Dozens of freedom fighters who fought against apartheid are living in cracked and crumbling government houses plagued with shoddy workmanship, on the outskirts of Port Elizabeth.
The activists, made up of Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK), Azanian People’s Liberation Army (Apla), Azanian National Liberation Army (Azanla) veterans and others, are up in arms as many of the houses did not adhere to the specifications outlined in a memorandum of understanding (MOU).
The R92m project was funded by the Eastern Cape human settlements department, with an MOU signed between the Housing Development Agency and Matroosov Military Veterans Co-operative.
The houses for the Chatty 491 Military Veterans’ Settlement were meant to uplift the lives of the veterans for playing their part in the fight fighting against apartheid.
Instead, most of the completed houses are already showing signs of poor workmanship, with large cracks on the inside and outside.
While 491 houses were meant to be built by the end of 2018, only 95 have been fully completed.
Zanele Jimmy Jack, 52, who was part of the ANC’s MK military wing, moved into his new house on September 28 2018.
But soon afterwards, he noticed his garden would often flood with sewage.
“I also have no gutters on the house. The work all around is very poor and not professional,” he said.
Daniel Hermans, 56, who was a member of Apla, said he was first told about his house in early 2015 but only moved in on January 2 2017.
“The bathroom is just a mess and there are no built-in cupboards,” he said.
Issues at houses include:
● Window and door frames coming loose from the walls;
● Bathroom sinks falling off;
● Tiles cracking inside houses;
● Carports not being paved;
● Interior doors not being primed or painted;
● Cracks forming around the outside of the houses.
Military veterans receive numerous benefits from the government which include housing, education support, business support, skills development and job opportunities.
They are also offered a R1,800 grant through the SA Social Security Agency.
Military veterans department spokesperson Mbulelo Musi said the country needed to honour former combatants.
“We must provide for them, which includes decent houses.”
Musi said he had visited the project four weeks ago.
Asked if the houses were decent, he said: “No. We must take a comprehensive view of the project.
“There are other issues such as security and if it is linked to the broader community.
“To some degree, it is going well but there is a lot that has not yet been done.
“We are designing a programme that will deal with that, including the defects.
“The project is not moving at the required pace.”
The Chatty site also has no tarred roads, with piles of building rubble strewn around.
A leak has left a stream of water running down one of the dirt roads. At one house, a power cable has been installed that covers the gate into the property.
A showhouse was built first on the site and is significantly larger than the other 94 completed houses.
It also included a stove, solar geyser and wall-to-wall kitchen cupboards, in line with the MOU.
MK veteran Meshack Merile, 59, moved into the showhouse on November 30 2015.
He was the first person to occupy a house on the site.
“I was the happiest man in the world at the time.
“Then the other houses were built and they were vastly different with shoddy workmanship, which is just not fair,” he said, adding there were cracks on the bathroom walls.
“The other houses must be done according to the same specification of my house, as is stated in the MOU.”
Matroosov Military Veterans Co-operative director Mazwenene Smith admitted many of the finishings, such as stoves and kitchen cupboards, were not installed in the houses due to budget constraints.
“We are aware of the problems but those people don’t know what they really want.
“They must call Matroosov if there is a problem but they don’t want Matroosov there.”
He said if there was any wrongdoing then those responsible must account.
“They have been talking for a long time but if there is something wrong they must go to the NPA or the courts.”
Smith said the project was still working on a budget given in 2014.
“Every year material gets less because of the budget, we have complained about this.”
He said it was agreed with the Housing Development Agency to remove certain features to cut back on costs.
Smith said the first contractor abandoned the site as he realised the budget was not enough to build the houses.
“But what is important is that houses are built. We just removed the nitty-gritty stuff.”
Veren Builders and Shonalanga were brought on board to carry out the construction work for the Matroosov Military Veterans Cooperative.
Errol Stofberg, a director for Veren Builders, said the company was now in business rescue.
“I could not afford material so Shonalanga was brought on through a joint venture.”
The veterans have since chased off the two construction companies until their houses are repaired and match the specifications outlined in the MOU.
They also want the four directors of the Matroosov Military Veterans Co-operative removed and replaced with people living on the site.
MK veteran Ayanda Sonamzi, 55, called for proper management of the project and timely payment of the subcontractors.