The Democratic Alliance (DA) in the Greater Tzaneen Municipality (GTM) has called on the municipality to provide temporary or emergency housing to families whose dwellings in Mokgolobotho village outside the Limpopo town were demolished earlier this month.
DA councillor in GTM, Mahlatswa Ramalepe, said the party would urgently engage the Municipal Manager, Donald Mhangwana, to remind him of the municipality’s constitutional obligations.
During their oversight visit, Ramalepe said they found families left homeless and destitute after the municipality demolished “illegally” constructed houses.
“While we respect and support the rationale behind the court order and the importance of lawful, orderly development, the right to dignity and access to adequate housing is enshrined in the Constitution,” said Ramalepe.
“In Constitutional Court judgments, these provisions make it clear that even where structures are unlawfully erected, municipalities have a duty to prevent homelessness, provide emergency accommodation, and plan for longer-term housing solutions.”
He added that the DA would continue mobilising [for] humanitarian support and hold GTM accountable.
Razed to the ground
The municipality demolished 65 houses, 58 fenced-off stands and 37 shacks in Mokgolobotho.
GTM spokesperson, Neville Ndlala, confirmed that the demolitions were carried out on 15 September 2025 in execution of a Limpopo High Court order.
“The municipality first obtained an interim court order on 15 December 2022, which was opposed by Mogale Joseph Mokgoloboto, the first respondent. A final court order was subsequently granted on 12 June 2025,” said Ndlala.
He explained that a last-minute interdict obtained on 20 August 2025 was dismissed with costs on 29 August, clearing legal hurdles for the demolitions.
“We sympathise with those affected by the demolitions. These decisions are never taken lightly,” said Ndlala.
“However, repeated warnings were issued prior to any construction or occupation, including public notices, loud-hailing campaigns, pamphlet distribution, and a warning board that was later vandalized. A 24-hour security service was even deployed but was overpowered by those who went ahead to occupy the land illegally.”
Ndlala dismissed the DA’s claims that residents were rendered homeless, insisting that no one was residing in the structures before the demolition.
“It is not true that the affected people are now homeless because not even a single person was staying there before the demolition,” he said, adding that the matter remains before court.
Money down the drain
One of the affected residents, 42-year-old Nicole Ramokone, told Sunday World that she had lost R10 000 in the process.
“I paid R5 000 for the stand at our local induna, and an extra R4 000 for clearing the bushes and purchasing fence and poles. I was hoping to build the house of my dreams and move out of my parents’ place, but that hope has been shattered in a flash,” she said.
Ramokone said it is surprising that they are called illegal occupants because they purchased their stands legally from Mokgoloboto village’s local induna. Most of them were not aware that the municipality have an interest in the same land, she said.
Attempts to get hold of Mokgoloboto’s local induna were fruitless.
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