The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) aims to look into service delivery concerns and a myriad of other challenges facing the residents of Ivory Park.
At the same time, the City of Johannesburg has committed itself to providing additional land to resolve the housing backlog for the affected residents.
ANC chairperson Tebogo Maromo of Ward 133 said so serious are their challenges that they had no option but to to invite the provincial manager of the commission, Buang Johnson, to tour the area so that he could see for himself what the plight of the residents looked like.
Maromo said Johnson had promised to convene a meeting with the Johannesburg mayor and the provincial government to discuss all matters concerning housing backlog.
“Buang Johnson is due back in August to give us a feedback on our concerns,”said Maromo.
Maromo said some of the problems included the electrification of Ivory Park and other service delivery issues.
Maromo said some of their concerns included the death of their member, John “Bin Laden” Morothoba. He said his death allegedly related to the failure of an ambulance to arrive on time to save his life after he had collapsed in his house.
He said the failure of the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) to dispatch an ambulance on time sparked off the protest march.
On electricity, Maromo was happy that Eskom had committed to electrifying Ivory Park and the surrounding areas.
“On June 7, Eskom said it was in the process of electrifying the settlements around Ivory Park, including Joe Slovo Section, and that the power utility had promised them that it had sourced a budget from the Department of Energy for this purpose,” said Maromo
Recently, the ANC in the area handed over a memorandum of grievances about poor service delivery to the City of Johannesburg at the Lord Khanyile Community Hall in Ivory Park Extension.
The march was sparked by the failure of the EMS to arrive on time to help their member, Morothoba, who had collapsed in his house on July 10.
“Members of the community called for an ambulance, but it was delayed. By the time it arrived, Morothoba had already died.
“The residents went to inquire at the EMS station. They found two ambulances without diesel,” said Maromo.
“The city of Joburg under the DA and the EMS failed to respond to our demand. Only Eskom reached out to meet our demands. Soon they are about to implement their promises,” said Maromo.
Maromo said the residents had resolved that Allandale and Rabie Ridge be developed to house Ivory Park residents who have been living in shacks for more than 20 years.
However, he conceded that the City of Johannesburg had allocated R11-million for the development of the of area, but demanded that the process of developing the area be given priority.
“We went to the SAHRC because we believe they have the power to instruct the City of Joburg to do what is right,” said Maromo.
Spokesperson for the MMC of Settlements Buntukazi Xuba said the City was investigating the possibility of “restarting the expropriation process” through the Gauteng Department of Human Settlements.
“There has been some engagements between the two parties, and we look towards the conclusion of this matter.
“The City is also looking at sourcing additional land to address the housing backlog in Ivory Park and other surrounding areas near Midrand. A report has been commissioned to this end.
“Lastly, we would like to assure communities that we are working towards a lasting solution to their plight, and we will keep them informed of developments in this regard,” said Xuba.
