Nearly R100 million of taxpayers’ money has been wasted after a government housing project in Soweto was left abandoned and vandalized, leaving desperate residents in limbo.
Close to 2,000 flats, built adjacent to Dube Hostel in Soweto, were meant to provide formal housing for residents. However, due to mismanagement and confusion over their allocation, the units have remained empty and are now being stripped of doors, windows, and even roofing by thieves.
Broken Promises and Miscommunication
The project, launched in 2009, was initially presented as Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) houses for hostel dwellers. However, the government later changed course, declaring the units would instead be rental properties—a move that sparked outrage among residents.
Mlungisi Mabaso, the City of Johannesburg’s Member of the Mayoral Committee (MMC) for Housing, expressed frustration over the wasted funds, stating that no consequence management or investigation was conducted to hold officials accountable.
“It’s not fair, considering this is taxpayers’ money that was wasted,” Mabaso said. “Residents were promised houses, only to later be told they had to pay rent. Many couldn’t afford the R750 monthly fee, excluding water and electricity.”
Residents Demand Action
Hostel dwellers, some of whom have lived in the area for over 30 years, are pleading with the government to refurbish the vandalized units and allocate them as RDP houses.
Zanele Shabalala, a resident for three decades, said she and others are willing to pay but were misled about the housing scheme. “We submitted forms for RDPs but were told we don’t qualify because we were supposedly already allocated houses—which we don’t have,” she said.
Mnqobi Sokhela, headman of the hostel, reported that criminal activity escalated after the festive season, with thieves stripping the buildings of valuable materials.
Refurbishment Plans Underway
Mabaso confirmed that the city is now working to refurbish the units and convert them into RDP houses, as originally promised. However, questions remain over why the project was mismanaged and who should be held responsible for the wasted millions.
The Gauteng Department of Human Settlements has declined to comment, stating that the matter falls under the City of Johannesburg’s jurisdiction.
As the community waits for solutions, the abandoned flats stand as a stark symbol of failed promises and lost opportunities for affordable housing.
