I have invited the Western Cape Department of Human Settlements to brief the Provincial Legislature on the Department’s proactive plans to deal with land invasions across the province, and the support they give to municipalities in this regard.

Increasingly, informal settlements that have been constructed on unsafe land have come under the spotlight due to the risk of flooding and mudslides during the winter months.

The recent example of the informal settlement in the Driftsands Nature Reserve has shown that once communities are settled, it is incredibly difficult and expensive to move them, even if it is for their own safety. This settlement mushroomed during the lockdown and emerged as a result of a land invasion on a wetland and dam wall. Attempts by the Provincial Department of Human Settlements to move the community have been complicated by the ANC national government’s moratorium on evictions during the lockdown which resulted in the settlement growing to approximately 80 000 occupants.

The community is now at risk of serious flooding, destruction of structures, and loss of life. The ecological damage to the reserve is said to be irreversible with the Provincial Department of Environmental Affairs requesting the declamation of Driftsands as a Provincial Nature Reserve to be withdrawn.

MPP Matlhodi Maseko says: “Building on land that hasn’t been approved for settlement could hold life-threatening consequences. I look forward to engaging with the Department of Human Settlements on their plans to deal with the problem of land invasions in the province, and working with relevant stakeholders in this regard. As the Driftsands example has shown, proactive measures are needed before land invasions get out of control and lives are put at risk.”

 

Issued by  Matlhodi Maseko, MPP - DA Western Cape Spokesperson on Human Settlements