The Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) in KwaZulu-NataL says the government’s failure to construct houses for impoverished communities in KZN was the cause of the suffering of the flood victims in eThekwini.
This happened following a Monday oversight visit to ward 80 in uMlazi by Thokozile Gumede, the IFP KZN provincial spokesperson for human settlements.
Gumede met the flood victims who were promised help by the government but instead have been left living under conditions she called “inhumane”.
Gumede said, “The residents of ward 80 continue to build their shacks on the banks of the uMlazi River, which has resulted in shacks being washed away during the April 2022 floods. They were promised they would be moved to better housing, but that has never materialized. They instead continue living in shacks erected on the riverbank. This is yet another disaster waiting to happen should the floods strike again,” said Gumede.
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“I also visited Durban’s Point Road, where flood victims are housed in a block of flats. I was shocked to learn that nine people from different families are sharing one room. I also found that in other rooms two families are sharing one room, one bathroom, and a kitchen with malfunctioning appliances.
“No scholar transport has been provided by the government, which promised that their children would be transported to school.”
Gumede said this was yet another empty promise made by the government at the expense of poor people.
She added that the flood victims stated that they wanted to go back to their normal lives and be provided with decent houses.
“The laissez-faire attitude of the government cannot be tolerated. They must stop gambling on people’s lives. As the IFP we demand that ward 80 residents in uMlazi, who are staying in shacks next to the riverbank, must be moved from that area and provided with decent houses,” Gumede said.
KZN Human Settlements spokesperson Mlungisi Khumalo said the department’s plans to build houses for all flood victims were at an advanced stage.
Story adapted from IOL
