DESPERATE families who borrowed thousands from loan sharks to build their dream homes have been left with nothing after bulldozers flattened their settlement.
Heartbroken residents of the Dubai informal settlement in Jerusalem, Boksburg, watched in horror as their brick houses and shacks were demolished by sledgehammer-wielding security guards last week.
The evictions are part of a wider Gauteng government initiative, spearheaded by Premier Panyaza Lesufi, to dismantle informal settlements and curb land invasions.
"We borrowed money from loan sharks to buy stands, but today we have nothing to show," cried desperate mum Annastacia Macamu, who borrowed R37 000 for her plot.
Many residents claimed to have been moved to the area in 2019 by a mine.
"The mine wanted to remine the soil dumps and it wasn't safe for us to be there because the dust was too much," said heartbroken mum Hester Sithole.
Some of the residents claimed to have paid up to R20 000 for their plots.
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"We are left to pay loans, but we have nothing to show for them," said frustrated Annastacia, who borrowed the money to buy a stand, build a shack and plaster the floors.
On 2 September they watched in despair as private security, accompanied by EMPD, used sledgehammers to destroy their brick homes and shacks.
"Those people are heartless," said resident Violet Chuene.
"They don't care how much we spent to buy stands and to buy building materials."
The demolitions were particularly devastating for one woman who had just built her home with materials from the hardware store.
"The material was bought specially from the hardware store, not from the street. She was determined to make a home for her children, but she lost it all," said former neighbour Esther Lehlare.
"The woman fainted after realising how much she stood to lose as EMPD and security approached."
After she fainted, her house was spared from complete demolition, with authorities only removing the roof and telling her family to finish the job themselves.
Another resident, Dipolelo Kgwari, lamented the difficulty of finding affordable housing, saying: "I work for a retailer. My R5 000 salary doesn't qualify me to buy a house. Where must people like us go? I have children and I was happy I got them a home, but the municipality stripped me of everything, yet I was born in this country."
Dipolelo also challenged the government's justification for the eviction, saying: "This isn't private property. We suspect the municipality has moved us because we are outside the electricity budget. We don't care about their electricity. All we were happy for was a roof over our heads and a home for our children."
Premier Lesufi has announced a plan to carry out "unprecedented" and "unannounced" evictions of informal settlements.
He said that this is part of his administration's mission to curb land invasions and enforce housing regulations across the province.
According to the latest Gauteng Human Settlements Annual Report, there are about 700 informal settlements in the province.
