Unfinished RDP site ‘perfect for criminals’

DA Tshwane mayoral candidate Solly Msimanga visited the Nissanda housing project in Ga-rankuwa, declaring it a ripe ground for criminals.

Pretoria - Nissanda housing project in Ga-rankuwa (Zone 10) was on Tuesday declared a ripe ground for criminals, with its unfinished and abandoned RDP houses.

During a visit to the site on Tuesday by DA Tshwane mayoral candidate Solly Msimanga, the theft of window frames from the unfinished houses was evident. “These people are already stealing materials in broad daylight, and if they can do this it means they can do anything else. I would not be surprised to find that someone was raped or murdered at this place,” he said.

Msimanga said the abandoned houses were among those counted by the Department of Human Settlements as houses built and occupied.

“This is nowhere near occupation or readiness of occupation, but this is what our people are subjected to. This is sad because there is someone sitting with a certificate of a house that looks like this.”

Msimanga said the DA was going to recoup some of the money that has been spent on the RDP houses as it was impossible for people to get paid for an incomplete job.

Alongside Msimanga was DA Western Cape MEC for Human Settlements Bonginkosi Madikizela who said he was surprised to see such things still taking place in 2016.

“What we are seeing here is the same situation we were faced with in the Western Cape. Talking from experience, I can tell you that this cannot be fixed, these houses need to be demolished and rebuilt, this is not fixable,” he said.

Msimanga said the DA’s approach would be to “do it first time around”. “We would not be talking about fixing or demolishing this first but we would be focusing on the next project instead,” Msimanga said.

The housing project is apparently under the supervision of the Tshwane municipality and the Gauteng Department of Housing.

virgilatte.gwangwa@inl.co.za

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