City of Johannesburg officials are working with local councillors to address the demand for housing in Eldorado Park, following violent protests on Monday.
“We recognise the frustrations of this community, following years of mismanagement and neglect in our city. We ask our residents for patience as we work tirelessly to create a more inclusive and prosperous city,” public safety MMC Michael Sun said.
There were no quick fixes to the enormous infrastructure and service delivery backlogs and the city intended to address them.
Protests broke out in the area on Monday morning and parts of the N12 and Golden Highway were barricaded with rocks and burning tyres. Several vehicles were pelted with rocks and a truck was set alight. Officers used teargas and rubber bullets to disperse a violent crowd. Eight people were arrested for public violence.
“The department of public safety is working on restoring peace and order to the area and is working closely with local councillors to address the issues,” Sun said.
Mayor Herman Mashaba said in his state of the city address last week that a minimum of 60% of the city’s capital expenditure budget would be spent on traditionally poor and underserviced communities.
Mashaba announced a project to electrify over 1 000 homes in areas including Finetown North. It was going through a procurement process for a R400-million housing project, which would include 1 600 units in Eldorado Park, Extension 7.
The city had inherited a housing backlog, estimated at 300 000 units, with an average delivery of only 3 500 housing units per year.
Housing MMC Mzobanzi Ntuli said they would be forced to work under the previous administration’s budget and plan until June 2017.
He said his department had finalised a housing list, which would be made public in the next few months.
The handover of title deeds was a priority for the administration. To date, 2 800 title deeds had been handed over, and another 1 100 were ready to be handed over.
In the next month, title deeds will be distributed to beneficiaries from communities including Ivory Park, Pennyville, Lenasia, and Rabie Ridge.