Makhulugama is an informal settlement next to West Village, and according to the DA, it is a forgotten community.
On their way to a nearby school, the children of Makhulugama still walk through dirty, smelly water with broken bottles floating in it, says John Barnardt, neighbouring West Village’s community leader.
“We are concerned about the residents’ health and safety, and we need the municipality to do something.”
In May 2013, in his State of the City address, Mogale City mayor Koketso Calvin Seerane indicated that about 25 per cent, or 90 000, of Mogale City’s residents lived in informal settlements.
Seerane said via the site and service programme the municipality would provide basic infrastructure such as electricity, roads, water and sanitation, and allocate sites to deserving families who in turn would build temporary shelters for themselves whilst waiting for the provincial government to build houses for them.
At the time Seerane promised that Makhulugama, along with areas such as Tudor Shaft and Soul City would cease to exist by mid 2016.
Eric van Lelyveld who lives in West Village heads a non-profit organisation called Honeyfield charity, and they regularly aid the residents of Makhulugama.
“We give out food parcels to the people living in Makhulugama.”
Eric said he feels these communities need as much help as they can get because they live without basic services such as clean toilets.
Alan Fuchs, the Democratic Alliance’s Constituency Head in Mogale City said thousands of informal settlers once again have been relegated to a life of misery and hardship as nothing is being done to change their living conditions and circumstances.
“The informal settlers are without electricity, clean water and dignified sanitation because local politicians are not doing what they need to.”
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