{"id":152298,"date":"2017-05-24T10:07:16","date_gmt":"2017-05-24T08:07:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/germistoncitynews.co.za\/?p=152298"},"modified":"2017-05-25T15:10:45","modified_gmt":"2017-05-25T13:10:45","slug":"update-metro-responds-makause-informal-settlement-residents-protest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/develop.citizen.co.za\/germiston-city-news\/news-headlines\/2017\/05\/24\/update-metro-responds-makause-informal-settlement-residents-protest\/","title":{"rendered":"Update: Metro responds to Makause informal settlement residents protest"},"content":{"rendered":"

The roads surrounding the Makause informal settlement were closed on Monday<\/a> due to a service delivery protest.<\/p>\n

\u201cThough the roads in the area were closed the protest remained peaceful with officers from the SAPS and EMPD monitoring the situation,\u201d said Sgt Styles Maome, communications officer for the Primrose police.<\/p>

<\/div>\n

This was until a number of residents began to loot shops <\/a>within the informal settlement.<\/p>\n

Primrose police reacted swiftly and aided shop owners in getting themselves and their stock out of the informal settlement.<\/p>

<\/div>\n

The situation seemed to calm but reports surfaced of unrest in Makause at 6pm.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt 6pm on Monday evening residents began throwing stones at passing motorists.<\/p>\n

\u201cPolice fired rubber bullets and teargas into the crowd to disperse community members, and order was restored to\u00a0 the area by 9pm,\u201d said Maome.<\/p>\n

Members of Marlands Community Policing (MCP), Primrose Residents Against Crime (PRAC), the Primrose CPF and\u00a0CPG Security were on hand to help police with road closures and monitoring the situation.<\/p>\n

The metro responded to the day\u2019s protest actions assuring Makause residents that a process to reallocate them to an identified piece of land was already underway.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first group made up of 1 000 residents will be relocated, in July, to an identified piece of land in Germiston Extension 46 in line with the municipal schedule.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe remaining residents will benefit from the metro\u2019s Re-blocking Programme, which is aimed at re-configuring the current layout of informal settlements and re-organising the ground plan to optimally utilise space to promote the health, safety and well-being of households, with a focus on promoting accelerated service delivery to informal settlements,\u201d said Themba Gadebe, spokesman for the metro.<\/p>\n

MMC\u00a0for Human Settlements Clr Lesiba Mpya visited residents to reassure them that improving the living conditions of the people of Makause is at the top of the metro\u2019s agenda.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe identified land in Germiston Extension 46 will be equipped with amenities such as water and a sanitation system, roads and electricity connections,\u201d said Mpya.<\/p>\n

Currently services provided to Makause by the metro\u00a0include, waste removal services, health services from the Wannenburg Clinic, prevention of land invasion, disaster management, grading of informal sports fields, conduct crowd management and\u00a0chemical toilets and water stand pipes.<\/p>\n