- Since Saturday hundreds of people have moved onto empty land near KwaNobuhle in Kariega pegging out plots for shacks.
- They say the land has been abandoned by the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality and has become a crime hotspot.
- The municipality says the occupation will not be allowed and the pegs will be removed.
Hundreds of people have moved onto land near KwaNobuhle in Kariega, staking out plots for houses.
They say the land, formerly used for vegetable farming, has been abandoned by the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality and has become a “hot crime spot” for rape, murder and dumping of stolen vehicles.
The occupation started on Saturday morning, and continued on Monday and Tuesday. The occupiers, some of whom are elderly, are clearing the land and burning weeds and have marked out plots with strips of plastic and planks. They say they will build shacks and move in with their families.
Xolani Booi said the land was a hot spot for crime. He said the dead body of a man had been found in the area two weeks ago. “Had there been people living here, there would have been no lost soul.”
At the moment Booi and his family live in someone else’s shack in Area 11 informal settlement, about 500 metres away. Area 11 was occupied in 2018 and attempts to evict residents were frozen by former mayor Mongameli Bobani. Residents named the area Bobani Village but now it is called Area 11.
Phakamisa Zinto said he was marking out spaces for his children. “When I heard people were marking plots on Saturday, I said God is blessing my children at last,” said Zinto, whose adult children live with him in an RDP house. He said he would help his children with building materials for their shacks.
Thando Tshandu and his friend Mzwabantu Loro were digging out weeds.
Tshandu said he lived in a backyard shack with his mother and aunt and his children. “There is no privacy, because we are seven in the yard. My kids are aged seven and 12. We need space.”
“This land can be used for development instead of leaving it to be used by criminals.”
Loro said people who walked to work in the factories nearby were often robbed. “We will put an end to that by staying here,” he said.
However, Nelson Mandela Bay Mayco Member for Human Settlements Thembinkosi Mafana said the occupation would be stopped.
“Two days ago, I asked the metro police to remove these plots. These are times when people think we will sympathise ahead of elections. How are we going to put services on land that is taken illegally?“
Municipal spokesperson Mamela Ndamase said Tuesday the land was a flood plain which had previously been used for farming. She said the City would remove the pegs.
Since Saturday, hundreds of people have staked out pieces of land on which to build shacks on municipal land in Kariega.
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Trash
A baby was born in South Africa. The village was very poor, and the makeshift hospital didn\’t have some necessary equipment.. such as scales.
The father however, was desperate to know the newborn baby\’s weight. After quite a bit of asking around, the hospital\’s chairman came up with an idea.
\”Five miles west, there\’s a butcher shop. The owner deals with meat, he should have a rather precise scale. You could just put your baby on the meat scale, and the weight reading you\’ll get should be pretty accurate.\”
And so the father departed westward. After much walking, with his newborn child cardled safely in his arms, he finally arrived at the butcher shop. He explained his dilemma to the shop owner, to witch the latter replied:
\”Don\’t worry, friend. It\’s not even a problem, I\’ll check it for you, free of charge.\” And so he took the child to the back, where the scale was located.
The father heard rumbling noises, and some scraping.. About a minute later the butcher came back.
\”About three pounds boneless\” He said.
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The difference between the South African football team and a tea bag is that the tea bag stays in the cup