Durban — Residents in the south of Durban have decried the fact that they have been neglected for years.
This sentiment comes after parts of KwaZulu-Natal were battered by heavy storms this past week, prompting the government and other aid organisations to come to the assistance of the affected communities.
Speaking to Sunday Tribune, Tholakele Mlambo expressed relief that the heavy rains and winds that caused havoc in the northern parts of Durban had not reached their area, adding that this would have amounted to disaster for them.
“We are just surviving at the mercy of the Lord, otherwise we are a forgotten community, without any services or form of assistance from government at all levels,” she lamented.
The resident recalled how she had lived at the Uganda informal settlement in iSipingo and was forced to relocate to a transit camp in Malukazi in the south of Durban, and how years later their living conditions had not changed.
“I remember that it was March 2009 when we relocated and my child was in Grade R at the time.
“Today the same child is doing his first year at the Durban University of Technology, which goes to show just how long we have been here despite a promise that this would be a temporary arrangement,” Mlambo said.
She added that their grievances over housing had been expressed at an imbizo called by national Human Settlements Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi during her recent visit to eThekwini.
The lament over poor living conditions was echoed by Bongiwe Khathi, another resident at the informal settlement.
“My understanding was that our stay here would be between six and 12 months, followed by a relocation to a better living area, but this has not happened.
“We live in an area where there is hardly any refuse pick-up and that has risks associated with it,” she added.
Khathi, 41, has two children and wishes that they could move to better accommodation soon. She said the structures were falling apart as they were not designed for long-term use. This was one of the challenges in the settlement.
Skhumbuzo Mchunu, another resident, pointed to the toilets that had not been working for a while.
“Children and everyone for that matter are vulnerable to infections and diseases because of these toilets that have not been serviced for months.
“These are very unfair living conditions, and it is energy-draining to talk about them because we have been doing so for a very long time. “We have been attending numerous meetings in the process with little to show for it,” he added.
Mchunu arrived in the area as a teenager and is now a grown man.
The plight of the community was initially highlighted in an ad hoc committee report from the KZN legislature in July last year.
Mchunu said while the elections were bringing with them a new administration, they were cautiously optimistic about their future owing to the promises that had been made to them in the past about their possible relocation.
Sunday Tribune