LANGA HOUSING PROJECT WINS AWARD

Cape Town’s Hamilton Naki Square receives architecture award

18 Oct 2017

 

by PropertyWheel_GLP

 

4 min read

Hamilton Naki Square in Langa.

Hamilton Naki Square, one of the City of Cape Town’s Community Residential Unit (CRU) projects in Langa, has been recognised by the Cape Institute for Architecture. 

In recognition of the architectural, spatial and community-enhancing achievements, the City’s Hamilton Naki Square in Langa recently received the Cape Institute for Architecture Award for Architecture 2017.

This CRU project offers housing opportunities to 463 tenants and their families.

The planning and construction of these units was managed by the City’s Transport and Urban Development Authority, with the design expertise of Architects Associated (the architects for the project), in consultation with the City’s Assets and Facilities Management Directorate.

The project cost close to R170 million and consists of 463 two-bedroom units of 40 m² each, across three-, four- and five-storey buildings.

These rental housing opportunities are aimed at those people residing in the worst hostel conditions in the city, following the development of a priority model for all hostels in Cape Town.

In an effort to provide the buildings with a sense of identity, the architects used the gradation of the buildings as well as the staircases or balconies and vistas to create a unique look.

Furthermore, the precinct’s layout boasts a network of pedestrian routes, courts or play areas, a new public square on the corner of Bhunga Avenue and Ndabeni Street, as well as pockets of parking and allocated green spaces.

Walkways and narrower streets have been created in the precinct to provide tenants with a thermal buffer and shading against the harsh south-easterly wind and sand and the horizontal north-west rain.

‘This project showcases the value of City departments and private companies working together to improve the living conditions of our tenants and their families. The teams who worked on this project should be commended for their creativity and determination. They did not allow the challenges of the sandy Cape soil to deter the construction.

Instead, they used innovatively-designed foundations and a load-bearing system that used reinforced concrete blocks for the construction of the four- to five-storey buildings. Also, the ecological footprint of this building was reduced by not using reinforced concrete structural frames.

“Over the 20-month period of construction, this project created employment opportunities for local labour and subcontractors, through the main contractor,” said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Transport and Urban Development, Councillor Brett Herron.

“This project is line with the City’s Organisational Development and Transformation Plan which places our residents at the centre of service delivery and seeks to improve the way the City works and delivers services to communities“.

“This project demonstrates our commitment to providing well-located housing opportunities, helping to create safer communities through urban design, and dedicating resources to spatial transformation and job creation.Furthermore, it strikes the balance between providing affordable rental housing in Langa for low-income residents and creating an environment which is enjoyable for the community, is pedestrian-focused, and assists in addressing crime prevention through its design by making the precinct more visible and accessible to patrols,” said Councillor Herron.

The rentals are being managed by the City’s Assets and Facilities Management Directorate.

“We are proud that our tenants and their families are able to enjoy affordable rental accommodation which has been recognised for its architectural, spatial and community enhancing achievements. In light of going green, all of our units are also connected to solar water heaters which offers our tenants some financial relief as the demand for energy and its cost decreases“.

“The maintenance of the City’s rental stock usually forms a large part of our budget and therefore I am pleased to know that careful consideration was given to creating the robust architecture in order to reduce the level of maintenance required in future. In this way, the budget could then be spent on other needs that will benefit our tenants and their families,” said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Assets and Facilities Management, Councillor Stuart Diamond.

Langa in Agri-Business

 Langa Agri/Food Hub

Overview

The Covid-19 pandemic and lockdown have laid bare the inequities and fragility of our food system, particularly in our most vulnerable communities. Given the vast scale of the food system as a whole, or even a city-regional food system, a small-scale, ground-up approach is a practical, viable alternative that can strengthen local food production (especially micro- & small-scale farms) and shorter supply chains, create diversity in the food supply chain and channels of distribution (from farm to fork), and contribute to a more circular local economy.

The SA Urban Food & Farming Trust is working in the under-resourced community of Langa with a local non-profit, the Masakhe Foundation, on a pilot project to establish local supporting infrastructure, farming inputs and services (AgriHub)* to assist existing and new urban farmers, and also establish supporting infrastructure and services for market access (FoodHub)* by these farmers to local customers. This will strengthen existing urban small-scale farmers, micro-farmers and community gardens, increase local availability of locally grown produce, improve opportunities for farmers to expand into commercial farming, improve household nutrition and food security in Langa, and strengthen social cohesion.

