Pretoria – A forensic investigation is to be instituted to look into allegations of corruption in the allocation of houses in Lehae, south of Johannesburg, says Gauteng MEC for Human Settlements, Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Jacob Mamabolo.
Allegations of corruption have been raised by residents of the Thembelihle informal settlement who are being relocated to a new housing development in Lehae. The residents are being relocated due to dolomite in the area.
A planned protest by the Thembelihle Crisis Committee to raise the issue of corruption, as well as the lack of basic services in the area, was averted recently when the MEC committed to meeting with community leaders.
Speaking to the community leaders on Tuesday night, MEC Mamabolo said a forensic audit would be instituted to investigate all the housing lists of allocated beneficiaries in Lehae and those who have not yet benefitted in Thembelihle.
“The allegations are rife and serious and will best be settled by instituting an independent forensic audit.
“The department has recently appointed a forensic auditing firm to investigate similar allegations in at least three housing developments in the province, including Westonaria Borwa near Bekkersdal, Freedom Park, south of Johannesburg and Winnie Mandela Informal settlement, Ekurhuleni,” MEC Mamabolo said.
The Council for Geoscience will be requested to compile a report on the extent to which Thembelihle is affected by dolomite.
Some residents have expressed a wish for a housing development in portions of land not seriously affected by dolomite.
The MEC said he would rope in Eskom and Rand Water to assist in resolving issues related to access to basic services. – SAnews.gov.za
