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The DA's Parliamentary Leader Athol Trollip will be touring the country along with DA MPs and MPLs over the next few months in order to give South Africans their constitutional right back to have their voices heard in Parliament. A range of service delivery sites across all nine provinces will be visited, and this page will document what the DA finds at these places and the people we meet, as well as the action steps taken in Parliament as a result of these findings.

INTRODUCTION

On Monday, I visited a number of RDP housing projects in Limpopo along with DA Shadow Minister of Human Settlements Butch Steyn, DA Limpopo Provincial Leader Desiree van der Walt and DA MP Mpowele Swathe. We were also accompanied by DA MPLs Jacobus Smalle and Meisie Kennedy, DA Councillors Danie van Heerden and Moses Matlala, as well as a number of DA members and activists. 
 
House abandoned due to floodingWe decided to visit housing projects in Limpopo for two main reasons:
 
Firstly, the many incomplete and blocked housing projects that exist across the province of Limpopo have been well publicised in the past.
 
Limpopo MEC for Local Government and Housing Soviet Lekganyane, in his 2009/10 budget speech, highlighted the many problems that currently exist around the provision of housing in the province including the large backlogs, the large number of incomplete houses, as well as the many contractors who have reneged on their contracts.
 
He stated the following in response to these problems:
Honourable premier, last week we received a text message (an SMS) from Solomon Seunane representing the community of Ga-Mohokone. It reads, "We are still waiting for Reconstruction and development Programme (RDP) houses allocation of 2006. We raised it with former President Motlanthe and we made several follow-ups with the contractor. We appeal to you to make an urgent intervention as some beneficiaries are orphans". 

We urge all our people, traditional leaders and stakeholders to act like Mr Seunane. Be our eyes and ears. Wherever you see unfinished projects, alert us, wherever you see a destitute family or orphans that need urgent help, alert us. We have already responded to Mr Seunane's plea by appointing a new contractor who has been given very clear instructions to complete all the homes allocated to that community. 
Secondly, National Minister for Human Settlements Tokyo Sexwale recently announced that his department will be conducting a housing audit in all provinces to determine the current backlogs, as well as the housing projects that remain incomplete despite many of these projects having commenced a number of years ago. Minister Sexwale has also conducted a number of well publicised visits to informal settlements, including Diepsloot, Joe Slovo and Khayelitsha, to experience how people in these settlements live and to assess the massive housing backlog in these areas.
We therefore decided to go and see for ourselves what the current state of affairs is in Limpopo so that we can bring our observations and these communities' problems to the attention of the National Department of Human Settlements at a parliamentary level, as well as the Provincial Department of Local Government and Housing through the provincial legislature, so that both departments can take action with regard to our findings.
 
We visited an urban RDP housing project in Mokopane in the Mogalakwena municipality, as well as two rural RDP housing projects - namely the Motwaneng village in Marble Hall and the Makurung village in Lepele-Nkumpi.
 
What follows below is an account of what we saw and learnt during our visit. I have divided our account according to the three villages we visited.

 

WHAT WE SAW AND FOUND

Visit one: Mokopane in Mogalakwena Municipality

We visited extension 20 of the housing development where, at first glance, it appeared that the houses that had been built were of a decent quality compared to many of the housing developments we had visited in other provinces. They were fairly big, many of them had lintels above the windows and doors, and internal walls had also been built to separate the rooms.
 
However, on closer inspection we found a number of major problems with the construction of these houses.
 
Houses built below ground level1) Houses built below ground-level 
 
Firstly, all the houses had been built below ground-level, which means that, as soon as it rains, water and sewerage from the higher lying extensions flows into these houses.
 
Mud and Litter mixed with raw sewerageWe found an abandoned house (unit 995) in extension 20. It was filled with litter and mud from previous flooding, and it smelt strongly of raw sewerage. We were told that the people who had been allocated the house had abandoned it because of the flooding problem.
 
We spoke to Rosalia Matlou, who had been living in unit 1055 of section 20 since last December, who showed us how she had made a garden at the front of her plot in order to prevent water and sewerage flowing into her house.
 
Small brick wallRosinah Selowa in unit 835 showed us how they had built a small brick wall around the foundation of her house to deal with the flooding situation.
 
2) No water, sewerage facilities or electricity in the houses
 
Rosalia Matlou also allowed us inside her house where she showed us that the toilet had not been connected to the sewerage pipe, which meant:
  1. She did not have a functioning toilet in her house and had to use the field next to her house; and 
  2. Sewerage would flow into her house through the open sewerage pipes. 
There was no running water in her house, which meant the shower and basin in her bathroom was of no use and she had to walk to a stand pipe in extension 19 if she needed water. She also complained that this tap often ran our of water or that the water that came out if it was very muddy. There was no electricity supply to her home and we also saw holes in the roof sheeting, which meant there were leaks when it rained.
 
