An informal settlement has sprung up in Morgenzon, located in the town feedlot where cattle used to roam. According to Lubabalo Majenge, spokesperson for the Lekwa Local Municipality, this settlement was erected illegally.

The Standerton Advertiser spoke to Alex Wehmeyer, principal of Morgenzon Landbou Akademie, which borders the new settlement.

According to Wehmeyer, this settlement has caused many problems for the school, including pollution of the school grounds and fires that endanger the girls living in the nearby hostel.

“It is a health and safety risk for our learners, as there are no water and sanitation services provided to the settlement,” stated Wehmeyer.

Wehmeyer said that in one instance, learners from the school had to fight a fire on the premises with flaps. Shortly after the fire was extinguished, it was allegedly relit by one of the illegal occupiers. Wehmeyer stated that they have groundskeepers who regularly have to pick up waste blown onto school grounds.

“Our learners are being put at risk due to the unsafe and unhygienic environment that the settlement provides,” concluded Wehmeyer.

The school is not the only institution complaining about this settlement. According to Frans Joubert, a local farmer, his land shares a border with the illegal settlement.

He has suffered significant losses due to fires spreading from the settlement to his land. Joubert also claimed that waste from the settlement is regularly dumped on his land, which causes havoc for his cattle. His cattle, while grazing, often pick up items such as used diapers and plastic bags.

“When my cattle ingest the plastic, they die,” stated Joubert.

According to Joubert, the illegal settlers also regularly trespass on his land, using his feed camps as toilets, doing laundry in a stream, and searching for wood without asking for permission.

ALSO CHECK: SAPS officer from eMbalenhle faces multiple charges over rifle linked to taxi boss murder

He claims that the people living on the feedlot have, on numerous occasions, destroyed his boundary wire fence so their cattle could use his feeding camps.

The Standerton Advertiser took the matter to the Lekwa Local Municipality, and Majenge confirmed that the shacks are being illegally erected and occupied.

“The land being invaded belongs to the municipality,” stated Majenge.

When asked about the services provided to the area, Majenge confirmed that the municipality cannot provide services to illegally occupied stands. This means that the settlement has no electricity, water, or waste disposal system, making the area generally dirty and unsafe for occupants.

“The municipality has conducted a site inspection and will be undertaking beneficiary verification. We are trying to prevent the invasion from expanding,” said Majenge.