This department has been run down and is hardly utilised whereas it could be saving the government money if it was used to full capacity. This public housing must break down the racial divide that still exists from the Group Areas Act. The housing policy should integrate areas rather than shifting poor people around the peripheries. This is a classic case of blaming the victim. The GEAR policy means millions of people are without jobs, homes or services.
GEAR means that townships have remained devoid of greenery and parks.
There was never a budget for parks in Alexandra before. It is the most cynical politicking to remove poverty stricken residents to make way for a park, simply because residents might become an international embarassment should they be stricken with cholera. None of these are going to prevent another outbreak of cholera in the future. The union calls on government to put in place a national cross-subisidisation system for water, install waterborne sewage and sanitiation systems, and fulfill the election promises of free basic services. The union is going to consistently call for housing and services as basic human rights until they are provided.