Families displaced since 2022 sinkhole still squatting as metro fires contractor

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17-07-2025
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Timeslive
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Municipality promises to acquire new contractors to rebuild the homes in Katlehong within three months

Nonpayment of a contractor over accusations of inflating prices has put the lives of five families in limbo after Ekurhuleni municipality failed to rebuild their homes which were swallowed when the ground caved in three years ago. 

The families in Skhosana section in Katlehong have been relocated and are squatting in rental back rooms and sharing their spaces with their landlords whom the city has also been failing to pay consistently. The city missed at least three months' rental of R4,500 per family last year, after which the landlords threatened to evict the families.

The homes of the families were demolished in 2022 after an underground water pipe that was leaking for 15 years caused the ground to become unstable and the foundation to crack.

At the time of demolition, the city promised to rebuild the homes within six months, but three years on, this has not materialised. 

Municipal spokesperson Zweli Dlamini told Sowetan last week the council was acquiring new contractors to rebuild the homes. “The building process will take three months,” he said. 

Sowetan visited the building site where the families’ homes once stood and all that remained were the foundations, scattered construction debris and a board bearing the name of the previous builder, Ntlemo Projects, which the municipality has dismissed after pricing and other legal disputes.

For 48-year-old Joseph Skhumbuzo Ngobeni, the wait has already been too long. Ngobeni said at first he was hesitant to agree to the demolition, fearing the city would not follow through with rebuilding.

“Our landlord told us we would have to move out if the rent wasn’t paid. At the same time, the construction company on site packed up and left. When I asked why they left, I was told they hadn’t been paid by the city for more than a year,” said Ngobeni. Though rent payments resumed in March, construction remains at a standstill.

In the meantime, Ngobeni said living with 10 family members in a smaller space than their former home was an inconvenience which meant they could not practice cultural rituals.

Mzayifani Ndaba, another affected resident, said his family were evicted from their rental when the city failed to pay in November.

“Now my wife, child and I are squatting with relatives. My sister, who used to live with us, is staying with friends. We’re all unemployed,” he said.

Out of frustration, affected families formed a committee, led by chairperson Mondli Mlokoti. They lodged a complaint with the public protector in February, but it was rejected because the matter fell outside the two-year window for investigation.

Dlamini acknowledged the delays, attributing them to “non-payments and delayed payments to the service provider.

“There is no reason to believe the same problem will recur, as it has been addressed,” he said.

Despite promising to provide comment via email, Ntlemo Projects failed to do so.