The project site, owned by the Red Cross Society, is located in the heart of Langa, within the Langa Cultural Heritage Precinct, adjacent to the Lerotholi Food Garden.

The SA Urban Food & Farming Trust has committed to spend a combined R1.5 million for infrastructure and capital investment in the Langa Agri/Food Hub and Lerotholi Food Garden projects, with an additional amount committed for pre-implementation planning, design and other costs.

This pilot project will eventually have local, Langa-based operation of the Agri/Food Hub, with the SA Urban Food & Farming Trust providing strategic and planning support, implementation support, and ongoing mentoring as needed, anticipated to diminish with time and structured to avoid long-term dependency. Opportunities to scale similar Agri/Food Hubs into other communities, creating a network of nodes, are also being identified.

* DEFINITIONS

Agrihubs support primarily the "farming" or production aspects of being a farmer, and can have some overlap with a FoodHub. Core components of an agrihub are the following:

> Input-side services, e.g. nursery, extension support, tool hire, farming inputs, etc.
> Value addition for farmers, e.g. sorting facilities, pack houses and processing infrastructure.
> Knowledge generation/innovation function to share good technical practice but also to collect and disseminate local knowledge and practice
> A coordination/market agent function of availability and order fulfilment to assist with market access

An agrihub and its functions work best when controlled and managed by the farmers themselves. A strong and locally appropriate governance system to ensure the smooth operation of the hub is an important feature.

Innovative products and services can be explored and added in time as appropriate, including, e.g., improving access to financial services to farmers such as credit facilities, micro-insurance, loans, credit ratings systems, and savings products or stokvels; providing training and skills development; coordinating the introduction of PGS/certification standards; identification, testing, introduction, 

supply and support of new methods, technologies and other innovations appropriate to local farmers.

-----------------------

Foodhubs support primarily the "marketing" or sales and distribution aspects of being a farmer  and can have some overlap with an AgriHub. Core components of a FoodHub are the following:

> Carry out or coordinate aggregation, distribution, and marketing of primarily locally produced foods from multiple producers to multiple markets.
> Work with producers as business partners instead of suppliers.
> Work closely with producers to ensure they can meet buyer requirements by either providing technical assistance or finding partners that can provide this technical assistance.
> Use product differentiation strategies to ensure that producers get a good price for their products, e.g., identity preservation (knowing who produced it and where it comes from), group branding, specialty product attributes (such as heirloom or unusual varieties), and sustainable production practices (such as certification).

A FoodHub and its functions work best when controlled and managed by the farmers themselves. A strong and locally appropriate governance system to ensure the smooth operation of the hub is an important feature. 


SOURCE: SA Food Labs Workshop Report, Workshop Report, "Designing a smallholder farmer-focused agri-hub" (2017)

ALL THAT JAZZ IN LANGA

• Arts & Lifestyle

Jazzing up Langa

June 27, 2017

 

(Langa) – Nigerian Trumpeter Joseph Kunnuji joined local musicians at the Guga S’thebe Community Centre.

GOOD NEWS: Nigerian Trumpeter Joseph Kunnuji doing a gig at the Guga S’thebe Community Centre, reports GroundUp.

On the weekend, Gugulethu and Langa residents were treated to international jazz with Nigerian trumpeter Joseph Kunnuji teaming up with marimba player Bongani Sotshononda and local musicians to do a gig at the Guga S’thebe Community Centre.

The event was organised by Jazz in the Native Jazz Yards, a group which frequently organises live performances for new and established artists, local and international, to play in various townships around Cape Town. The project aims to afford township residents “easy access to high quality live jazz music at a reasonable price”.

Zeke le Grange on saxophone: GroundUp.

 

 

 

 

South Africa’s undisputed queen of pop from LANGA

Photo By Briefly News

Brenda, Township Madonna 

10 May 2004

 

242

24 May 2004

Brenda Fassie, South Africa’s undisputed queen of pop, was buried at her birthplace in Langa, Cape Town on Saturday 22 May 2004.

“MaBrrr”, as Fassie was known by millions of fans in worldwide, died on 9 May at Johannesburg’s Sunninghill Hospital, where she was admitted on 26 April after an asthma attack led to cardio-respiratory arrest. She was 39 years old.

Nelson Mandela and President Thabo Mbeki were among those who visited Fassie as she lay in a coma for over a week, but it was already “Too Late for Mama” – one of many songs that Fassie was famous for.

