In Conversation With Mongezi Ntsebenzo, ActionSA Gauteng Provincial Spokesperson
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ActionSA has raised serious concerns about ongoing housing failures across Ekurhuleni, citing widespread delays, abandoned developments, and the illegal occupation of housing projects that have left many qualifying beneficiaries without access to homes.
The concerns were highlighted during an urgent engagement between ActionSA MPL Emma More and Gauteng Human Settlements MEC Tasneem Motara. The meeting focused on addressing housing hijackings in Ward 88 and the continued collapse of several housing projects across the municipality.
ActionSA welcomed commitments from the MEC to improve communication with residents awaiting housing allocation and to convene a public meeting in Ward 88. The meeting is expected to provide residents with updates on housing developments and address the ongoing illegal occupation of houses affecting communities in Ward 88, Mackenzieville, and Alra Park.
A key focus of the discussions was the Hospital View Housing Project in Tembisa, which has become a symbol of the housing crisis in Ekurhuleni. According to a written response from the Gauteng Department of Human Settlements to questions submitted by Emma More, the project has been on hold since June 2022 due to funding constraints linked to the Human Settlements Development Grant.
The Department revealed that approximately R87 million of the project’s R97 million budgets has already been spent, yet the development remains incomplete. The project is currently 85% complete, with around 500 housing units standing unfinished and unoccupied. Contractors Yenzisisa Contractor, Robeco Africa, and Anita Building reportedly left the site due to community unrest and depleted project funding.
ActionSA has expressed concern that structural assessments are only now being conducted to determine the extent of damage caused by vandalism and exposure to the elements since construction halted. Residents have been informed that remedial work could take between 18 and 24 months to complete, subject to the availability of additional funding.
The party argues that these delays have denied hundreds of deserving residents’ access to housing and has called for improved planning, adequate resource allocation, and urgent funding interventions to ensure that stalled projects are completed and handed over to their intended beneficiaries.
The concerns were highlighted during an urgent engagement between ActionSA MPL Emma More and Gauteng Human Settlements MEC Tasneem Motara. The meeting focused on addressing housing hijackings in Ward 88 and the continued collapse of several housing projects across the municipality.
ActionSA welcomed commitments from the MEC to improve communication with residents awaiting housing allocation and to convene a public meeting in Ward 88. The meeting is expected to provide residents with updates on housing developments and address the ongoing illegal occupation of houses affecting communities in Ward 88, Mackenzieville, and Alra Park.
A key focus of the discussions was the Hospital View Housing Project in Tembisa, which has become a symbol of the housing crisis in Ekurhuleni. According to a written response from the Gauteng Department of Human Settlements to questions submitted by Emma More, the project has been on hold since June 2022 due to funding constraints linked to the Human Settlements Development Grant.
The Department revealed that approximately R87 million of the project’s R97 million budgets has already been spent, yet the development remains incomplete. The project is currently 85% complete, with around 500 housing units standing unfinished and unoccupied. Contractors Yenzisisa Contractor, Robeco Africa, and Anita Building reportedly left the site due to community unrest and depleted project funding.
ActionSA has expressed concern that structural assessments are only now being conducted to determine the extent of damage caused by vandalism and exposure to the elements since construction halted. Residents have been informed that remedial work could take between 18 and 24 months to complete, subject to the availability of additional funding.
The party argues that these delays have denied hundreds of deserving residents’ access to housing and has called for improved planning, adequate resource allocation, and urgent funding interventions to ensure that stalled projects are completed and handed over to their intended beneficiaries.
