The land in Putfontein where residents of Glen Marikana informal settlement are meant to be relocated to, has not been purchased by the municipality yet.
This was heard during a public meeting led by ward councilor Jaco Terblanche at Avion Park Golf Club on Wednesday evening.
This came as a shock to those in attendance, including Glen Marikana residents. Despite an eviction order granted by the High Court in Johannesburg on November 21, 2018, and a four-month extension granted from October 2019 to January 31, 2020, nothing has been done to prepare the land for the move.
Terblanche said at the meeting he was under the impression that the land in Putfontein belonged to the municipality.
Also read:
• WATCH: Glen Marikana residents are going nowhere – for now
• Watch: Glen Marikana residents say new land will not be ready
• Councillor: Metro has no respect for Glen Marikana court order
“I only discovered two weeks ago that the land is yet to be bought by the municipality and nothing has been done to prepare for the move, including an environmental impact study and rezoning,” said Terblanche.
Caucus leader of the DA Phillip de Lange was also at the meeting and confirmed that the approval of the purchase of the land would only be heard at the council meeting today (January 30).
De Lange also questioned the value of the Putfontein land which drastically increased from R4.7-million in 2017 to about R20-m currently. He hinted at a possible forensic investigation of the land.
Frustration, hopelessness and doubt were among the emotions expressed by some of the community members who questioned and wondered whether the move would ever happen.
One resident asked what the chances were for the owner of the Glen Marikana land in Glen Marais to get tired of fighting for the eviction and sell the land.
Marius du Preez, attorney at Minnie and Du Preez Attorneys, told the community they were not representing the owner, but assisting him and his attorneys with legal advice. They previously offered their services to the owner free of charge, but he politely declined the offer.
“At this stage, I don’t think the owner will sell the property as it is quite valuable and I doubt that the legal fees to see the last part of the eviction through will be a deterrent for him.”
One of the other concerns from the community was that the municipality would opt to buy the Dann Road land, but Terblanche confirmed he was aware of three interested buyers, which did not include the metro.
De Lange said a meeting with relevant parties would be held regarding a way forward. Du Preez concluded that going forward a new strategy would be to ensure there was a timeline for everything that needed to be done, like the environmental impact study.
“Each point needs to be given a timeline of when it will be done, which will hopefully put more pressure on the Department of Human Settlement to act promptly,” said du Preez.
Express is currently compiling a video taken at the meeting which will include more information.
