Gauteng MEC for Cooperative Governance, Traditional Affairs and Human Settlements Mr Jacob Mamabolo today presented a budget of R4,4 billion for housing programmes within Gauteng during his maiden Human Settlement Budget Speech at the Gauteng Legislature today.
The MEC’s budget speech was a balanced between monetary investments in the province and a status report on community engagements on issues of service delivery in Gauteng.
“Since assuming office Madam Speaker, we have taken major interventions to stabilise the province and to address the major issues around Human Settlements that were raised by communities before the elections”. In this regard the MEC then mentioned political and community engagements with embattled communities of Bekkersdal; Lenasia; Bronkhorspruit; Tembisa; Grootvlei Mine, Rabbi Ridge, Diepkloof just to mention a few.
There were also interventions in the Johannesburg inner city, Alexandra and Rayton-Cullinan were government either prevented illegal evictions or assisted families that were stranded after the evictions.
The R4.4 billion investment will form part of a five year trajectory that would see the creation of a turn-around in the revamp of old townships such as Alexandra, Bekkersdal, Soweto, Evaton, Tembisa and Vosloorus; in the completion of projects to eradicate informal settlements; in the boosting of the local economy and the construction sector. The budgeted money will also be used in the promotion of social and spatial integration, acquiring and unlocking well located land.
On the operational level, the MEC announced two interventions that would assist in improving the quality and transparency of the housing products and service delivery process. The MEC pronounced on the creation of a Programme Management Office (PMO) which will assure the quality of work by housing service providers in the province.
“Through this PMO, we will also conduct a full audit of all service providers to establish their performance based on sound service level agreements and contracts, monitor status of their projects, ensure quality and timeous completion of projects, and ensure that they are paid within 30 days”.
The second intervention would be a biometric finger print system that would assist in cleaning up the housing data base. “This will be a major milestone in using technology to ensure that the poor masses who have been waiting for years finally receive their homes. Through this process no person will have more than one RDP houses and we would have gone a long way to dealing with housing corruption” said MEC Mamabolo.
With regards to government’s achievements in the first 20 years of democracy, the MEC noted that government had made strides in creating human settlement opportunities since 1994 in Gauteng. “In Gauteng alone in the past 20 years, over 1 million human settlements opportunities were provided through houses, units and serviced stands: ensuring that millions of citizens have a roof over their heads and that they live securely with their families.”
MEC Mamabolo also cited notable challenges including the peripheral location, poor design and racial integration with regard to state sponsored RDP houses post 1994, to this he said, “Part of deracialising housing in South Africa is to nullify the perception that government subsidised houses are for Black people only. We have seen today that poverty knows no colour or race. All qualifying South Africans must apply for government subsidies, irrespective of their historical background”.
Mamabolo also committed government to improving the rate of issuance for title deeds. “Whilst we understand issues and processes of township establishment and how these delay the issue of title deeds, we need to resolve them and work towards the final issuing of title deeds. One of our interventions as the new administration is to work closely with the Deeds Office to change the turnaround time and fast-track the issuance of title deeds for our people”, said Mamabolo.
For more information contact:
Motsamai Motlhaolwa
Tel: 011 355 4873
Cell: 079 897 2240
