RESIDENTS of Kaalfontein informal settlement in Esselen Park Extension Three have boycotted the development of a road and wall, saying it would endanger and further compromise their living conditions.
At a public meeting on December 3, residents said they made countless pleas to the contractors of the project to meet each other halfway, but said their pleas fell on deaf ears. Contractors failed to show up at the meeting.
Among the many issues the residents raised was the issue of the narrow and single road which would make it difficult to access the area. They said emergency services would also be blocked.
Residents said another major problem they faced was the toilets. They are close to their shacks and are posing a health concern. They said there were also open holes which posed a danger to children.
One of the residents, Norman Mamanyoha, said the construction was taking up a lot of space at the informal settlement and would only leave residents with a much less space.
“It is as if the contractors have decided to disregard the lives of our people.We need answers from the contractors – we cannot keep fighting with each other,” Mamanyoha said.
Mamanyoha also said it was clear the contractors did not take the community seriously.
“Our major concern is that the environment has become unsafe for children,” Mamanyoha added.
Another resident, Monica Mokgoretsi, said: “No one seems to be prepared to listen to us. No one seems to even care about the well-being of this community.
“It is better that our councillor finds another place for us to stay so that each and every one of us gets a proper stand. This makes it clear that these people only care about themselves, and not us, the poor.
“How can we live in a place like this? This is why you see them forcing us to live near our toilets. What do they think we are?
“They do not bother thinking about how we are going to move around this community.
“What about the emergency services? How are the vehicles going to gain access to this place? This is not fair. We are unhappy with this whole thing,” she said.
Phumzile Nyatlo, who is a project manager for Functional Planning and Division at the Department of Human Settlement in Ekurhuleni, said residents would be moved to another area after the pegging of the site had been completed.
“Due to the size of the development, we anticipate that pegging will start in January and the general plan will be lodged in March 2018.
“Once the general plan is approved, we will proceed with the opening of the township registry to ensure that transfer is later possible. Once the two processes are complete, the township will be proclaimed and the designing of services will resume,” Nyatlo said.
Clr Desmond McKenzie said since the meeting was held on December 3, the development had stopped.
“Our next meeting will be next year, as many people are leaving for the holidays – there is nothing happening on the site at the moment,” he said.
