A housing feud seems to be brewing in Gugulethu, as the Western Cape’s Human Settlements Department refutes claims by some residents, that they are beneficiaries of an affordable housing project.
Residents from an informal settlement in the township told the publication on Tuesday that a housing project, intended for them, has now been hijacked. They claim that they’ve been visiting the site, only to see other people occupying their properties.
But the MEC for Human Settlements Tertius Simmers said this was untrue.
Speaking to the publication, Vatiswa Magahela said she has the paperwork proving that she’s one of the beneficiaries of the housing project. But the Gugulethu resident said she and her 84-year-old mother, can’t leave their shack, because another family is occupying their home.
“Some of the complainants managed to confront those occupying their houses and asked them how they entered their homes. They were told they either bought or were renting their homes from other people.”
Residents have also claimed that units in Forest Village in Eerste River, which have been reserved for them, is proof that it belongs to them.
Simmers, however, said these rumours are being spread by people who are impatient: “You are seeing individuals who have not been on the waiting list for a long time, and are not part of the steering committee engagement since 2017, not attending these housing meetings.”
Simmers also said that the Forest Village site was in danger from criminals who were masquerading as development forum representatives.
But that problem seems resolved, after the Western Cape government approached the High Court last year, to get an interdict.
-EWN
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