INLSA
Dunoon residents burn furniture after the City of Cape Town dismantled a neighbour s extension he had built on his premises.
Dunoon residents took to the streets to burn tyres and furniture to vent their fury at the City of Cape Town for dismantling a structure erected in a backyard in the area.
Yesterday Alex Dlamini watched as about 100 of his neighbours sang and toyi-toyied outside his home in West Beach Four, Dunoon, where they burnt piles of litter, broken furniture and tyres.
Dlamini’s brick house is between the Itando Yamahlubi herbalist home and Dr Moshaba’s Spaza Shop on Usasazo Street.
This week he tried to add a wood and iron structure to the front of the house, but it was dismantled twice in three days by the city because it was on city-owned land.
“They (the city) are telling me this is not my land, but everybody’s doing it,” Dlamini said.
City spokeswoman Kylie Hatton confirmed that the anti-land invasion unit had demolished Dlamini’s structure twice.
“In terms of council policy, he is not allowed to construct on that land,” she said.
Dlamini, who believes a jealous neighbour tipped off authorities, said he could not understand why the city did not approach others who had extended their homes because “everybody around here is doing it”.
Yesterday police were called in to monitor the crowd, which had cordoned off the area with bright orange Eskom tape with the words “Danger, Gevaar” printed on it.
Dlamini first built the structure on Tuesday.
He said he had spent about R4 000 building it. That day he was told by city officials that the structure was “illegal” because it had been built on council property.
Dlamini said that on Wednesday, while discussing the matter with his local councillor, the anti-land invasion unit moved in and dismantled the structure.
With the help of some residents he rebuilt it on Wednesday evening.
However, on Thursday morning the unit returned and dismantled his structure again.
“All I want to do is extend my home like everyone else,” Dlamini said.
The community then protested by blocking off the road.
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