R1.3 billion and almost 25 years after the launch of the Alexandra Renewal Project (ARP), which was intended to provide accommodation for numerous families, the initiative remains in limbo.
Initiated by former President Thabo Mbeki in 2001 to revitalise historic townships, the project struggled to gain traction amid allegations of misappropriation of funds.
The ARP was designed to house around 70 000 people, but it currently accommodates nearly half a million residents, creating a ticking time bomb for the community.
In 2019, former Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane and the South African Human Rights Commission found that both the Gauteng provincial government and the City of Johannesburg have consistently failed to implement the ARP effectively.
The Chapter Nine institutions recommended remedial actions, including a probe by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) into allegations of corruption that resulted in billions going missing.
Recently appointed Human Settlement MEC, Tasneem Motara, stated that progress on the ARP has been hindered by a lack of coordination among national, provincial, and municipal authorities over the years.
To address these issues, Motara proposed establishing a national central authority to oversee the programme.
She cited successful models like the Infrastructure Fund and Emfuleni’s water crisis response as examples of effective national coordination.
Speaking exclusively to The Star after 100 days in office, Motara expressed her concerns about the missing funds, stating: “I don’t know if there is any truth to money being stolen with the urban renewal project or if there are any investigations I am not aware of… We will wait for a report if there was indeed an investigation.”
She also pointed fingers at municipalities for their lack of cooperation, stating that they needed to address bulk infrastructure before the ARP could proceed.
“There is a lot of work that the municipality has to do first before we can come in,” she explained. “We will redevelop the ARP hostel, but for us to do that, the municipality must put in the bulk infrastructure first. We will completely do away with the hostel and make them family units.”
Motara acknowledged that while significant work had been done for the ARP, it was uncoordinated.
“From my own observations, a lot of work has happened but in a very uncoordinated fashion… You need coordination from national, provincial, and municipalities, and you need more than one department in the province, more than one department at national, and to coordinate that successfully has not been great.”
When asked about plans for residents living along the edges of the Jukskei River, Motara indicated that they would be temporarily relocated while the area was rehabilitated.
Attempts to get comments from the City of Johannesburg and the Thabo Mbeki Foundation were unsuccessful at the time of print.
The Star