Fassie was the best-known – and arguably most controversial – figure in South African township pop, scoring a huge hit in 1983 with her debut maxi single “Weekend Special”, recorded with her band The Big Dudes, before embarking on two decades of hard living that put The Rolling Stones to shame.

The outspoken Fassie went through drug addiction, divorce, the death of her lesbian lover and more, yet throughout her turbulent life she continued to deliver the goods, becoming the biggest-selling artist South Africa has produced.

‘Madonna of the Townships’
Born in Langa township in 1964, the youngest in a family of nine, Brenda Fassie’s musical career began at the age of four when, inspired by her pianist mother, she formed a singing group, the Tiny Tots.

By the time she was 14, armed with a power-packed, gutsy voice and determination to match, she had moved to Johannesburg to seek fame and fortune.

Dubbed the “Madonna of the Townships” in a 2001 Time Magazine interview, Fassie emerged at the height of the anti-apartheid struggle in the 1980s to give a voice to marginalised black South Africans.

But while songs like “Black President” told of the destruction of black aspirations under apartheid, Fassie was also capable of getting people dancing across the colour line – a feat she achieved from the start with “Weekend Special” (1983), a funky disco groove which became South Africa’s fastest-selling single and a hit on both sides of the Atlantic, making the Billboard Hot Black Singles chart and featuring in concerts in the US, UK, Europe, Brazil and Australia.

Brenda left The Big Dudes in the late 1980s to team up with Sello “Chicco” Twala, one of South Africa’s most accomplished musical producers, a collaboration that resulted in the 1989 hit album “Too Late for Mama”, which included the hits “Black President”, “Shoot Them Before They Grow”, “Stay Away From My Man”, and “Don’t Follow Me I’m Married”.

During the 1980s Fassie was involved with Big Dudes band member Dumisani Ngubeni, giving birth to a son, Bongani – now 19 years old.

In 1989 she married Nhlanhla Mbambo, only to divorce him in 1991 amid rumours of physical abuse.

Descent and return
Fassie’s life went into a downward spiral after her divorce, and for years she checked in and out of drug rehabilitation clinics, missed gigs, alienated fans, was sued by concert promoters, sank into debt, and finally woke up next to the body of her lover, Poppie Sihlahla, who had died after a drug binge, in Johannesburg in 1994.

The following year, 1996, Fassie made the first of many comebacks, producing her own album, “Now Is The Time”, in which she performed two duets with Congolese superstar Papa Wemba.

Her 1997 album “Paparazzi” failed to impress, but in 1998 she teamed up with Twala again on the album “Memeza” (“Shout”), which included the song “Vulindlela” and earned Fassie the South African Music Awards (Samas) award for best-selling release of the year.

“Vul’indlela” (“Clear the path” or “Make way”) became a hit through Africa and also earned Fassie the 1999 continental Kora award for best female artist.

Fassie scooped the Samas best-selling release award for the next three years running with the albums “Nomakanjani” (1999), “Amadlozi” (2000) – featuring the hits “Thola ‘madlozi” and “Nakupenda” – and “Mina Nawe” (2001), all produced by Twala.

In 2001 Fassie released “Brenda’s Greatest Hits” – also a massive seller – followed by “Myekeleni” in 2002 and “Mali” in 2004.

According to The Star Tonight, “Nomakanjani” sold 525 000 copies, while “Memeza” sold half a million copies. “No other South African artist has ever come close to this record”, Tonight notes, “not even top-selling gospel star Rebecca Malope, whose album sales are thought to be closer to the 250 000 mark.

“This means Brenda will take the Best-Selling Album of the Decade award at the South African Music Awards (Samas) at the end of the month.”

‘I’m a shocker’
Throughout, Fassie continued to stir controversy with outrageous behaviour and a turbulent private life. She openly admitted to being a drug addict and bisexual – taboo in the townships – and her antics, both on and off the stage, made her a regular target for tabloid fodder in the Sunday papers.

Jan Hennop, writing for AFP, recalls a 2001 performance in a club in Washington, DC, during which Fassie’s breasts popped out of her costume. “The audience gasped, but Fassie unabashedly grabbed her bare bosom and thrust it at the crowd”, Time Magazine said of the show. “This”, she proclaimed, “is Africa!”

“I’m a shocker. I like to create controversy. It’s my trademark”, she once said in an interview.

