Durban — The deputy mayor of eThekwini, Philani Mavundla, has encouraged all of the city’s millionaires who have benefited from the municipality to assist and build houses in response to the recent floods which left thousands of people homeless in KwaZulu-Natal.
Speaking on Monday at Wyebank during the handover of five houses to beneficiaries that are victims of floods, Mavundla, who also chairs the Human Settlements and Infrastructure portfolio, said that it was time for tenderpreneurs and businesses that had benefited in terms of millions of rand from the city to give back to the people.
“As we provide some houses to the families present today, we acknowledge that there are more than four thousand families in need of homes after their houses were swept away by the heavy rains. We, therefore, encourage those who have made millions from the city to now step in and give back.
“Some business people, such as MaMkhize (Shauwn Mkhize) and others, responded to my calls to come forward and built some of the … houses here. There are 10 other houses being built in Umlazi, and more houses are to be built as we continue,” he said.
Mavundla said those who have not come forward but have benefited from the city must help rebuild. He said housing was not the responsibility of the city. However, when the city was requested to step in, city officials had to find the means to ensure that there was a response from the city.
Speaking on behalf of the businesses, MaMkhize said that although they could not reach out to all those in need, she was glad that she and other businesses had responded to the call by the city to join them in their bid to build homes.
Preferred Precast & Projects owner Nhlanhla Mvuyane stated that it was an emotional day for him and his company. He said they wanted to give back to the people.
Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda hailed his deputy and the businesses that helped to give dignity to some of the families that did not only lose their homes but also their children during the two recent floods.
“In the recent years, the city has faced some of the worst challenges, amongst others, the floods in recent years, the Covid-19 (pandemic), July unrest, and most recently, the two deadly floods. We have lost a lot of lives, and some families have not found the bodies of their loved ones.
“However, as the city we have shown resilience, and we continue working with communities in our recovery process,” said Kaunda.
He added that although families were far from finding closure, it was important to celebrate the little successes and ensure that families received support.
Kaunda criticised those who chose to ignore some of the good work done by the government and said that not everyone was corrupt.
“There are good things we do as the government, but some people chose to only focus on the negative aspect of governance. Where there is corruption, we agree that it must be dealt with.”
Among the beneficiaries that received newly built houses were Mmeli Sokhela and his wife Lamlile Sithole, who lost four children when their house collapsed during flooding. They said that although they were happy, it was still difficult for them to celebrate without their children.
“Our happiness is incomplete. We may now have a house, but we will never recover from losing our children. We are, however, happy to have a home and grateful to the city for coming to our aid,” said Sithole.
Asked whether the family had received counselling, Sokhela said that they did not receive any counselling.
Daily News