MP Dennis Ryder, DA Constituency Head: Emfuleni South, writes:

What is happening in the suburbs of Vanderbijlpark is nothing short of state-sponsored decay. The explosion of student accommodation facilities, many of them illegal and poorly constructed across once-quiet residential streets, is turning the area into a patchwork of chaos, all under the watch of a collapsed and complicit municipality. The culprit? A toxic combination of ANC incompetence, ANC indifference, and ANC-connected profiteering.
It started with Jacob Zuma’s disastrous parting gift to the nation: the announcement of “free” higher education on the eve of his exit from the presidency in 2018. With no feasibility study, no financial planning, and no consultation with Treasury, Zuma left a legacy of economic sabotage disguised as populist generosity. The NSFAS (National Student Financial Aid Scheme) budget ballooned overnight, placing massive strain on the fiscus, but also creating fertile ground for opportunism.
In Vanderbijlpark, that opportunism has taken root in the worst possible way. NSFAS accommodation allowances, meant to assist students, have instead turned suburbs into unregulated gold mines for connected individuals. Residential homes are being converted into high-density student housing, often housing 20 or more students per property, without zoning approval, without adherence to building codes, and without any regard for infrastructure capacity.
And it is not by accident. These conversions are not the actions of desperate homeowners, they are orchestrated by individuals who are well-connected to highranking council members and municipal officials. Case after case, we see the same pattern: by-laws ignored, rezoning applications “lost,” complaints shelved and the benefactors often appear on ANC election posters or are seen having coffee with municipal executives.
It doesn’t take a detective to put the pieces together. The ANC’s silence in the face of this onslaught is not just negligence, it is complicity. The party that should be protecting residents has instead become the silent partner in an operation that is stripping Vanderbijlpark of its character, stability, and service delivery integrity.
Let’s talk about the service delivery.
Emfuleni Local Municipality is a known disaster zone, placed under administration, riddled with debt, unable to pay Eskom or Rand Water, and under investigation for years of financial mismanagement. Now, with the unchecked explosion of highdensity student living, the pressure on infrastructure is catastrophic. Water pressure in surrounding homes drops drastically at peak hours. The sewers back up. Roads deteriorate from the extra traffic. And still, the municipality issues no fines, takes no action, and enforces no laws.
Why? Because to act would mean targeting their comrades. And that’s not how the ANC works.
Meanwhile, residents are left in the rubble. Complaints about noise, public drinking, littering, and parking congestion fall on deaf ears. Elderly homeowners, many of whom invested a lifetime into these neighbourhoods, now find themselves surrounded by informal residences that look like dormitories and behave like nightclubs.
A once orderly suburb is becoming unlivable, not through natural growth, but through deliberate sabotage by an uncaring and corrupt local government.
And make no mistake, this is not about opposing students. It is about opposing the lawlessness that turns students into pawns and taxpayers into victims. It is about demanding that Emfuleni enforce the law, protect its infrastructure, and safeguard communities.
The DA continues to fight for lawful, sustainable development and transparent government. We believe in supporting students with dignity and real
opportunity, not exploiting them for profit.
Vanderbijlpark can be restored, but only when the feeding frenzy of ANC-aligned interests is brought to a halt.
The suburbs of Emfuleni South are not for sale to the highest politically connected bidder. We will not allow this town to be destroyed one illegal conversion at a time.