Johannesburg - Vusi Khumalo has been living in a shack for over 13 years with his wife and two children, waiting for the government to build his family a dignified home.
He is just one of three people in his street who have not been afforded subsidised government housing when the last development stopped two years ago.
Khumalo, who works as a security guard and takes home around R4 500 a month, cannot afford to build his own brick and mortar home, though he has considered doing so many times after being pushed from pillar to post by several City of Johannesburg housing officials at the Ennerdale office.
Khumalo, 45, first moved to Kanana Park, to the south of Johannesburg, with his parents in 1992. In 2008, he got his own stand in another area in Kanana Park, known as KwaMajazana.
It is here that he has been waiting for housing assistance since 2008 with his young family, including a wife, and two children, aged 6 and 10.
“When the first development arrived in this area I was told that I do not qualify because I was working for the government at the Gauteng Legislature. I tried to fight this and I explained that this is not true because I am just a security guard at the legislature, but they did not allow me to sign up,” he said.
Khumalo said he had lost all hope in the current administration and said he had decided he would take up his matter with the new administration of the city, which is expected to be elected later this year after the local government elections.
“We are very poor here and maybe some people try to take advantage of that,” says Khumalo.
“I have been to the housing offices so many times and the last time I went there I had all the documents with me and the official asked me where have I been all this time.
“I tried to explain to them that it was impossible for me to come because I work 12 hours a day as a security guard and they close during weekends and they told me to go find someone who has a permit which says I live here.
“So every time I go there, there is always something - I even feel that maybe it was because they wanted me to pay a bribe for the house,” he said.
Khumalo said there had been no new housing developments in the area since former mayor Herman Mashaba was ousted and he said in his home street, nine people had been awarded houses, but just three families, including his, were not.
“That is our situation here, I was here before a lot of the people that got their houses but I still live in a shack.
“It is so sad because when that official said she can’t award me a house, she said they would send people to come occupy my stand and benefit from it. That has never happened, but this is what these people do,” he said.
Khumalo said the local councillor he only knew by name and he had never met them because they never asked for meetings to meet the community.
“I have never ever met him, all I know is that they stay in Finetown.
“The only people I have had contact with is the committee and I told them my story and they said they will follow up and help me, but they have never done anything ever since,” he said.
Khumalo said he had considered building his own home, but the costs were beyond his means.
He said a two-room brick house with unplastered walls would cost around R10 000, excluding roofing costs, which are often more expensive than the walls of the house.
“I have told myself that since now it is nearly the end of their term of office, I will try with the new administration. So I am hoping that some of these officials will get shifted and we can deal with people who want to work,” he said.
Khumalo also explained that his job had previously cost him a lot of family time.
When he used to work at the Vereeniging post, he would wake up everyday at 2.45am and catch the 4am train to make it in time for work at 6am. His shift would end at 6pm and on a good day, he would be home around 7pm, but on days where the train had issues, he would arrive home as late as 11pm.
He explained that the train was the most cost effective solution for him, costing him R158 per month, while the taxi cost him R58 per day by comparison.
“That is our reality, as much as the train is cheap, you can never fully rely on it because there is always something with the trains, so you have to have some money to budget for the taxis on days when the train is late or does not arrive,” he said.
Since moving to a posting closer to home, Khumalo said he now had more time for his family and he could now walk to work as it was closer.
“It will be fine,” he said.
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