6 638 shacks torn down over past year
A SERIES of land grabs in the Western Cape led to the City’s anti-land invasion unit demolishing more than 6 000 shacks since last year.
A report by the City’s portfolio committee on utilities and energy services was scheduled to discuss the progress of several backyarder programmes yesterday, but the meeting was postponed.
Reports indicate that City services patrolled vacant land, enforced the rule of law with respect to illegal shack building and provided backup protection to antiland invasion unit officers.
Between January last year and February this year the unit demolished 6 638 shacks in various operations.
The highest numbers were recorded in September when 1 191 shacks were destroyed. In January, 664 shacks were demolished by the unit.
Sbu Zikode, president of the shack dweller movement Abahlali baseMjondolo, said it was a disgrace that the City would publish such figures.
“It merely speaks to their inability to provide houses for people. It must also be that the need for housing far outstrips other metros. The number of land invasions and land grabs seems to be much higher than in other cities. It is about time they attended to the needs of the poor of Cape Town,” he said.
Zikode expects little improvement in the housing sector and he said it was far too expensive for even middle-class families.
“Houses are overpriced and the property market in Cape Town so expensive one would believe they don’t want poor people to live in the city. Housing delivery has been too slow,” he said.
The report read: “Officers have been at the forefront of the threat of illegal land invasions with 100% successful response to planned land invasions on City and provincial-owned land. This unit is still consistently and successfully engaged in fighting land invasions. The most recent “hot spots” for land invasion attempts during February were Langa, Dunoon, Endlovini/Monwabisi, SST, Makaza, Masiphumelele, Nyanga, Crossroads, Gugulethu, Philippi, Mfuleni, Wallacedene and Bloekombos.”
The report was approved by chairperson and DA councillor Philiswa Marman, but she could not be reached for comment.
ANC councillor Andile Lili said the City had not provided enough houses for those in need: “When we look at the housing crisis, it is clear that the City has failed to deliver on its constitutional mandate. It is not building houses, it is not buying land. Instead, it is selling off land to developers who build expensive houses that only the rich can afford. That is what the City has been doing, that is the only matter on which they have reached some success.”
The current backyarder projects prioritised for the 2017/18 financial year are in Bellville South, Lavender Hill, Steenberg, Retreat, Elsie’s River and Manenberg serviced sites.