Dube Hostel residents live in fear as housing project remains abandoned
Residents of Dube Hostel in Soweto say the incomplete housing development has become a hotspot for crime, with vandalism, illegal occupation, and violence plaguing the area. DA MPL Mervyn Cirota has called for urgent intervention and accountability from housing authorities.
MPL and DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Human Settlements, Mervyn Cirota, did an oversight visit to Dube Hostel in Soweto on June 26.
The visit came after residents had raised the alarm about living in constant fear because the long-abandoned Soweto Housing Project remains incomplete and neglected.
The derelict site, intended to offer improved living conditions, has instead become a haven for crime.
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The unfinished block of flats has no roof, and there are signs of fire damage from those who illegally occupied the building. Vandalism, drug activity, theft, robbery and even rape have reportedly plagued the area.
Investigations reveal that the project was launched over a decade ago by the Gauteng Department of Human Settlements.
It was later handed to the Johannesburg Social Housing Company. However, a dispute between the provincial and the CoJ Human Settlements departments caused the project to stall and eventually collapse.
Cirota said the DA would push for urgent intervention and accountability.
