February 6, 2004
By Thomas Thale
THEY stood in wait, patiently anticipating the arrival of their hero. As the convoy transporting the mayoral delegation wound its way through their settlement, the people of Thembelihle in Vlakfontein, a new township on the outskirts of Lenansia in the far south, broke into song.
"We left our shacks behind
And followed Masondo
Masondo our Saviour!"
Unfortunately, the mayor was not able to join the crowd. "I wish to apologise on behalf of the mayor, who desperately wanted to be here with you. But he has had to rush to Dube to attend to important developments in the story of the missing boy," announced Nkele Ntingane, councillor responsible for municipal enterprises. The body of three-year-old Karabo Gwala had just been recovered after the little boy had fallen into a sewerage manhole.
"The mayor sends his regards," Ntingane added. Not even this announcement could dampen the residents' high spirits. The mood was celebratory as hundreds of jubilant residents filled the marquee. Some climbed on treetops, others on rooftops, just to get a peek of the entourage and to welcome their rescuer.
Indeed the people of this area had reason to celebrate. Not so long ago, in 2001 to be precise, they lived in corrugated iron shacks in an unserviced area called Thembelihle, some 7km away. Some 1 500 families were relocated to their new homes in Vlakfontein Extension 1.
With the city's assistance, they established a development trust and were granted subsidies to build their own houses under the People's Housing Process, an innovative housing project which encourages beneficiaries to pool resources and open a savings scheme to build their own houses with government assistance. Members of the community supply all the labour.
And so 14 houses - at 40 square meters in size, bigger and more beautiful than RDP houses - were built by the Thembelihle Development Trust. But that was not all. "The council has approved subsidies for building an additional 1 047 houses in this area," announced Ntingane on behalf of the mayor, to deafening applause. "The community will once again be the implementing agent." As a parting shot, Ntingane called on the community to ensure that there are no land invasions in the area, and to jealously guard their property.
As the delegation left the crowd whistled and danced, clapped hands and shouted their lungs out in farewell.
Thembelihle had set the tone for the rest of the day. Wherever it went, the mayor's delegation was mobbed by well-wishers, with school children forming a guard of honour.
In Olifantsvlei school children sang spirituals, while the emerging farmers from the Thembelihle Farmers Association and the Luthando Farmers Association gave voluble thanks. The city had donated 11 hectares of agricultural land to local farmers to help them increase their output and the farmers wasted no time in showing off their recently ploughed crops.
But it will take more than just the gift of the land to keep the smiles on the faces of the farmers. Even as the delegation left, they were staring at the sky, to see if there are any clouds gathering.
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