Please allow me to comment on the letter titled “RDP housing – the flip side” in the Alberton Record of June 12.
It appears to me the author has not considered all the facts.
He also does not mention that a lot of land was, in the past, donated to municipalities for parks and recreation, and that this “public land” is being misused for cheap political gain.
An example of this is the development of a portion of public land in South Hills. This development was not accompanied by the creation (from what I can see) of any additional infrastructure other than the modification of an intersection at which after years, the traffic lights are still dysfunctional.
The author makes the claim that people need to be closer to their places of work. I do not see any new industrial development in the area to accommodate the new residents.
The people occupying this development have to travel to work like all employed citizens, at varying costs, and to make the claim that 40 per cent of income is spent on transport is a stretch. We all pay for transport.
Another misguided claim by the author is that about the informal settlement at Newmarket. Whether the occupation of stables was legal or not is moot and he fails to mention that this occupation was the choice of the people.
He fails to state that the people of this, and other informal settlements, will not be beneficiaries of this proposed development.
He also neglects important matters for which the ANC government has not provided solutions or looked at the causes and provided solutions. In this regard, I include quotes from various journals or newspapers which highlight some of the causes that result in informal settlements.
Uncontrolled immigration putting strain on resources – DA Gauteng
Charity Moyo – September 25, 2018
According to the findings of an investigation by a joint group of the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) and Gauteng Provincial Legislature (GPL) into the impact of migration on service delivery in Gauteng, 47 per cent of international migrants settle in the City of Johannesburg without valid documentation.
This is placing a huge strain on the City’s infrastructure, as well as services such as education and health care. As a result, our schools are struggling to absorb the increasing number of applicants every year. It is estimated that Gauteng needs 142 new schools to deal with the current demand. A number which does not take into consideration the yearly influx of new learners into the province.
The Citizen – Eric Naki
Foreign migrant influx straining Gauteng’s resources – govt report
The problem is attributed to porous borders where illegal migrants cross, and they then place huge strain on services and infrastructure.
A government report has suggested that beside a battle with limited resources, an influx of international migrants has put further strain on Gauteng’s services.
The report found that Gauteng was not only saddled with having to accommodate internal migrants from the rest of the country, but it was getting overwhelmed by an influx of international migrants who have to depend on its health and education resources.
The scathing report is a joint investigation by the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) and Gauteng Provincial Legislature (GPL) into the impact of migration on service delivery in Gauteng.
Business Day – opinion piece
Leadership on illegal immigration is not xenophobic, it’s vital
The truth is, no country in the world can afford to not secure its borders because uncontrolled immigration violates the rights of both nationals of a given country and those foreign nationals who seek to be legally recognised.
It is important to state from the outset that the cause of illegal immigration is the ANC government and its failure to address these challenges over the past 24 years. Because of this, people who carry illicit goods, poachers, human traffickers and those who are undocumented have found it easy to take advantage of the country’s porous borders.
Businesstech
‘Too many people are coming to Gauteng’ – and a lot of residents want influx-control back
Urbanisation has ballooned in Gauteng over the past decade, with millions more expected to move into the province within the coming years.
This is according to a new report by the Gauteng City-Region Observatory (GCRO) which found that the province experienced net migration from other provinces of 904 619 people from 2006 to 2011 and 981 290 people from 2011 to 2016.
With Statistics South Africa projecting that between 2016 and 2021 another million people could be added to the population – current residents are beginning to feel the effects.
“Gauteng’s established population has not always received this process of normalisation in positive terms, and there remains considerable sympathy for regulating urbanisation,” the GCRO said.
“When asked whether they agreed or disagreed with the statement ‘there are too many people coming to Gauteng, we should bring back influx-control’, 43 per cent of respondents agreed that influx-control should be reinstated.”
Statistics South Africa
Migrants flock to Gauteng
According to the mid-year population estimates report for 2018 released by Statistics South Africa, the population of South Africa is estimated at 57.7 million as at July 1, 2018. While births and deaths are considered the main drivers of population change, migration continues to be significant, not only demographically but politically, economically and socially.
The report shows that South Africa is estimated to receive a net immigration of 1.02 million people between 2016 and 2021. Most international migrants settle in Gauteng (47.5 per cent) while the least are found in the Northern Cape province (0.7 per cent). Gauteng is considered the economic hub of the country, attracting international migrants as well as domestic migrants from rural provinces, such as Limpopo, KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape.
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