Clothing union praises stricter border control

housing committee chairperson, said that despite a R1 billion budget cut over the next three years, the project is still ongoing.

“I’m pleased to note that through the Title Deeds Restoration Project, the new Title Deeds Restoration Grant will allow qualifying residents to benefit and will assist in addressing the backlog of title deeds. All municipalities will submit new business plans when applying for funding in the 2018/2019 financial year,” she said.

She called on Housing MEC Bonginkosi Madikizela to engage with communities and municipalities to resolve any confusion so that every resident realises their constitutional right to housing.

But Madikizela said there were those who abused the system to benefit themselves. “You cannot sell a government house before eight years. When we hand over title deeds, we do so to empower people and give them liquidity. We have processes in place to prevent corruption. When a beneficiary applies for a house or subsidy, he or she can only do so once. And for those who try and abuse the system, there are penalties in place,” he said.

Asked how poor families would be able to afford paying for rates, taxes and insurance, Madikizela said: “Once we hand the property over, we assume no responsibility. It becomes the responsibility of the owner. For those that cannot afford rates and taxes, there is provision made in the indigent grant.”

Brenda Nobanda, deputy chairperson of rights group Reclaim the City, said those who received title deeds and sold their houses were adding to the problem.

“You find certain people who now own houses and then they sell it and take the money and move back to the Eastern Cape. It is wrong, because this makes the process bad for all of us,” she said.

“Part of the reason some people opt to sell the properties is because they can’t afford rates and taxes and insurance for their homes. Others are purely just greedy and take the money and hit the road. There are even others who go back to the township and wait for another house,” she said.

Sharon Davids, ANC spokesperson on housing, said it firmly believed that people should receive their title deeds. “But there are issues with this because some elements abuse the system,” she said.

Davids said having a title deed gave owners power and a sense of belonging. “For those who cannot afford to pay their rates, there are indigent grants. I am confident that those who are employed will surely pay what needs to be paid.”

Ferlon Christians, African Christian Democratic Party leader, said the corruption in the housing sector needed urgent attention.

“We need the government to address the issue. We cannot have people getting title deeds for a state house and selling it just to go and live in a township again.”

THERE ARE EVEN OTHERS WHO GO BACK TO THE TOWNSHIP AND WAIT FOR ANOTHER HOUSE

IN JUST over two months since President Cyril Ramaphosa took over the leadership of the ANC, security agencies at the country’s borders are being praised for reducing the amount of cheap clothes entering the country illegally.

Talking to the Independent Media on the sidelines of the SA Clothing and Textile Workers’ Union’s (Sactwu) threeday national bargaining conference in Durban yesterday, Sactwu general secretary Andre Kriel said the ANC under Ramaphosa had brought control to the country’s borders.

“The machinery of government has started to work,” said Kriel.

He said that under former president Jacob Zuma, inefficient border and customs control had led to job losses in the country’s clothing and textile industry.

“We are very pleased to see that since the December conference, there is more vigour and energy in doing the job that is supposed to be done.

“Sars, since the beginning of the year, has confiscated over R200 million worth of illicit (clothing),” Kriel said. He said previously, commitment by security agencies had been lacking because of internal political issues bedevilling the government, “such as corruption in the state institutions”.

Sactwu runs its own textile and clothing companies in Cape Town, Durban, Ladysmith and Pretoria, with a total workforce of 4 000.

According to Statistics SA, the third quarter of 2017 showed a decline of 31 000 jobs, to 9 589 000, in the formal non-agricultural sector. Quarterly employment declines were driven mainly by the community services industry, which lost 10 000 jobs. Additional job losses were observed in the mining and quarrying industry (9 000), trade industry (7 000), business services (6 000), manufacturing (5 000) and electricity industry, which lost 1 000 jobs.

There were, however, increases in employment in the construction industry as well as the transport industry, which created 4 000 and 3 000 jobs respectively.

Addressing the conference, Cosatu second deputy president Zingiswa Losi warned that workers’ support for Ramaphosa would be short-lived if he did not get rid of labour brokers, implement the National Health Insurance and provide free wi-fi for the poor.

He said the ANC should commit itself to meeting Cosatu’s demands, which included radical socio-economic transformation and free education.