Warnings not to build in certain areas ‘not cruel’, assures Dlamini-Zuma
Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma says its only out of concern that government warns communities not to erect informal settlements in certain areas.
Dlamini-Zuma and Gauteng Human Settlements and Cooperative Governance MEC Lebogang Maile visited areas affected by the floods in Tshwane on Monday.
The worst affected area has been Eerste Fabrieke in Mamelodi, where an estimated 700 shacks were affected by torrential rains.
In total, almost 500 people have been displaced in Mamelodi with the number expected to rise.
Dlamini-Zuma confirmed one dead and one missing during the floods.
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She said warnings not to erect shelters in certain areas is not malicious, because when natural disasters happen, the people pay the price.
"We are making sure that people understand that it is not government being cruel its government being helpful because when rains come then people suffer.
"So if they can understand that being told not build at a particular place is not out of insensitivity of government, but it out of concern that when these kinds of conditions come they bear the brunt, they will suffer, some may even lose their lives.”