Tensions are high in Dunoon as chemical toilets are being stolen from surrounding areas sold off in the informal settlements.
The thefts have resulted a rift between families from older informal settlements, from which the toilets are stolen, and residents of Zwelitsha, the new informal settlement which was established in 2019 and extends to the banks of the Diep River.
With out a “Mshengu” (chemical toilets) of their own, residents in the older communities have been forced to share the remaining toilets or use buckets which are then thrown into stormwater drains or into the bushes
This week, community activist and South African National Civic Organisation branch chairperson Sinethemba Matomela told GroundUp that 42 communal chemical toilets had been stolen from five informal settlements in Dunoon: Ekuphumuleni, Doornbach, New Rest informal settlement, Siyahlala and Endlovini.
According to Matomela, the area the toilets are stolen from is clearly marked on the unit, adding that an additional four toilets which were not marked has also been identified. Matomela said leaders suspect these were stolen from outside Dunoon.
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The activist says the toilets are stolen during loadshedding — when it’s dark — and then sold to families in Zwelitsha for between R500 and R800.
“If you’re so desperate they raise the price … If it’s needed now, the price is high. If you wait, the normal price is R500,” he said.
“The residents whose toilets have been stolen are suffering.”
“Those people will stay without toilets whereas they had toilets before. The City says they have no budget.”
Siseko Mbandezi, the City of Cape Town’s acting Mayco Member for Water and Sanitation, said said that the City records indicate that 77 chemical toilets, serviced by Sanitech, had been issued by the city in the Zwelitsha informal settlement.
“The City is in the process of verifying toilets in Zwezwe (Zwelitsha) and surrounding informal settlements to establish where toilets have been moved without permission in order to determine a way forward,” Mbandenzi said. “The verification process is still underway.”
“A site visit was conducted on Wednesday, 19 October], with community leadership and the service provider to verify toilets on site.”
He added that a team would check the number of chemical toilets in Zwelitsha, and verify their origin. Chemical toilets would be returned to their original sites, and there was no plan to deliver additional chemical toilets.
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