Wattville Hostel residents continue to suffer

Conditions haven’t improved at the Wattville Hostel.

July 8, 2017

Khutso Maphatsoe 1 minute read

Animal bones are stacked up against the wall of one of the buildings at the hostel.

The DA Benoni/Daveyton Constituency Head and Member of the Provincial Legislature (MPL), Michele Clarke, conducted another visit to the Wattville Hostel in Actonville on July 5.

Clarke was joined by Ward 29 Clr Haseena Ismail as residents took them on a tour of the area.

Residents listed issues with sanitation, water, electricity, sewage and a lack of cooking facilities.

Animal bones were seen stacked up against one of the buildings.

Phillip Sizwe Khanyile, a resident who has been living there since 1998, said he wants a geyser, toilet and doors fixed in his unit.

According to Mxoleleni Nene, the induna (chief) of the hostel, there are about 3 000 people living there.

“This whole hostel is a mess and needs to be fixed,” said Nene.

Clarke was shocked at the state of the hostel and said she took the matter to a provincial level.

“The DA has tabled a motion and submitted questions to the premier, David Makhura, and the MEC for Human Settlements, Paul Mashatile, in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature, outlining the plight of the Wattville Hostel residents,” said Clarke.

“We will lodge a complaint with the South African Human Rights Commission with regards to the living conditions of Wattville Hostel residents.

“The DA believes that access to sanitation, water and better living conditions is a basic human right and that all citizens deserve dignified homes,” said Clarke.

According to Clarke, the premier is set to visit the hostel in July.

The metro did not reply to questions at the time of publishing.