The residents of Eluxolweni informal settlement can look forward to an improved standard of living with the construction of a series of new RDP houses.
The residents of Eluxolweni informal settlement can look forward to an improved standard of living with the construction of a series of new RDP houses.
Nongezile Sontshi, an Eluxolweni resident, is happy with her new house but complains that they are quite small, especially the kitchen. Many residents agree that the houses are too small.
For people like Phumla Mpolweni, living in one of these houses might not be a problem as only her and her husband will move in, but for people like Micheal Mjongeni, living in this house with a family of eleven will be a tight fit.
The 40-square-metre houses are funded by the Eastern Cape government and constructed by Toro Ya Africa, a company from Klerksdorp. The company plans to complete 190 houses between September and October this year, building between 20 and 30 houses per week up to roof level.
According to the operations manager, Brian Owen, the houses are of the best quality. “The subcontractors are very experienced and the materials are supplied by well-known companies.” However, according to a carpenter, Eric Marrimbana, the roofs are not wired properly and can easily be blown down.
Seeing as these are standard RDP houses, size seems to be a major problem and this does not seem to have been taken into account. For residents such as Sylvia Mthuthi and Thandiwe Vongo, flooding will be a disaster of the past. “The houses are very small but I am thankful because the old house kept on being flooded,” an excited Mthuthi remarked. Vongo agrees, adding that the houses are small but are better than nothing. It appears that most Eluxolweni residents are happy to be moving from amatyotyombe (shacks) into brick houses.
