Human Settlements Minister Thembi Simelane has urged women beneficiaries of new government-subsidised homes to exercise caution when allowing men to move into their properties, warning that some women later become victims of “home hijacking”.
Simelane was speaking during the handover of 163 houses at the Lufhereng Mega Project in Soweto on Wednesday.
She said women sometimes allow men to move into their homes, only to later struggle to remove them when relationships turn sour.
“I will ask you, how did this man get into your house when we did not give him?” Simelane asked.
She warned that some women eventually find themselves forced out of their own homes and having to approach the government for assistance.
“You women are the ones who do this a lot because sometimes you take them in and say they are your son-in-law because they buy you groceries,” she said.
Simelane congratulated the beneficiaries and urged them to safeguard their homes and title deeds.
“This project was stalled due to a lack of funds. We have unblocked it to ensure that our people are accommodated and that their dignity is restored,” she said.
Gauteng Human Settlements MEC Tasneem Motara also urged beneficiaries to protect their properties and warned them against selling or renting out government-subsidised homes.
“Do not give your house away, because there is no second house coming,” Motara said.
She said it was illegal to sell or rent out an RDP house and that the province conducts physical inspections to verify whether allocated beneficiaries are occupying their homes.
Lufhereng is one of Gauteng’s flagship mega projects, designed to create an integrated community with access to housing, as well as social and economic amenities.
The project previously stalled because of funding constraints and implementation challenges. Intervention by the provincial Department of Human Settlements, in collaboration with the City of Johannesburg, helped unblock the project and accelerate the delivery of homes to qualifying beneficiaries.
When fully completed, the Lufhereng project is expected to provide more than 30,000 mixed-housing opportunities.
