31 August 2012
Abahlali baseMjondolo of the Western Cape Press Statement

Housing Development Agency trying to illegally evict resident in Langa TRA – today

For months, the local residents committee in Langa Temporary Relocation Area has been illegally selling government built shacks. Many of the people buying the shacks already have alternative accomodation and are doing it in the hopes that they will 'cut the line' and be allocated a RDP house. They don't need a TRA structure. This corruption has been supported by the Housing Development Agency and we now have evidence that at least one member is directly involved in the corruption taking place. On top of that, HDA apparently has decided to demolish some of the TRA structures – we don’t know why because they refuse to communicate this to us.

As a result, some members of Langa TRA, who are staying cramped up in other people's homes, have decided to occupy some of the TRAs.

Yesterday, some HDA officials approached a resident and Abahlali member named Tumi threatening to evict him from an occupied structure. They told him they'd come back today and evict him. Luckily, Tumi knows that it is illegal to evict someone without a court order and without providing him with adequate alternative accommodation as provided by the PIE Act.

Thus, when the HDA returns this morning to evict him, Tumi, with the support of other members of Abahlali baseMjondolo in the community, will stand his ground. He will not be moved until he is given his day in court to demand adequate alternative accommodation for himself and his family. He is not demanding a house, he is just demanding a roof over his head. He refuses to be evicted to the streets.

Abahlali members from QQ Section and other shack settlements will be is there to support him.

For more information, contact:

Cindy Ketani @ 0760866690
Tumi @ 0835363604