Buffalo City Metro councillor Phumla Yenana is in hot water over her involvement in the eviction of an RDP house beneficiary.
Yenana is accused of instructing police to throw Sinezile Mabhuda, 33, out of her RDP house in Mdantsane’s NU3.
The Daily Dispatch understands the eviction took place on Wednesday. BCM spokesman Sibusiso Cindi said the metro was investigating the matter.
Cindi said the municipality would also investigate who had instructed law enforcement officials to carry out the eviction.
“The law enforcement police have a mandate to evict illegal occupants of houses but only after all proper processes have been followed.
“Law enforcement and the councillor will have to explain those processes because we are not aware of this.”
Cindi said councillors played an additional support role during evictions and should not be spearheading them.
Cindi said no one was aware of the matter, including city manager Nceba Ncunyana.
Cindi said neither Yenana nor Mabhuda had reported the matter to the municipality. “I’ve spoken to the city manager and he has told me that he was not aware.”
Cindi said the victim should go to the petitions office located in the the council speaker’s office to voice her grievances.
Speaking to the Dispatch yesterday, Yenana confirmed she was in possession of the keys of Mabuda’s house and would only hand them over to her once Mabuda had given a satisfactory explanation on how she got onto the allocation list.
Yenana said when she asked Mabuda how she had got a house when she had never seen her application for housing, Mabuda had said: “I’ll answer you in court”.
Mabuda said she had reported the matter several times to the municipality since receiving her approval letter in May.
The eviction happened amid claims by Mabuda that the community was “tribalistic” and that the entire steering committee had told her that “no foreign tribe would get a house ahead of our own children”.
Mabuda, who is an approved RDP house beneficiary, was born in KwaZulu-Natal.
“After hearing that I was approved the residents vandalised my shack while I was at work. They have been terrorising me for too long.”
Angry residents told the Dispatch that destroying her shack was part of the normal process that followed once a shack dweller had got a new government house.
“It’s not a secret, the government doesn’t want shacks and we are told to destroy shacks after getting proper structures.
“Mabuda’s shack was not the only structure we destroyed,” said steering committee chairwoman Linda Ndzolo.
During an interview with the Dispatch, residents denied allegations that they had ill-treated Mabuda.
Ndzolo claimed Mabuda got the house in a “crooked manner”.
“Before you can get a house you have to register at the municipality and forward all your documentation, and after a lengthy screening processes you get a house, but this Sinezile Mabuda who had never registered before, just got a house.”
Ndzolo, who has served in the committee for numerous terms, said preliminary registrations for RDP houses were done in 2003.
The second phase was in 2012 and Mabuda’s name had not appeared on the waiting list.
After the committee refused to hand over the keys to Mabuda, she broke into her home last Friday and stayed until being evicted on Wednesday. — malibongwed@dispatch.co.za
Councillor’s role in eviction queried
Yenana is accused of instructing police to throw Sinezile Mabhuda, 33, out of her RDP house in Mdantsane’s NU3.
The Daily Dispatch understands the eviction took place on Wednesday. BCM spokesman Sibusiso Cindi said the metro was investigating the matter.
Cindi said the municipality would also investigate who had instructed law enforcement officials to carry out the eviction.
“The law enforcement police have a mandate to evict illegal occupants of houses but only after all proper processes have been followed.
“Law enforcement and the councillor will have to explain those processes because we are not aware of this.”
Cindi said councillors played an additional support role during evictions and should not be spearheading them.
Cindi said no one was aware of the matter, including city manager Nceba Ncunyana.
Cindi said neither Yenana nor Mabhuda had reported the matter to the municipality. “I’ve spoken to the city manager and he has told me that he was not aware.”
Cindi said the victim should go to the petitions office located in the the council speaker’s office to voice her grievances.
Speaking to the Dispatch yesterday, Yenana confirmed she was in possession of the keys of Mabuda’s house and would only hand them over to her once Mabuda had given a satisfactory explanation on how she got onto the allocation list.
Yenana said when she asked Mabuda how she had got a house when she had never seen her application for housing, Mabuda had said: “I’ll answer you in court”.
Mabuda said she had reported the matter several times to the municipality since receiving her approval letter in May.
The eviction happened amid claims by Mabuda that the community was “tribalistic” and that the entire steering committee had told her that “no foreign tribe would get a house ahead of our own children”.
Mabuda, who is an approved RDP house beneficiary, was born in KwaZulu-Natal.
“After hearing that I was approved the residents vandalised my shack while I was at work. They have been terrorising me for too long.”
Angry residents told the Dispatch that destroying her shack was part of the normal process that followed once a shack dweller had got a new government house.
“It’s not a secret, the government doesn’t want shacks and we are told to destroy shacks after getting proper structures.
“Mabuda’s shack was not the only structure we destroyed,” said steering committee chairwoman Linda Ndzolo.
During an interview with the Dispatch, residents denied allegations that they had ill-treated Mabuda.
Ndzolo claimed Mabuda got the house in a “crooked manner”.
“Before you can get a house you have to register at the municipality and forward all your documentation, and after a lengthy screening processes you get a house, but this Sinezile Mabuda who had never registered before, just got a house.”
Ndzolo, who has served in the committee for numerous terms, said preliminary registrations for RDP houses were done in 2003.
The second phase was in 2012 and Mabuda’s name had not appeared on the waiting list.
After the committee refused to hand over the keys to Mabuda, she broke into her home last Friday and stayed until being evicted on Wednesday. — malibongwed@dispatch.co.za
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