“We are armed and ready for anything,” the young man said, patting the bulge of a gun under his shirt. He stood on the pavement with a group of five other men, watching as the Sheriff of the Court evicted 90 families from the Newtown housing cooperative in Johannesburg’s inner city.
He is one of the majority of tenants whose rent and service payments are up to date — a majority now facing off against those who have not paid.
The mood this week was extremely tense. Most residents of the 351-unit complex stayed home from work, fearing violence would erupt. Those who have been paying claim they have been harassed by and received death threats from the defaulters.
Most residents were afraid to be seen talking to the Mail & Guardian. “We are scared to talk, the defaulters will kill us,” said one resident.
A group of women hustled us into their unit after carefully checking that we were not being observed. “We have been intimidated many times in the past few months,” one said. “At night they blow whistles to call meetings, and surround our units and pound on our doors and windows. Our children are being traumatised while these people are promising that they will come and kill us.”
Two weeks ago, on November 14, Cope Housing Association, an NGO that develops and manages low-income housing cooperatives, obtained a court order to evict 180 families for unpaid monthly charges, some dating back three years. The amounts owed range from R3 500 to R37 500 a unit, and total more than R1,4-million. In terms of the court order, the defaulters had a week to sign an acknowledgement of debt and agree to pay outstanding arrears.
Those who refused to comply with the order were to be evicted immediately. Within a week of the order, 90 members had come forward and signed the agreement. On Wednesday the defaulters’ lawyers applied in in court for the eviction order to be rescinded.
“We are in the business of providing low-income housing. It is cooperative housing, not free housing,” said Tenji Mayekiso, CEO of Cope. “The project is only viable if all members pay. They all signed contracts to this effect,” she added. Members of the cooperative elect a board of directors to help run it and also take part in decision-making processes.
The decision to evict members from the co-op was a long process. Members found it difficult to agree on evicting their neighbours.
The Newtown Housing Cooperative was launched in 2000, and, with 351 family units, is the biggest of several social housing projects managed by Cope.
The NGO develops and manages housing co-ops, applying for state subsidies on behalf of members. The bulk of the finance for the Newtown co-op came from the National Housing Finance Corporation (NHFC). Members of the cooperative pay a maximum monthly charge of R1 000 for a two-bedroom unit, including about R200 for water and electricity. Charges have not increased for three years.
“This culture of non-payment is getting old now,” exclaimed one woman. “We are 10 years into our democracy but still people want to abuse the government and get things for free. Most of these defaulters can afford to pay — they have jobs with big companies and banks. The people who really need help are in the rural areas, but these ones just expect to be spoon-fed for the rest of their lives. Next they will be telling us they need Thabo Mbeki to stand in their bedrooms and advise them how to make babies.”
“If these people do not pay then we all run the risk of losing our homes,” said another resident.
Evicted residents who spoke to the M&G claimed they had paid, but that Cope had not passed the money on to the council and to Eskom. They also claim there is financial mismanagement and want to see audited financial statements for the cooperative.
Mayekiso dismisses these allegations as “grasping at straws”. She said the board had already accepted the auditors’ report. “If members do not pay, the co-op is unable to pay the NHFC,” said NHFC executive manager Luthando Vuthula. “If we do not get paid, there is less money available to lend to other similar projects or initiatives.”