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The DA welcomes a commitment by KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Premier, Thami Ntuli, to ensure that the 1 115 families, who remain displaced after the province’s devastating 2022 floods, are finally properly housed.

The pledge was made during the Premier’s State of the Province Address (SOPA) last week. According to the Premier, these families are still living in Transitional Emergency Accommodations (TEA’s), flats rented for them since then.

Until very recently, some families were still being housed in community halls under unacceptable conditions which included men, women and children all living in the same space. Earlier oversight inspections conducted by the DA further revealed that some halls lacked privacy, ablution facilities and electricity.

It is clear that at the current rate of housing provision, KZN’s Department of Human Settlements under MEC Siboniso Duma will not meet the demands of those in need.

The DA therefore urges the MEC and his department to;
• Investigate alternate housing methods. Government cannot continue to build housing the way it is currently doing
• Ensure that land is utilised effectively, efficiently, and innovatively
• Conduct stringent oversight on contractors and ensure accountability for sub-par and shoddy workmanship
• Ensure that housing is built better to withstand the impacts of climate change
• Create a differentiated housing list to assist government to meet the needs of specific beneficiary groups through the appropriate mix of fully-subsidised housing, self-help initiatives, in-situ upgrades, site-and-service schemes and social housing
• Implement flexible subsidies to allow users more choice in the manner in which their housing needs are met.

KZN’s newly created government of provincial unity (GPU) needs to ensure greater emphasis on improving the socio-economic circumstances of the province’s people. This must be at the forefront of all it does to ultimately allow more people to be better placed to acquire their own properties.

The DA will continue to closely monitor progress in terms of the many families who remain affected after the 2022 floods. They deserve the dignity of proper housing.

Issued by Riona Gokool - DA KZN Spokesperson on Human Settlements