Homes bulldozed in Roodepoort

Nontobeko Mguysela’s house was destroyed. Photos: Silver Sibiya

• People living in houses near a decommissioned mine in Roodepoort say they are being unlawfully evicted.
• Over the Easter weekend, some of the houses were demolished by developers.
• Other residents have now been told to vacate by Friday before the rest of the houses are destroyed.

Dozens of people living in a block of old houses next to a decommissioned mine in Roodepoort say they are being unlawfully evicted by the City of Johannesburg and private developers.

Over the Easter weekend, bulldozers arrived and knocked down some of the houses in which people were living.

Nontobeko Mguyusela’s home of 14 years was destroyed. She is a mother of two.

“They threw us out and gave us unsafe alternative accommodation where we are expected to stay in a hall with other people,” she said.

Mguyusela is now living with a neighbour whose house has not yet been demolished.

Residents of other houses have been told to vacate the property by Friday before their homes are demolished.

City of Johannesburg spokesperson Penwell Dlamini told GroundUp that the families are being “relocated” to “unlock the services required for the Goudrand Development which includes the construction of an electrical substation amongst other services”.

The mega-development consists of Breaking New Ground (BNG, formerly RDP) houses, private housing and retail space. It is led by private developers, the Gauteng provincial government and the City of Johannesburg. Much of the development has already been completed.

Residents of the old houses say they first heard of the project in 2012 and were told they would have to move. They were promised decent accommodation. They say they are not happy with the alternative accommodation they have since been offered by the City of Johannesburg.

They say the hall offered to them is dilapidated and in a worse condition than their homes. They are also concerned about crime in other areas suggested by the City.

By law, a property owner must apply for a High Court order before evicting people living on a property. The court must determine whether or not the people should be evicted, and whether they must be provided with suitable alternative accommodation.

But in this case, no court process has been initiated. And the residents say they have not received any written eviction notice.

Asked why there is no court process, Dlamini said “this is not eviction but relocation”.

Dlamini refused to provide the name of the owner of the property, saying “there are issues of the [Protection of Personal Information Act] in your question”.

GroundUp used publicly available databases to determine that the owner of the property is Dino Prop, the main company behind the Goudrand Development.

Residents told GroundUp that they have been contacted by a representative of Blue Print Housing, which is linked to Dino Prop, and told to vacate the area by Friday.

Etienne Meyer, a director of both Blue Print and Dino Prop, had not responded to questions by the time of publication.

The old mine houses currently occupied by dozens of families facing eviction.

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