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11 July 2013
Abahlali baseMjondolo Press Statement

Once again Abahlali baseSiyanda March to Demand Land and Housing in Durban

Tomorrow Abahlali baseMjondolo Siyanda Branch will be protesting about all the beating about bushes on their long promised housing in Siyanda.

The Khulula Housing Project was meant for them but due to corruption they were excluded from the project.. It became very difficult when Linda Masinga and Associates were tasked to forcefully remove some residents to transit camps in Richmond Farm in 2009. Everybody knows that there was a blatant corruption in this housing project. The provincial government had acknowledged this and sent its delegation to investigate this in 2009. A Task Team comprised of Abahlali delegates, eThekwini Municipal Officials and KZN provincial officials was set up. A clear promise was made that those marginalized would be housed with the current financial here. But today we are told that eThekwini Road Authority is the only unity in the city that is opposed to our housing project. They say that the land is reserved for unknown future road expansion in case they need it. This is very disappointing because the Department of Human Settlements is willing to go ahead with the housing project as it was negotiated.

Thus we demand that the eThekwini Road Authority (ETA) release the land for housing development. The social value of land must come before its commercial value. We demand that Nigel Gumede must go as he has failed in his mandate. We are told that at least 45% of housing budget goes unspent every year yet we remain homeless. We are told that the City does not have even any housing list leading to misallocation and corruption. politicians encourage this behaviour and when poor people challenge then we live under constant intimidation and death threats. Today Nkululeko Gwala and Qumbela are gone. Who else should die until Zuma fires the likes of Nigel Gumede?

The march tomorrow will leave from Malandela Road Park next to V.N. Naicker School in Siyanda and continue to the KwaMashu Police Station where the memorandum will be handed over to James Nxumalo, eThekwini Mayor at 12:00 P.M. We trust that the Mayor will respect Siyanda residents this time and be honest unlike what he did in Kennedy where he made empty promises and unlike in Cato Crest where he failed to intervene helpfully in the crisis with the result that Gwala got killed.

Contact:

MaMkhize Nxumalo Abahlali baseSiyanda Chairperson on 078 4332719
TJ Ngongoma Abahlali baseSiyanda Deputy Chairperson on 084 6139772