their homes had not yet begun.

A Kosovo resident, Nonkonzo Gova, said they were struggling to cope in the new area as there was no electricity nor any ablution facilities.

"We are here in the dark and are being forced to get electricity illegally from nearby areas," said Gova.

She said they had to go to people in Samora Machel and "beg" to use their toilets.

"The toilets near us belong to other people and they lock them, forcing us to go to Samora Machel," she said.

Gova said they were all asking whether the government was going to give them proper houses.

"All we want are houses, we are not asking for money," she said.

"They talk about housing for all but what about us?

"How long are we going to fall victims of floods and fires?" Gova asked.

Nomava Dywili, another resident of Kosovo, said they had been promised temporary taps and toilets when they moved to the area.

"They said they were going to put taps and toilets here while we were waiting for our area to be fixed but none of that has been done," said Dywili.

Kosovo resident Nosimanye Mdleleni said she was disappointed by the way they had been treated and wanted the government to provide housing for them.

"We are struggling here without electricity and all we want are houses. We don't care where," said Mdleleni.

Ward councillor Monwabisi Mbaliswana said he had made contact with the city's head of engineering of informal settlements housing, Johan Gerber, and they were meeting today to discuss a way forward.

He said he had contacted Gerber because the Kosovo area was going to get electricity and the people living in the temporary area were going to lose out.

"People come to my office every day asking what is going on," said Mbaliswana.

- Cape Argus

Tonight - Structural Necessity Photo Exhibitions

ilisolabantu.org

Xenophobia crisis control costs city R100m

The cost of managing the xenophobic crisis that erupted in the city has soared to more than R100-million.

And to date the government has not reimbursed a single cent of the money, which means the city's safety and security department's spending has gone more than R50-million over its annual budget.

A report submitted to the council's portfolio committee on Monday by the city's director of budgets, Johan Steyl, indicated that the city had submitted its third claim of R25,8-million last month on the back of its first claim of R70,7-million in June, and another R5,6-million in August.

These are all claims for actual costs incurred.

Steyl said the city had followed its agreement with the provincial government on managing the crisis and related financial costs to the letter, which included that the submission of claims be made to this level of government, which would then forward them to the Treasury.

He said the city's disaster management centre had liaised with the provincial department on the reimbursement of its money, but to date had received no formal response.

The finance committee decided that the matter should be brought to the attention of the mayoral committee, with a view to it being discussed at its next meeting next week.

The city is incurring ongoing costs as it still accommodates just more than 2 000 refugees in three sites in the city, five months since the violence against foreign nationals broke out in the townships.

- Cape Argus

XDR-TB - James Nachtwey's Photographs

XDR-TB - James Nachtwey's Photographs

These photographs were taken by leading photojournalist James Nachtwey and were 'unveiled' on October 3rd in more than 50 cities to highlight the problem of extensively drug resistant TB (XDR-TB) and to call on all of us to act now to stop this disease of poverty.

Homes destroyed 'like piece of trash'

Residents of Site B in Khayelitsha say they have been unfairly treated after law enforcement officials destroyed their shacks on Tuesday.

The residents said they had been using the dwellings to make a living and that their livelihoods had now been taken away from them.

The Specialised Enforcement Services chief officer for the city of Cape Town, Rudolf Wiltshire, confirmed that 30 shacks had been destroyed across Khayelitsha.

Resident Nontombizakhe Ntabeni, who cooks and sells sheep heads, said she had just started building her shack when law enforcement officials came and "destroyed it like a piece of trash", without explaining why.

"The community asked me to move to that site because the smoke where I used to sell was affecting them," she said.

Ntabeni said she was unemployed with six children and was now worried about how she was going to earn a living.

"I don't know what else to do now because this is the second time this has happened to me.

"When I first built my shack there, the governing body of the area told me I couldn't just put it there and I had to go through a process," said Ntabeni.

Law enforcement officers at the scene on Tuesday, who refused to give their names, said the shacks posed a threat to the community.

This was confirmed by Wiltshire, who said the shacks had posed a threat because they were on the pavement, forcing people to walk in the road.

He said the operation had been arranged by law enforcement and the housing department after they received threats of land invasion.

They had "destroyed shacks that were not occupied by people because we had a right to do so", he said. - Cape Argus

Invaders refuse to move

A group of angry residents in Mandela Park in Khayelitsha, who invaded partially completed houses, have vowed to resist moving, saying that they were "going nowhere".

About 100 invaders have moved into houses being built by housing agents Thubelisha Homes. A first group moved in in February and another group joined them, moving from Site C and Makhaya.

The houses, which they say they moved into because no one was living there, have no windows and the roofing is unfinished.

One of the people who have taken up residence in a four-roomed house, Malusi Pamba, said on Wednesday that he did not feel guilty about occupying the property as he had been waiting for a long time for a house.

Pamba had previously rented a Makhaya house for six years, paying nearly R1 500 a month. He shared the house with his parents, a sick brother, and four children.

Pamba, who said he was on a housing waiting list, said he could no longer afford the rent but had to continue taking care of his entire family.

"I just could not wait any longer for a house. I saw the opportunity of bringing my family in and occupying it."

Pamba has fixed the roof and fitted windows in the house. He said he also intended extending the house.

"We're desperate. We're trying to express our feelings and hurt to the housing department," Pamba said.

"If they come to evict us, I am going nowhere as long as I am alive and kicking," he said.

Some houses have names written on the walls of people who were intending to move in.

One resident due to move in, Nontobeko Songo, said she had panicked when she saw a name written on the walls of her future home.

"I had to move in as soon as possible," she said.

When invaders first moved into the homes in February, they broke down the doors, demanding that they be allowed to live in them.

Arrests and court appearances followed.

A group of these invaders argued that they were making the community safe because the empty houses were being used by youths to "smoke drugs and rape people".

Rightful owners report that when they try to claim their new homes, the invaders swear at them and threaten them.

On Monday, Nowynberg Mcatshulwa, 53, a legitimate owner, said she had quickly moved into her home when she found another family living there. With the help of the community, she got the home invaders to move out.

A ward councillor for Mandela Park, Rhyder Mkutswana, said he had tried several times to get Thubelisha Homes to address the problem.

"I've asked them many times that when a house is finished they must give the key to the rightful owner and not just build houses and leave them there," said Mkutswana.

He was set to meet the company again.

Prince Xhanti Sigcawu, regional general manager of Thubelisha Homes, said the invaders had been "spoken to so many times. If they must be arrested, that will happen".

- Cape Argus

Tsunami - Structural Necessity Photo Exhibitions

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