At the same time, Fassie remained a central figure in the development of township pop, as her music shifted from the “bubblegum” of the 1980s to the edges of the dominant kwaito style of the late 1990s.

Hennop writes: “In the latter stages of her career her voice also matured, as she sang in the ‘kwaito’ township style – a combination of hip-hop, slowed-down ‘house’ music with traditional African bass, sung mainly in Xhosa, Zulu and Sotho.”

Right up until her death, Fassie was the consummate rock ‘n roll survivor, and the outrageous template for musical superstardom township-style.

‘What Brenda meant to South Africa’
The Cape Times, in an editorial entitled “Forever young”, echoed the sentiments of many of her fans: “Brenda Fassie was many things: immensely talented, tempestuous and outrageous being among them. But she was never boring. Indeed, she has been called a pioneer, a trendsetter and an icon whose passing will leave a huge vacuum in the music industry.

“Farewell, Brenda. You will stay forever young in the hearts of your millions of fans around the world.”

ThisDay, in its editorial, “What Brenda meant to South Africa”, went deeper: “Whoever tells Fassie’s story will remind us that she could sing like no other, and that she gave us music to last a lifetime …

“Beyond the politics and the music, however, it should never be forgotten that Fassie was always enveloped by a deep sadness … Could it have been because she had a hole in her soul that all the fame, money and hangers-on could not fill?

“Many of the world’s greatest musicians had a similar affliction, and they too died prematurely: Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Kurt Cobain. In all of their lives something was amiss.

“In Fassie’s case the causes are not hard to find: she grew up black and a woman in a country that hated black people and women. Though she ended up dying in a luxury clinic in Johannesburg, her childhood was spent in Langa, a rough township on the Cape Flats where not much has changed in the three decades since she left it in pursuit of bigger dreams …

“For every Fassie who makes it out, who knows how many others are lost to drugs, Aids and general despair? Who knows how a Weekend Special turns out?

“All the politicians who streamed to her bedside last week, and who will no doubt be at her funeral, would do well to consider that perhaps Fassie died of a broken heart.”

As Fassie herself once said: “I wanna be loved. I just wanna be loved.”

SouthAfrica.info reporter

DAUGHTER FROM LANGA

Happy birthday Brenda Fassie! Eight iconic photos from the archives

Staff reporter

03 Nov 2022

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Subscribers can listen to this article

Brenda Fassie. Photo: Leon Morris/Redferns

TRENDING

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Often referred to as the Madonna of the townships or Queen of African pop, controversial singer Brenda Fassie left a lasting impression on the South African music culture.

City Press takes a stroll down memory lane to remember the music icon who would have turned 58 on Thursday.

MaBrrr, as she was affectionately called, died in 2004 after suffering a severe asthma attack that triggered a fatal cardiac arrest. 

READ: Chicco Twala reflects on Brenda Fassie’s legacy, her upcoming Netflix film and future plans

Fassie was born in the Langa township in Cape Town and was the youngest of nine children. She gained her love for music from her mother, who was a pianist, and would reportedly sing to tourists from a young age.

She made her big debut on the musical scene with the hit Weekend Special along with her band, The Big Dudes, in 1983.

This was followed by songs many still enjoy today, such as Zola Budd, Amagents, Vulindlela, Too late for Mama and Black President – which was written about the late Nelson Mandela and released in 1990.

Brenda Fassie photographed for an interview by Charl Blignaut for the December 1992/January 1993 issue of Vrye Weekblad In Bed with Brenda. Photo: Sally Shorkend

Brenda Fassie left some audiences thrilled during her electrifying performance at Morula Sun on New Year's Day in 2004. Photo: P Eland

Brenda Fassie spends time in her Langa, Cape Town, home with ANC stalwart and anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela in August 1993. Photo: Gallo Images/Oryx Media Archive

Brenda Fassie, the bad girl of South African pop, got people dancing over the colour line. Photo: Media24 Archives

Brenda Fassie with her son, Bongani. Picture: City Press Library

Winnie Madikizela-Mandela and Brenda Fassie greet supporters of the ANC at an elections rally in Soweto on March 28 1999. Photo: Reuters

Brenda Fassie in 2001 in Johannesburg. Photo: Oupa Bopape/Gallo Images

LANGA BORN LEGEND

 

Who killed Brenda Fassie?

