Evictions can have negative psycho-social effects; however, they are often conducted by the city for law enforcement purposes to address criminal activities in hijacked buildings.

This is according to Executive Manager at the Johannesburg Development Agency, Oupa Nkoana.

Nkoana has been testifying at the Khampepe Commission of Inquiry into the Usindiso building fire which claimed 76 lives and displaced others in 2023.

The inquiry has adjourned until Monday morning.

Nkoana acknowledges that evictions can be traumatic and not consultative but insists that the intention is not to humiliate people.

“Raid, in its nature is not a consultative exercise. So, it does negatively affect the residents. But if you check the purpose of the raids, in most cases, they are in the best interest of the of law enforcement, but also to deal with, you know, the perception that hijacked buildings or illegally occupied buildings are harbouring lots of criminal activities. So, the intention of the process is to find any potential criminals that are there, but I don’t think raids are done in a humiliating manner,” says Nkoana.

Nkoana says vulnerable groups are prioritised when looking for alternative accommodation for the displaced.

Testifying on the social responsibility to relocate occupants to temporary relief accommodation says priority was given to disabled people.

“Single mother households and the elders, so that they could gain decent accommodation in the area that they’ve been placed in. So, I think this is more of a human response and we actually did that when we considered alternative accommodation. We applied that criteria; not that men are not vulnerable, but we say the most vulnerable are women with children, single mothers, disabled, the aged and those that need to be given immediate priority,” adds Nkoana.

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