ECRA fights for RDP houses

“From the deed search, we have just found out that some residents in our area, who have been fighting for their RDP houses, have title deeds. Some of the title deeds have two different names of ownership; a bond holder and current holder, sharing one stand number,” he said.

Mr Kukame added that they are concerned about the housing corruption which has been happening in Winnie Mandela, Tswelapele Extension and Essellen Park.

“We have received a report from the SIU which dealt with the complaint regarding the allocation of houses in Essellen Park. The report concluded that the people who occupied houses in Essellen Park did not qualify to stay there and requested answers from the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality (EMM),” he added.

He said that they have the documents which shows that some of the residents’ housing subsidies were paid out.

In February, members from the ECRA, together with some residents from a local informal settlement in Tembisa, marched to the Presidents’s Office at the Union Buildings in Pretoria, over poor service delivery.

Mr Kukame said the memorandum which was handed over was never replied to.

The Tembisan sent an enquiry to the EMM’s executive mayor, Clr Mondli Gungubela, about the allegations.

The mayor’s office responded with the following statement.

“At the onset, it is important to note that the land on which Winnie Mandela Park was established was illegally occupied by approximately 14 000 families. When the planning was finalised, based on the development potential of the land, it was found the land could only accommodate approximately 8 000 families. However, when the upgrading of the settlement commenced, no alternative land was found for the balance of the approximately 6 000 families.

“At that point, it was agreed that the approximately 6 000 families who needed to be relocated would share a stand with the family approved to remain permanently on the stand. Hence the evolution of the ‘two-in-one’ sharing of stands by families. As alternative land was found, families sharing stands were relocated out of Winnie Mandela and this includes Kaalfontein and Essellen Park. Our records show that a balance of approximately 3 000 families must still be relocated out of Winnie Mandela. The EMM is in the process of finalising the alternative land for relocation.

“In the upgrading process, households were registered on a database and allocated numbers to their shacks and the database contained details of the households residing on the stand. However, administrative processes required the approval of subsidies and facilitation of approval of subsidies. The various households that submitted applications were given temporary stand numbers. However, it is to be noted that when the township register was opened, the officially registered stand numbers were not the same as the numbers initially allocated when the subsidy approval process was undertaken. Thus, the current conflict and/or perception that some households were allocated stands belonging to another family.

“With regards to the issue of people who “bought” stands, it is to be noted that due to impatience, the pace of development and relocation, stands in Winnie Mandela were sold by the beneficiaries and hence the conflict between those who were given titles as part of the subsidy and township establishment finalisation. As the council, we are mindful of the conflict, confusion, lack of proper communication and perception of communities with regards to the process. The priority will be to ensure that all original households who settled in Winnie Mandela Park and who have not been relocated and requiring permanent tenure, are permanently relocated and provided with tenure. The families who informally purchased stands will then be consulted on the possible alternative to resolve their plight to be provided with permanent and adequate shelter.

“On the issue of the new park, the development was intended for the families sharing a stand, and when the process commenced to have the families relocated, families were given ‘dummy stand numbers’ to facilitate the approval of subsidies. This is because the subsidy approval process requires a stand number and at the time of submission, the approved stand numbers were not available as the township register was not opened. This caused confusion, in that when families were relocated, there was a difference between the dummy stand numbers and the approved township stand numbers. The township approval process was finalised in the course of the relocation and house construction process. The families were allocated based on the pace of approvals. It is important to note that more subsidy approvals were submitted than the number of stands available in Essellen Park, and thus some families who received approvals were not able to be allocated into Essellen Park based on over subscription.

“It is important to note again that the ‘dummy stands’ overlapped with the approved township stand numbers and hence the perception of some households holding the view that another family received preference and allegations of corruption.

“The mayor is of the view that if there are instances of corruption, the people with the necessary proof must submit such proof to the necessary authorities for proper and thorough investigation, so that the perpetrators can be dealt with. If people are not comfortable reporting this matter to the city, they can actually report this to other organs of state including the Public Protector, SAPS, Hawks, Provincial and National Government. Our stance, as a city, is that corruption must be dealt with effectively and for us to achieve this we need the community to bring up the information that can lead to disciplinary and criminal action against the perpetrators of such.

“That this concerned community has elevated this matter to various avenues like the Presidency and the Public Protector like they indicate, is most welcome to us as city for we are always encouraging people to do this.”