Thandisizwe Mgudlwa 

 

November 06, 2021

 

 

 Photo By BI

Bordered by Cape Town’s Jan Smuts Drive to the west, the N2 to the south, and the N7 to the east. Originally designed in a way to allow the authorities maximum visibility and control of residents.

In the early years, local laws prohibiting the brewing of sorghum beer (umqombothi) were strongly resented and in the 1930s prohibition was abolished in the area with the construction of municipal beer halls taking place in 1945, but the brewing of umqombothi somehow stood the test of time.

In the early years, tribal and sub-tribal ethnic identities were still very strong, often leading to local celebrations by the Mfengu community celebrating their “liberation” from the Xhosa, leading to an increase in tensions. However, the close living conditions of residents promoted a high degree of neighborliness and the creation of broader African institutions that promoted a greater sense of community cohesion.

This history-rich location which adjoins Pinelands, then surrounded by the Epping Industria, Bonteheuwel, Gatesville, Rylands, Athlone and when traveling from the N2 Settlers Way from the Cape Town CBD passing the Athlone Power Station on your left, will lead you to Bhunga Avenue; as you’re turning left you will enter the sprawling township of Langa. That is where Brenda Fassie was born.

Langa in isiXhosa means “sun” and is derived from the name of Langalibalele, a Hlubi chief and renowned rainmaker who in 1873 was imprisoned on Robben Island for rebelling against the Natal government. Langa was initially built in phases before being formally opened in 1927 as a result of South Africa’s 1923 Urban Areas Act.

And on November 3, 1964, a beautiful girl by the name of Brenda Fassie, who would go on to become a music icon, joined the human family. Affectionately known as MaBrrr by her followers, and named after the American country singer Brenda Lee, Fassie was destined for greatness.

Brenda is also referred to as the “Queen of African Pop”, the “Madonna of The Townships” or simply as “The Black Madonna”.

Born Brenda Nokuzola Fassie on November 3, 1964, in Langa, a daughter of a pianist, Brenda began singing to her mother’s accompaniment at a very young age. Her clan name is Madlomo, and proud daughter of the Thembu Nation.

By the age of five, Brenda had tourists paying to hear her sing. Already the signs were there that she was going places. It was not long before Brena would go on to have her first band, the Tiny Tots.

At around the age of 16, the renowned producer Koloi Lebona came from Johannesburg to visit the Fassie’s Langa home after a number of Cape Town musicians had told him about the young Brenda’s talent. And true to form, Lebona confirmed Cape Town musicians’ high regard for Brenda, with Lebana saying that her voice was very mature for her age and was ‘the voice of the future.’ The same year of 1981, Lebona returned to his Soweto home with the Langa girl to live with his family.

The arrangement was that Brenda would finish school before beginning a music career. However, this was not to be. When one of the singers of the singing trio Joy went on maternity leave, Brenda was asked to fill in for her.

And as the saying goes, “The rest is history”, as the Langa born sensation would then turn the world of South African pop music around with the 1983 classic ‘Weekend Special’ that didn’t take long to reverberate in neighboring African countries, and to this day the song still brings goosebumps to many a listener.

She later became the lead singer for a township music group called Brenda and the Big Dudes. In 1985, Brenda gave birth to her one and only child, a boy Bongani, whose father was a fellow Big Dudes musician. And in 1989, Brenda married Nhlanhla Mbambo in a much-publicized double wedding. But by 1991 they were divorced.

It was around this time that Brenda’s life took a turn for the worst as she became addicted to cocaine. Her career would take serious deep. With very outspoken views and frequent visits to the poorer townships of Johannesburg, as well as songs about life in the townships, Brenda enjoyed tremendous popularity as she grew her base as a leader of note.

Brenda’s fame accelerated mostly due to her two best songs in the 1980s, “Weekend Special” and “Too Late for Mama”. “Weekend Special” became the fastest-selling record at the time. The song enjoyed great international popularity, and Brenda and the Big Dudes toured to the United States, Britain, Europe, Australia and Brazil.

Throughout the 1980s, Brenda also established herself as a great solo pop star. In the late 1980s, she began working with producer Sello “Chicco” Twala, a partnership that proved to be one of the most successful in the South African music industry. The album “Too Late for Mama”, which was born from this duo, achieved platinum status in 1989.

No stranger to controversy Brenda’s drug and alcohol abuse as well as her bisexuality also received much media attention. The substance abuse would lead to her admission to a drug rehabilitation center in 1995.

