Latest news with #AfricanNationalCongress-led
eNCA
5 days ago
- Politics
- eNCA
Police fire rubber bullets at Germiston residents in housing stand-off
EKURHULENI - Police fired rubber bullets at residents who tried to block the eviction of scores of houses in Germiston on Tuesday by throwing stones and torching a municipal building, officials said. After police gained access to the housing complex in Ekurhuleni, a squad of men moved in and hauled furniture and personal belongings out of the homes. Shocked residents accused the government of failing them amid South Africa's housing crisis, saying they believed the homes were part of a scheme to provide houses for black South Africans disadvantaged by the previous racist apartheid system. Two people were arrested for setting alight the nearby offices of the municipal home affairs department, police said, adding they were acting on a June court order to evict people from the complex, which was reportedly home to 450 families. "Unfortunately, the people got wind of the eviction and closed the road. Innocent people and the police were thrown with stones and we had to retaliate to ensure that we dispersed them," Major General Fred Kekana, the deputy provincial police commissioner, told AFP. "Somebody allegedly threw a petrol bomb at the Department of Home Affairs. Two arrests have been made so far," he said. Some residents insisted they had not been issued an eviction order and had been paying rent for years. "Our government is failing us. They are chasing us yet we have titles for these houses," 37-year-old resident Akhona Mbadi, a mother of four children, told AFP. After taking power following the end of white minority rule in 1994, the African National Congress-led government adopted a Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) to provide subsidised housing and other services to black South Africans disadvantaged by apartheid. By 2017 nearly 14 percent of South African households lived in RDP or government-subsidised homes, according to government figures. However, homelessness has risen dramatically from 13,000 in 1996 to more than 55,700 in 2022, according to government statistics.
Eyewitness News
03-07-2025
- Politics
- Eyewitness News
Tshwane city manager willing to comply with investigations amid reports he may have been appointed irregularly
JOHANNESBURG - Tshwane City Manager Johan Mettler says he is willing to fully comply with any investigations amid reports he may have been appointed irregularly. Cooperative Governance MEC Jacob Mamabolo recently wrote to the capital, flagging some irregularities around the appointments of some of its senior managers. At a media briefing in Pretoria on Thursday, Mettler addressed some of the speculation Section 56 managers are senior employees whose appointments have to be approved by the council. Mettler's appointment was approved by the Tshwane council in July 2022, when the Democratic Alliance-led coalition was still in the majority. The appointments of Mettler and six other section 56 managers hired during the DA-led coalition era are now facing scrutiny. Mettler said that from his point of view, he was appointed through a public and transparent process. "How the city employed me is for the city to answer and anything that would have happened in the past must be investigated, and I would welcome any investigation; I will give my full co-operation with any investigation." The DA in Tshwane has accused the African National Congress-led coalition government of trying to replace the section 56 managers with "cadre deployments".
Eyewitness News
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Eyewitness News
DA Gauteng remains unconvinced Joburg is ready to host G20 summit
JOHANNESBURG - The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng remains unconvinced that the City of Johannesburg is ready to host international delegates for the upcoming G20 summit scheduled for months ago, a presidential task team was formed to address the city's service delivery challenges ahead of the summit of world Cyril Ramaphosa established the task group after expressing concerns over the city's deteriorating at a media briefing on Tuesday, DA provincial leader, Solly Msimanga, said he doubted that the African National Congress-led municipality would resolve its issues before the summit takes place. "You cannot walk on the streets, if you're a lady, without your hair being snatched as you walk around in Johannesburg. You cannot walk around holding your phone. You remember Panyaza Lesufi said that within three months, the Bree Street that exploded would be fixed. Has it been fixed? No."
