Tshwane Mayor Weighs in as Tensions Rise Over Ginger Park Settlement Evictions

• Tensions flared at Ginger Park as residents resist High Court eviction despite claims of illegal land ownership
• Tshwane Mayor Dr Nasiph Moya and officials address housing issues amid escalating conflict over illegal occupations
• Public debate ignited online over eviction laws and residents' rights in response to Ginger Park standoff

JOHANNESBURG - Tensions reached a boiling point at the Ginger Park settlement as residents refused to be relocated following a Johannesburg High Court order to remove them from illegally occupied private land, prompting Tshwane Mayor Dr Nasiphi Moya to weigh in on the escalating standoff.

EWN reported that Johannesburg Human Settlements MMC Mlungisi Mabaso led an operation to remove the illegal occupants of the land located between Witkoppen and Main Road in Paulshof, North of Johannesburg, on Sunday, 27 December 2025.

What happened at the eviction?

The court ruled that the Ginger Park settlement was unsafe for habitation due to unstable shacks and accumulated debris. During his visit to the site, MMC Mabaso said criminal charges would be laid against alleged illegal landlords and stressed that only residents who meet the required criteria would be considered for relocation by the end of February.

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The situation quickly turned tense, as captured in a video shared on X showing the alleged landlord outright refusing to move. The man claimed the land had belonged to his family for 40 years, a statement that highlighted growing safety concerns raised by nearby communities and the city’s ongoing struggle to manage housing shortages.

“I was raised here, I worked here. You come here after 50 years and tell me about courts. If you want me to move, you must buy me a house, with water and electricity, and pay each person here R50,000,” the resident can be heard saying.

Mabaso said they will be illegally charging those acting as landlords at the informal settlement.

In response to the incident, Dr Moya took to her X account to call out the situation, sparking widespread reactions from social media users who weighed in on the issue and the illegal occupation of land.

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Social media users weigh in

@sedigane commented:

"Our law has loopholes. Now, the criminals are taking advantage of that, knowing the courts will side with them, and our lawmakers, they quit, and they don't amend some of the laws that give criminals an advantage."

@KelOceans remarked:

"Whoever drafted the Pie Act created a mess. A person hijacks your property and doesn't pay, but to get him out of your property, you need to find him another place to stay, at your expense, when you haven't been receiving any rental from the person? The law needs to be amended!"

@LadyMpopi stated:

"City of Tshwane must never negotiate with entitled criminals.Thank you for calling it what it is mayor."

@almazsithole asked:

"What's stopping lawmakers?"

@03Nkosi said:

"All the issues started with the term 'rights', which are being abused now. Who will come to a foreign nation and demand all this nonsense? The biggest scammers in SA are the nonsense call NGO."

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The Ginger Park standoff comes amid wider national debates around evictions

• Briefly News previously reported that the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) faced backlash after criticising Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi, who announced on 3 September 2025, that the provincial government intended to begin demolishing more than 400 newly established informal settlements. The SAHRC responded with a strongly worded statement condemning the proposal, a move that angered many South Africans online, with some accusing the SAHRC of favouring foreign nationals, while others defended the commission’s stance on human rights protections.
• Similarly, in June 2025, Briefly reported that about 360 refugees housed in tented camps in the Western Cape said they want to leave South Africa, as uncertainty grew over their future. The group had been living at two temporary sites, Paint City in Bellville and Wingfield in Maitland, since 2020. Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis confirmed that the City will move ahead with formal eviction processes at both sites. The refugees expressed a preference to be relocated to Canada rather than returned to their countries of origin, a demand that has sparked mixed reactions from South Africans.

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Mashaba Slams Joburg’s Plan to Negotiate With Occupants of Hijacked Buildings

Source: Briefly News