Batho Pele flats committee members in Mahikeng have invaded the municipal offices demanding that eviction notices issued to illegal tenants last week be withdrawn and not suspended.
The flats belong to the municipality in the North West. Committee member Aubrey Mohulatsi has warned against any evictions saying Mahikeng will be on fire if the municipality proceeds. Mohulatsi was speaking after the municipality did not withdraw the eviction notices.
“I think the next meeting is going to be in January but we stated to them categorically clear that we are not going to move there at Batho Pele flats. We are staying there and we are going to stay there forever if they want to come there, see how we pay rent, we don’t have a problem with that. But the issue of them evicting us is not going to work,” says Mohulatsi.
The municipality says the tenants must stay at the flats legally and proper procedures must be followed to formalise their stay.
“We are not going to evict anyone. Remember that they have been occupying the area for almost 4 years now. We are going to formalise them. And then we are going to register them. And then they will pay the municipality what is due to the municipality. Remember those are CRU units, people who are staying there are paying between 0 and R5 thousand because some of them cannot afford RDP housing, some of them cannot afford to be subsidized from their employers so they catered there by the municipality,” says Mahikeng Municipality spokesperson Jonny Nkoane.
