Sisulu threatens SJC with legal action after being accused of lying to the poor
Cape Town - Human Settlements Minister Lindiwe Sisulu has threatened legal action against the Social Justice Coalition (SJC) after she was accused of lying to the poor.
In a video circulating on social media during an inspection at the Taiwan informal settlement in Site C, Khayelitsha, activist Nkosikhona Swartbooi accused Sisulu of not keeping her promises of delivering housing and building materials.
In the video he can be heard saying, “Let’s hope, minister, you won’t do the same as at Empolweni (also in Khayelitsha). You promised structures to be built, but you never built them ... they are still waiting till this day,”
Sisulu then lashed out at Swartbooi saying: “You are lying! You are lying! You are not going to tape me and talk nonsense. You are talking rubbish. I said to you, I will buy that material. Just switch that off. Switch that off.”
Sisulu was doing a site inspection at the Taiwan informal settlement after a fire razed 350 structures and left 1000 residents homeless.
According to Sisulu’s spokesperson, Steve Motale, Swartbooi made unfounded accusations.
“In October last year the minister gave an update to parliament on what happened when she visited Empoloweni. Minister Sisulu communicated that she had requested the national department of Human Settlements and the Housing Development agency (HDA) to consult and engage with officials from the City in order to make sure that materials (that were seized) were returned as per the court order,” said Motale.
He said that based on the consultations with the community, it appeared that the materials returned were not suitable to reconstruct their homes with. Instead the City was advised to provide building kits which the HDA had made available, but was refused by the City.
The City refuted the claims, saying they had delivered material to the 49 households.
“The SJC was integral in the lawsuit between the community of Empolweni and the City. Following the minister’s visit to Empolweni, officials of the department met and engaged with community leaders. In his interaction with the minister during her visit in Taiwan, the man (Swartbooi) clearly sought to insert (sic) himself and score cheap personal credit rather than continue to push and assist the minister who was engaged at the time,” he said.
Motale said Sisulu’s outburst would not deter her from serving the poorest of the poor. He added that the minister was in consultation with her lawyers.
In response to Sisulu’s allegations Swartbooi said: “We have noted the minister mentioning lawyers in her statement and noted media reports that the minister will take legal action.
“This legal threat, the tone of the minister and the actions of her bodyguards on Monday, and the recent statement she released yesterday are tactics not new to us. These are tactics to intimidate and scare us. We refuse to be bullied by politicians. We will continue to hold public officials and politicians to account for their failures and continue to compel them to fulfil their constitutional obligations.”
In a separate video, Swartbooi claimed that Sisulu’s bodyguards tried to confiscate his phone and force him into a car.
“She instructed her bodyguards to force me into a white Range Rover, believed to be one of her ministerial vehicles. I refused to get in the Range Rover as the bodyguard failed to identify himself after I asked him to do so.
“The bodyguard then confiscated my phone and tried to get me to open it so that he could delete the video I had taken earlier. Fortunately (or unfortunately for the minister) my phone had died,” said Swartbooi.
Cape Argus