Toilet removed and sewerage pipe blocked with plasticShe told us that the ANC local government had visited the community about a month ago and had taken down their details and recorded their grievances, but they had heard nothing from the councillors since then. Furthermore, these same councillors had promised to provide the community with a regular supply of candles. However, they only delivered one batch of candles just before the elections and none since then.
 
Rosinah Selowa had the same problem with her toilet and, to try and stop the stench of sewerage from entering her home, she had moved the toilet out of her house and had blocked the sewerage pipe with plastic bags. Her house also had no running water or electricity.
 
Windows covered with metal sheetsShe told us that when her house was given to her it had no window panes installed and she has had to buy and install the panes herself, the result being that some of the windows are still covered with metal sheets to protect her and her family (nine of them lived in her two-bedroomed house) from the elements. There were also no handles on her doors.
 
Drain covered in litterWhen we drove out of the housing development we found two further problems: 
  • A drain that was clearly not working and was covered with litter
  • A stand pipe that was spraying water all over the place, which we could not close and which clearly was a massive waste of water and had caused flooding in the immediate area.
3) Residents had not signed "happy letters"
 
Given the obvious problems, we asked the residents in these units if they had been required to sign "happy letters" when they were given their houses.
 
All of them replied that departmental officials had not presented any letters or documents to them when they received the keys to their houses, which meant that these residents had not signed a letter stating that they were happy with the condition of the house given to them or had been given an opportunity to complain about the problems with their houses.
 
These "happy letters" are a prerequisite which housing beneficiaries have to sign before they take occupation of their RDP houses. 
 
It is clear that this provision was not been implemented by the Limpopo department of human settlements when the houses in the Mogalakwena municipality were handed over to these housing beneficiaries.
 
Interestingly, extensions 19 and 20 won 2nd prize at the housing awards last year at Morapo Casino. This raises the question of the quality of oversight conducted by the government, as it's clear that there are many problems that exist when it comes to the construction of these houses.
 
Visit two: Motwaneng village in Marble Hall
 
Met my a large number of community membersWe then drove to the rural village of Motwaneng in Marble Hall, which is situated on tribal land, and where we were met by a large number of the community members who were represented by one of their elders, William Maloka.
 
Along with DA MP Mpowele Swathe, who is responsible for this constituency, I addressed the community and explained why we were visiting them and invited them to speak to us and show us their housing problems.
 
Athol and Mpowele address the communityCommunity members informed us that not one RDP house had been completed in their village. Two different housing projects had commenced in 2006:
 
1) A project that had been contracted to Naboom Construction: 75 houses were meant to be built. However, a few slabs had been laid by the contractors in 2006; they then disappeared with their building equipment and nothing had happened since.
 
2) A People's Housing Process (PHP) project: That was meant to build ten houses. Some of these houses had never been built, while others had only been built up to roof-level and had no windows or roofs. When we asked residents about this PHP process, it appears that none of the steps or requirements that need to be followed had been met, including:
  1. electing a support organisation which is responsible for managing the project, from ordering the material to ensuring that each phase of the project is completed on time;
  2. paying out subsidies in instalments to the Accounting Officer appointed by the support organisation; and
  3. training of support organisation members in the community to be builders who must undertake to complete any project they are working on.
DA MP Butch Steyn told us that it was very likely that this project had been registered as a PHP project in order to circumvent having to be registered with the NHBCR, which is a requirement for all housing projects.
 
We spoke to a number of the community members including: 
  • Dilapidated thatched roof houseMpyane Mmotong: Who showed us where a slab was cast for her house in 2006, but no building had taken place since then. She currently lives in a dilapidated thatched roof house that has no basic services and, out of frustration, she has started using money left over from her pension every month to start building her own house - directly opposite the slab that was cast three years ago;
  • Laduma Ivy Mokolo: Showed us her PHP house which she was allocated despite the fact that it had no windows, the walls hadn't been plastered and there were no toilet or shower facilities, running water or electricity supplied to the house. She told us that she had heard four years of promises from the ANC government, but nothing had been delivered by them;
  • Johanna Tshehla: Took us to where her house was demolished by the contractors because they were going to build her a new one. But nothing had happened since then and she was forced to find somewhere else to live in the village. 

The community told us that ANC councillors had visited them just before the elections and had promised them that housing construction would commence on 1 May 2009, but this had not happened.

