Shacks in the way of safety wall
2011-06-30
Sabelo Mpana
RESIDENTS of OR and Nether Park informal settlements in Mbekweni are faced with danger on a daily basis. This community has shacks as close as 2 metres from the railway line, Paarl Post discovered during an investigation. At the beginning of May, two toddlers were killed by a moving train near OR informal settlement when they strayed onto the railway line. Since then Transnet bosses have promised that they will build a wall there, but this will mean that a large number of shacks in the railway reserve must be removed. Songezo Mantyi, treasurer of Free Enon Malita Zionist Church of God, talked to Paarl Post in Nether Park. “We have been worshipping God here since 2004. Yes we know it is not safe to stay so close to the railway line. “On Sundays when we are in church and there is someone preaching as the train passes by, we cannot hear the person, because the whole shack shakes,” said Mantyi. When Paarl Post measured the distance that Transnet might need to build a wall in the area which is about 30 m, it showed that about five rows of shacks need to be removed. Thamsanqa Ndoyi (29) said, “After the train accident that took the lives of two toddlers in OR, we saw people from the municipality writing our house numbers down. When I asked them why they were taking our home numbers down, no one responded. “If we must be removed from here, the least they can do for us is to talk about the material and other things that we might need.” Last week, Bonginkosi Madikizela (Western Cape Housing MEC) visited the area where the two toddlers lost their lives. “My visit here was to have a meeting with the municipality so that we can find a solution that will work fast. We need to find a piece of land which can be developed quickly so that people can be moved there,” said Madikizela. This week, officials from the province are due to meet with the officials from Drakenstein to identify suitable land for the community. The Executive Mayor of Drakenstein, Gesie van Deventer, said: “Currently we are giving the matter urgent attention. We will engage with the community as soon as the land is identified.”
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