‘We don’t have powers apartheid govt had’: Minister addresses disaster response challenges

2026-03-17 - 20:10

Human Settlements Minister Thembi Nkadimeng says many people would rather sink with their houses than relocate from disaster-prone areas. Nkadimeng was addressing the National Council of Provinces (Ncop) during a social services cluster question-and-answer session in parliament on Tuesday. Long-standing relocation ‘failures’ questioned DA MP Frederik Badenhorst had pressed the minister on the relocation “song” the government has been singing since 1995. Badenhorst referred to residents in the Collins Chabane Local Municipality in Limpopo who have been living in a floodplain for 36 years and have repeatedly lost their homes and belongings every time during flooding. “How is it possible that government continues to record and analyse flood damage year after year, yet it has failed since 1995 to permanently relocate residents living in clearly identified floodplains in this municipality?” he asked. ALSO READ: Another major setback to Kruger National Park recovery: Here are the gates and camps affected Minister cites resistance from communities Nkadimeng said the department does relocate people, but they encounter challenges. She said she does not have the power to forcibly remove those who don’t want to, as was the case in the 2025 Lamontville floods in KwaZulu-Natal. The floods claimed the lives of three siblings and left more than 200 people displaced. Nkadimeng said four families refused to relocate. She also mentioned Mthatha in the Eastern Cape, where she said residents had been warned as early as nine years before the devastating 2025 floods that claimed 100 lives. “I’m just saying it goes beyond the issue of packing the bags and suitcases for people, because there’s attachment to areas and spaces,” the minister said. “In Lamontville, an old man said, ‘Everybody I know and have lived with was buried in this neighbourhood; I can’t leave’,” she added. Engagement preferred over coercion She said she would never force them to relocate, unlike the apartheid regime. “We unfortunately do not have powers that the apartheid government had, and we don’t want them – even if it means I have to go back to Lamontville 20 times,” Nkadimeng said. “But I will never pack them in a truck with their children kicking and screaming and throw them in what? Because they are closer to the Umlazi River.” She said she would rather engage the residents and show them the danger they are in until they find amenable solutions. The minister also said people living in Khutsong on the West Rand in Gauteng refused to leave the dolomitic area. “[They said] ‘our houses are nice and beautiful. If they sink, let them sink with us’.” ALSO READ: Travel warning: Floods shut Pafuri, Giriyondo border posts between SA and Mozambique [VIDEOS] Push for faster housing solutions Nkadimeng also addressed cutting costs when relocating people affected by disasters. The aim, the minister said, was to introduce Innovative Building Technologies (IBTs) to build homes faster, enabling those displaced to move directly from temporary emergency accommodation to their new homes. The IBTs – which are sustainable and faster building methods – will eliminate the need for temporary residential units, which are currently where they are moved to before the permanent homes. With the housing backlog and lack of extra budget, Nkadimeng says IBTs will help make the new permanent homes available within 14 to 28 days, instead of years. “We’ve dealt in partnership with Public Works and agreement with terms and conditions to make sure that the alternative material that gets to be used is tested, it’s approved, and it follows the norms and standard,” the minister said. She said schools in the Western Cape have already started using these technologies. Treasury has approved that 2% of the department’s R34 billion budget be set aside for provinces to start using IBTs, Nkadimeng said. NOW READ: ‘It is painful to wait for an RDP house my whole life’