Tembisa Residents Threaten to Protest After Removal From Illegally Occupied Land, Demand New Accommodation

• Displaced Tembisa residents have vowed to protest if the City of Ekurhuleni doesn't provide them without her native land
• EMPD removed the residents and forced them to dismantle the shacks that were unlawfully built on land owned by the municipality
• The residents have complained that they have nowhere else to go, and if their demands are not met, they will take their concerns to the streets

Johannesburg - Some Tembisa residents evacuated from illegally occupied land by Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department (EMPD) are not taking their removal lying down.

The residents have vowed to protest if the municipality does not provide them with alternative accommodation.

Hundreds removed from municipal-owned land in Tembisa

Police swooped down on the Johannesburg East Township to remove dwellers who had unlawfully erected shacks near the R21 highway. The land is owned by the City of Ekurhuleni, which lies across a busy road, EWN reported.

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The residents were ordered to dismantle their structures, which are built near a railway track and vacate the land on Saturday, 6 August.

Displaced residents demand alternative land

Disgruntled residents told the publication that the municipality is not showing any interest in relocating those who have been displaced to another piece of land where they can build their homes.

One resident warned that if their demands were not met.

The residents said:

"We have no other plan and no other place to go. We don't even have money to buy houses. So they shouldn’t be shocked when we protest."

Alexandra woman forced to watch as community demolished house illegally built on top of electricity cables

In a similar story, Briefly News reported an Alexandra resident, Busiswe Gloria Mngcobo, was helpless to stop angry community members from tearing down the house she was living in.

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The 14 April incident came after the area had been without electricity for days, and City Power technicians couldn't fix the problem because Mngcobo's house was built on top of the cables.

Mngcobo, who was staying in the house with her family, said she had no idea the house was erected on top of electricity cables.

Source: Briefly News