More City homeowners receive title deeds
19 October 2016
The number of Johannesburg residents who have received their title deeds over the past two months has climbed to over 410 after Johannesburg Executive Mayor Cllr Herman Mashaba handed the all-important and life-changing documents to a further 63 elated homeowners in Ivory Park, Region A, on Wednesday October 19.
Mayor Mashaba was accompanied by Member of the Mayoral Committee for Housing Cllr Mzobanzi Ntuli and his Public Safety counterpart Cllr Michael Sun when he handed over the title deeds at a packed Ivory North Community Hall.
He said for residents to come out in such big numbers demonstrated the magnitude of the challenges the community of Ivory Park faced. “You’re here because you want a government that will react to your problems. I’m here to represent all of you.”
Mayor Mashaba said one of the things he was passionate about was eliminating informal settlements and ensuring people lived in places they could proudly call home.
He said it was unacceptable for Johannesburg residents to still be living in informal settlements 22 years after the dawn of democracy. “I’m determined to make Johannesburg the economic hub of this country. When we get the economy of the city to work, then we’ll be able to uplift our communities,” he said.
Mayor Mashaba said the event marked the beginning of a journey that would see the lives of people change. “The title deeds that you’re receiving today will make you homeowners and ensure you are empowered.”
The Mayor, who is expected to hand over 2 000 title deeds to rightful homeowners by the end of 2016, urged residents to exercise patience.
“One of the things that I’ve set out to doing within my first 100 days in office is to get a housing list and sign it off so we can determine how many people are still waiting for houses,” said Mayor Mashaba.
Cllr Ntuli said the new administration was determined to restore trust between officials and residents. He acknowledged that there was a need to engage communities and find ways to restore the trust.
“The people are complaining and we need to attend to these issues before moving forward,” said Cllr Ntuli.
Regional Director Abigail Ndlovu said the best way to restore trust between the government and people was by sorting out the housing issues. “As officials we’re here to come up with solutions to the problems you’re facing,” said Ndlovu.
One of the recipients, Christina Khoza, said this was a happy day for her. She said she would now live in her house in peace and without fear of being evicted. “I just could not believe it when the Mayor handed me my title deed. Christmas has indeed come early for me,” she said.