RDP houses vacant, people suffer
The Hlopha community in Sekhukhune are livid over government's failure to provide elderly people in the area with RDP houses
LIMPOPO – According to the villagers, some of the elderly in the area were subjected to uninhabitable conditions following government’s failure to deliver on the promises they made.
December Mokomane, a community leader, said one of the elderly in the area, Mogomoletse Mamakoko, has been living in a one-room shack since 2008. He said several requests made to government to give her an RDP house had yielded no results.
“Mamakoko lives with six children in a one-roomed shack and has been living in these conditions for several years. Our efforts to engage with the municipality and the Department of Cooperative Governance, Human Settlements and Traditional Affairs (CoGHSTA) have been ignored. It is painful to see her live in these terrible conditions,” Mokomane said.
He added there were several vacant RDP houses in the area and it was of great concern that people who were in dire need were not given these empty RDP houses.
“It surprises us to see an old woman, who depends on a pension grant, forced to share a one-room shack with her six children while there are vacant RDP houses. We need government to do something about this, and fast,” said Mokomane.
CoGHSTA Provincial Spokesperson, Khathu Razwiedane, said the department needed an ID number of Mamakoko to check if she was registered for an RDP house, and whether she has benefitted or if she was still to benefit.
They would investigate the matter further when the information was received, said Razwiedane.