The next year, she made a comeback to the music industry as the producer of her album Now is the Time, which featured two duets with Democratic Republic of Congo music legend Papa Wemba.

Rumors of her downfall as a pop star were proven wrong with her releases over the next few years, especially the 1998 album Memeza, for which she teamed up with Chicco once again. The album became the best-selling South African release of the year and earned her numerous South African Music Awards (SAMAs).

In 1999, she received the Kora award for the best female artist. Her next album, Nomakanjani, reached triple platinum status within a few months of its release.

In 2001, Time magazine featured a three-page special on Brenda, calling her “The Madonna of the Townships”. This is proof of her international popularity. Throughout her career, she regularly toured the African continent as well as America.

On 26 April 2004, Brenda was rushed to a Johannesburg hospital with cardiac arrest. According to reports, although doctors resuscitated her, she slipped into a coma. For two weeks, Brenda’s fans all around South Africa held prayer services and supported her friends and family.

On May 9, 2004, Brenda Fassie died.

Brenda’s funeral was held on May 23, in her hometown of Langa, and was attended by thousands of her loving fans from all over the country including then-president Thabo Mbeki and the rich and famous. She left behind her only son, the wonderful Bongani Fassie.

At first, it was reported that Brenda’s heart failure was a result of an asthma attack. However, after her death, new evidence came to light, suggesting that Brenda’s heart failure was caused by a drug overdose.

In addition, it is also believed that the crack cocaine which Brenda had smoked the night before her cardiac arrest was laced with rat poison.

If the latter is true, then this becomes homicide.

The question is: Who Killed Brenda Fassie?

Some have alerted to the possibility that Brenda was smoking with a few fellow artists the night before her cardiac arrest. 

Could any of them or all of them be involved in Brenda’s poisoning? Or do they know who did? Or do they know of a different story?

An inquest into the death of Brenda Fassie is a must as the law requires.

 

 

LANGA HOUSING

R1billion upgrade for Langa hostels

By PHIRI CAWE

May 9, 2019

Photo By Daily Voice 

According to the City of Cape Town, these uninhabitable Langa hostels will soon be a thing of the past.

The uninhabitable Langa hostels, originally designed to host single males who came to work in Cape Town, will soon be converted into attractive family units.

According to the City of Cape Town’s mayoral committee member for human settlements, Malusi Booi, the City has budgeted R1 billion to upgrade the gloomy hostels.

Mr Booi visited Langa on Thursday May 2, to engage with residents about housing-related queries.

The hostels, which became the home of hundreds of municipal workers, are now in state of disrepair. Many of them have become a health hazard and in some there are 10 family members or more living in one room.

However, according to Mr Booi that is coming to an end as the City is upgrading not only Langa but also parts of Gugulethu and Nyanga.

Mr Booi said the City is in a drive to eradicate the housing backlog by converting these hostels to accomodate families. “I am here to see the state of these hostels. We have budgeted R1 billion to upgrade them. It is something that we have realised for years – that the conditions here are terrible. Some of the hostels will be totally demolished. This covers part of Section 2 and 3 in Gugulethu and Nyanga,”

On the day, Mr Booi also joined the City’s MyEstate mobile housing office to educate and engage with residents. The office-on-wheels started operating in December 2017 to make services more accessible to tenants. It renders various tenancy management services such as logging service requests on behalf of tenants, assisting tenants with rent relief applications, housing database queries and new applications, completion of lease agreements, arrangements for rental accounts in arrears and general enquiries.

On the day, residents also received information regarding upcoming housing projects in the area. Area committee members expressed happiness with the new developments. The committee said when they first met the City they were not sure because of the elections and the promises that normally abound during election campaigns. They, however, said when the councillor told them about the engineers that were coming, they started to believe that it was not about elections.

Committee chairperson Michael Duma said if the development takes too long, the committee will be a pain at the councillor’s office. “

But we are happy with what we have seen. We are adamant that change is coming in Langa Zones. But the councillor knows that we will also be a pain for him and his office,” he said.

The news was also welcomed by hostel residents. 

Nomabali Hawulana, who stays with 12 other family members in one room, said the development was long overdue. She said it was not a good thing to share one room with 12 people. “There is clearly no space here. We sleep and use the same room as a kitchen. You can imagine at night. But this is promising and I am happy. I will be happier when I see the development,” she told Vukani.