DA Councillor Mose Mtlala also provided us with a copy of a provincial department document which stated that the houses that were meant to be built in the Motwaneng village were considered to have been completed and allocated to residents.

Visit three: Makurung Village in Lepele-Nkumpi
 
We met DA member Andries Makgapo and DA co-ordinator Jacob Mengoai who showed us a number of RDP houses that had only been half-built.
 
Matabane familyThey then introduced us to the Matabane family, seven orphans who lost their parents in 2000.
 
They showed us the house that the ANC government started building for them four years ago. The one side of the house had not even been built to roof-level and it had no roof or window panes.
 
Incomplete houseThe length of time the house had been left at this degree of completion was evident by the fact that the window frames and door had rusted completely and all the walls inside the house were damp from being exposed to rain. It was clear that the government would have to start from scratch if it decided to complete this house.
 
The Matabane family told us that they had had no contact with the government since 2007 and that they were currently staying in two rooms provided to them by the community.
 

ACTION STEPS

It is clear from our visits to all three housing projects that the ANC government has failed to deliver on the many promises they have made when it comes to providing houses.

Instead, many people in Limpopo are living in shacks and dilapidated structures next to slabs of concrete laid as far back as 2006, or are living in houses that were handed to them before being completed.
 
This current situation means the following:
  • The housing backlog in the province continues to grow on a yearly basis;
  • Money is wasted on building houses that are never completed or occupied;
  • More money has to be spent to repair or rebuild houses that have not been properly built, resulting in houses costing way more than what was originally budgeted; and
  • A large number of contractors are paid despite reneging on their contracts and no action is ever taken against them.
The people worst affected by the current situation and these factors are the ordinary South Africans we met during our visit who continue to live without proper shelter and access to basic services such as running water, proper sanitation and electricity.
 
It is imperative that both the National Department of Human Settlements and the Limpopo Provincial Department of Local Government and Housing urgently intervene in this regard to ensure that the incomplete houses in the three places we visited, as well as the rest of the province, are completed; that action is taken against contractors who fail to fulfil their contracts, and that money is spent efficiently and effectively when it comes to the provision of housing. 
 
We will therefore be taking the following action steps to deal with the current housing crisis in the Limpopo province:
 
  • Firstly, DA Shadow Minister of Human Settlements Butch Steyn will write to Minister of Human Settlements Tokyo Sexwale highlighting what we found on our visit and will request that he takes immediate action in this regard;
  • He will also make a statement in the National Assembly (NA) highlighting what we found on our visit; 
  • Butch Steyn will also pose a number of questions on the current housing situation in Limpopo to the National Minister, including whether the incomplete houses we found are regarded as part of the 2.6 million houses claimed to have been completed or under construction; what action steps or intervention measures will he take in the Limpopo province; how many blocked housing projects still exist in Limpopo and the other eight provinces; and what action his department is taking in this regard, as well as against contractors who have reneged on their contracts;
  • He will request that the portfolio committee of human settlements call the Limpopo provincial department of human settlements to appear before it in order to provide an account of the current situation in the province and what action steps it intends taking to deal with this crisis;
  • Butch Steyn will also call for the portfolio committee to conduct its own oversight visit to RDP housing projects in the Limpopo Province;
  • DA MPL Jacobus Smalle will pose questions in the Limpopo legislature to the Limpopo MEC for Human Settlements on the specific problems we found at all three RDP projects, including the fact that houses were incomplete, poorly constructed, did not have running water, sanitation facilities or electricity, and what steps he intends taking with regard to these problems, as well as questions on the whether Naboom constructions has been fully paid, and the steps his provincial department will take against contractors who have not fulfilled their contractual obligations; lastly, he will also ask the department how many housing projects have had to be unblocked in the past and at what cost;
  • Jacobus Smalle will also call for the portfolio committee of human settlements in the legislature to request that the Limpopo MEC of Human Settlements and any contractors guilty of not completing their contracts appear before the committee to account for their failure and provide action steps to rectify the current situation;
  • We will also conduct a follow-up visit within twelve months to see whether any improvements have been made to these housing projects.
 
We will provide continuous feedback on the replies received to our parliamentary questions, on the outcomes of the portfolio committee meetings, as well as what we find during our follow-up visit.
 
Following our visit to Limpopo the DA submitted a number of parliamentary questions to the Limpopo Legislature. To date we have been unable to provide feedback with regards to questions submitted as the MEC of Local Government and Housing in that province, Mr Soviet Lekganyane, has thus far failed to respond.
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