The Portfolio Committee on Human Settlements has strongly advocated for vulnerable residents, pressing the Department of Human Settlements to expedite a forensic investigation into the ownership and management of Communicare’s building stock. This intervention follows a presentation from the national Department of Human Settlements and the Western Cape Department of Infrastructure concerning the planned eviction of elderly people from Communicare properties, a crisis that alarmingly began in 2018.
The Committee was quite categorical in stating that the investigation should establish the circumstances surrounding the evictions, whether a subsidy was paid to the social housing provider, Communicare, by the Social Housing Regulatory Authority, and whether property management was conducted in strict adherence with the Social Housing Act as well as other legal prescripts. The chairperson, Mr. Nocks Seabi, stressed that social housing is an important tool for breaking down historical spatial inequalities and creating inclusive communities and that these alleged evictions could potentially reverse some of the gains made within the sector.
While acknowledging the complexities, such as non-payment of rent, the Committee advocated for a measured approach. “We encourage people to always pay their agreed rentals. but we are aware that families have lived for a long time in those properties and their current material conditions should be taken into consideration,” said Mr Seabi.
Since first reporting the matter in 2018, the Committee has expressed extreme disappointment that a resolution remains elusive. Secondly, the continuing failure to conduct an agreed-upon comprehensive audit of residents, a proposed process to determine eligibility for various DHS products, had been “unacceptable”. Mr Seabi commented on the lack of compassion all the stakeholders had shown in stalling the audit promised by May 28, 2024.
Importantly, the Committee called for an immediate halt to all evictions until both the forensic investigation and the detailed resident audit are completed. The Committee welcomed the commitment by the national DHS Director General to convene a meeting with the province and the city to unstick the stalled processes.
However, it considered the absence of the City of Cape Town from that meeting to be unacceptable in light of its residents’ challenges. The Committee will invite Communicare next to engage directly on its perspective regarding the evictions and property management.
