Recent heavy rains in the North West and Northern Cape have caused large scale damage to especially mud houses in the area. Families in rural areas have been living in these homes for decades.
Thirty-five-year-old mother of five, Masego Motlhankanyane inherited a delapidated home from her parents and she now fears the worst for her children who are forced to live in a house that leaks.
“This house would be ok if I had fixed it especially in the bedroom. I would not be waking up in the middle of the night because of the rain.”
Meanwhile, despite efforts by government to provide housing for the poor, there are still serious challenges.
Political analyst Dr Sethulego Matebesi says the house structure is a serious problem.
“If you look at housing structure it is a definite serious problem and it’s a huge concern because we all know that each year municipalities and even the provincial government do get an allocation for building houses. The question is that even if you look at the manifesto of the ruling party you will always see that there are promises of building house for these rural areas.”
