The government has no intention of building low-cost homes in upmarket suburbs, as claimed in a Sunday Times report at the weekend, Minister of Housing Lindiwe Sisulu said in a statement on Monday.
She described the newspaper’s front-page headline — “Low-cost houses for elite suburbs” — as “unfortunate” and “regrettable”.
There is no intention by the Department of Housing to build a “low-cost house on the doorstep of a R3-million house”, as claimed by the Sunday Times.
The government’s newly unveiled housing plan will conform to international best practice.
“The implementation of the plan will involve consultation and involvement of any affected communities. There is no reason for the department … to negatively affect the high-income market.
“The high- and low-income markets need each other to survive. It is for this reason that in our development of residential areas we need to ensure that the poor are not continuing to pay high transport costs to get to their places of employment.
“We found the front-page headline of the Sunday Times regrettable, but we will continue with the correction of this perception.”
Sisulu also criticised the Democratic Alliance, which on Sunday — following the Sunday Times report — called on the government to explain how it would secure property values in affluent areas if it planned to build low-income homes and flats in those suburbs.
She said the party should have waited until Wednesday, when her department is set to brief Parliament’s housing committee, before reacting.
“It is a pity that the Democratic Alliance did not wait for this presentation … which they are fully aware of as members of the portfolio committees.
“We would have expected [they] would have waited for the presentation to understand rather than reacting to an unfortunate headline,” Sisulu said.
Commenting on the Sunday Times report, Housing Ministry spokesperson Thabang Chiloane on Monday said no right-thinking government would build low-cost homes next to those costing millions.
South Africa is not a “banana republic”, he said. — Sapa
DA frets about property values