KZN flood victims face eviction as housing criteria excludes many from government support
In April, some of the 2022 KwaZulu-Natal flood victims living in shelters received eviction letters – the deadline being 30 June 2025 – and now they are scrambling to write affidavits explaining their circumstances and why they cannot afford different housing or to build their own homes.
Transport and human settlements spokesperson Ndabezinhle Sibiya told Daily Maverick the verification process of flood victims had uncovered foreign nationals and individuals who did not qualify because they already had RDP houses or earned more than the amount to qualify for RDP houses.
The 2022 floods were among the deadliest natural disasters in the region's history, resulting in at least 436 deaths and extensive damage to infrastructure and homes.
The department is applying the same criteria to disaster victims as it does to people applying for government housing in general: they must have an income of under R3,500 per month, must never have had a home and an RDP house before and must be South African citizens over 18 years of age with dependants.
Sibongile Mkhize from KZN Flood Victims and The Poor Dwellers said they have a number of questions because when the criteria were finally shared with them, they were told that those earning above R3,500 would be partially helped to secure homes.
'I feel like there has been a lack of communication. People should have been told what the meaning of 'we will assist those who don't qualify' is. Right now it looks like they are being kicked right out,' Mkhize said.
Mkhize was employed and lost her job while in the shelter and had to go to the Department of Labour and other places to verify that she is indeed unemployed and qualifies for housing. Mkhize said that in previous engagements with officials they said R3,500 was too low as a threshold to disqualify people for housing. 'If you earn R5,000 you still cannot afford to build yourself a house. Some of the people who will get evicted lived in RDP houses that were destroyed in the floods, so now they are disqualified for the new housing. Is this right and just? That is the question we have.'
Gladys Nongoboza (47) has seven dependents, the youngest of whom is four. She doesn't qualify for housing because she earns R6,000 a month. Before the floods they lived in a three-bedroom shack in Megaville.
She said she had been hopeful the government would help her build a home, as officials had said. 'They said no one would get left behind. I can only afford rent that is below R1,000 and that will not fit a family of eight. Any assistance from the government would make a difference. After we received the notice, I have been looking for rentals everywhere. I just cannot manage with my salary. We have waited in hope for three years but now we are helpless. I have no idea where to go when we get kicked out of this flat – my children and I will end up on the streets. Any help we can get would be great to just find a place to live.'
The KZN human settlements department said it submitted a detailed report on the matter to the South African Human Rights Commission. The commission 'agreed with the department on the correct steps undertaken to manage this matter. The 2022 flood victims have been accommodated in private self-catering accommodation across eThekwini since December 2022. More than R185-million has been paid so far by the Department of Human Settlements for private self-catering accommodation for the 2022 flood victims and those who were affected recently,' it said.
The department needed a further R128-million for self-catering accommodation for the victims.
Transport and human settlements MEC Siboniso Duma said every cent should be saved and used to build permanent houses for the victims. 'In order to ensure that there is no irregular or fruitless expenditure, in line with prescripts of the Auditor-General, a verification process of individuals and families in self-catering accommodation was conducted months ago.'
Sibiya said his department had written letters informing individuals who do not meet criteria that they would no longer be put up in self-catering accommodation after the verification process.
'Living in self-catering accommodation is not viable for these individuals because those that live in self-catering accommodation are linked to houses that are currently being built by the department.'
The findings of the verification exercise had included:
Currently there are 179 individuals who do not qualify to live in self-catering accommodation;
The verification process uncovered that some individuals have government-built RDP houses. And the government cannot build a RDP house twice. It is against government policy;
Some individuals earn enough and above the stipulated amount of money to qualify for an RDP house. Therefore they should not be accommodated in self-catering accommodation;
Some individuals claimed not to have identification documents. When we offered to assist them to obtain IDs through the Department of Home Affairs, they refused and others disappeared;
We uncovered that some individuals are foreign nationals; and
We also uncovered that some individuals that have benefited from the government in the form of newly built houses have brought relatives to the self-catering accommodation.
'The department asked them to look for alternative accommodation as they will never qualify for government-built houses in the future. Some houses for individuals have been built in the land acquired from traditional leaders and these will be handed over by the MEC in the next few days,' Sibiya added.
Despite the 30 June deadline, people have not been evicted, while the authorities consider their motivations to remain in self-catering accommodation.
Sizilwethu Chili explained in his affidavit that he earns R5,000. He pays R2,500 to support his two children, whose combined school fees come to R6,000 per month, in addition to about R1,000 for transport. He pays R850 for transport to work and R155 for a funeral policy, as well as other costs. His affidavit ends with a plea: 'I need assistance to find a house.'
Chili's affidavit is similar to a number shared with Daily Maverick – people explaining their particular circumstances, hoping for a different outcome to eviction.
Noting this, Sibiya said: 'Critically, there are individuals who have pleaded and asked to bring more concrete evidence to back up their position that they still qualify to be accommodated in self-catering accommodation. The MEC for transport and human settlements, Siboniso Duma, has supported the decision to give such individuals an opportunity to provide evidence. He believes that this will ensure that in the future the department is not accused of being involved in fruitless and irregular expenditure.' DM
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