Residents of Joe Slovo and Langa TRA erupt in protest against corrupt housing officials and community leaders

Abahlali baseMjondolo kwaLanga TRA
Press Statement – 6 September 2012
Venue: Mass meeting at Zone 30, Joe Slovo
Date: 6 September 2012
Time: 18h00

Residents of Joe Slovo together with Abahlali baseMjonodolo kwaLanga TRA protested tonight against corrupt Housing Development Agency project managers who are working with community committees in Joe Slovo and the TRA to illegally sell houses and TRA structures in the N2 Gateway housing project. We have evidence of corruption by Tami and also by Bukiwe, both high up HDA officials. Many community members have come forward with this evidence.

Today, we protested will the Joe Slovo community who called on the leadership of Joe Slovo to explain themselves. They refused to come to the community meeting. So the community decided to go to the leaders and force them to address our grievances. After a three hour meeting, Sifiso Mapasa from the committee promised to come to a community mass meeting at 18h00 tomorrow, the 7th of September, at Zone 30 park, Joe Slovo. We expect as many as 1,000 angry residents to attend this meeting. We are calling on the HDA to work with us to go door to door and verify each and every person who has received a house or TRA.

Heads must roll for the corruption that has kept us homeless and in shacks.

Media and supporters are invited to our meeting at 6pm.

For more information, contact:

Cindy at 0760866690 (Langa TRA)
Tumi at 0835363604 (Langa TRA)
Busisiwe at 0734961654 (Joe Slovo shack settlement)

Joe Slovo residents protest today, furious at HDA corruption

Press Statement for Abahlali baseMjondolo KwaLanga
6 September 2012

Joe Slovo residents will be protesting in Langa outside the newly built N2 Gateway houses this morning from 8am onwards. Media and other supporters are requested to attend.

Abahlali kwaLanga Temporary Relocation Area (TRA) have been fighting their own battles against corruption by committee members and the Housing Development Agency (HDA) with regard to the allocation of TRAs and RDP houses for residents. Now, it seems that Joe Slovo residents in Langa are also furious at their own community leadership and the HDA.

Yesterday we found out that they accuse HDA of selling the new houses built for Joe Slovo residents to outsiders who are not from the community. They also accuse their own leadership of making sure that they are the first ones to received housing in this phase of the N2 Gateway housing project – before anyone else from the community receives their long promised houses.

If residents’ accusations are true, it would mean that the entire N2 Gateway project is once again hopelessly corrupt. (Remember the previous attempted forced removal of Joe Slovo residents to Delft and the corruption in housing allocation in Delft communities such as Tsunami?)

Representatives from Abahlali baseMjondolo KwaLanga TRA will be joining Joe Slovo residents this morning in solidarity and to find out what exactly their grievances are. We will see if we can make common cause with our brothers and sisters in Joe Slovo.

For more information, contact:

Tumi @ 0835363604