Various organisations and residents in Phoenix have demanded action following a Special Investigating Unit (SIU) report that uncovered long-standing corruption and irregularities within the Phoenix Infill Housing Project. The report, which came to light ahead of an eThekwini Municipality council meeting, details issues that have directly impacted residents.
IFP councillor, Dr Jonathan Annipen, stated that he and others have been calling for an audit since 2022 to get a detailed report on the project’s completion status and the contractors involved. “Almost every single project handled by one of the developers cited in this SIU report, remains incomplete, leaving residents in a state of limbo,” he said. “To compound this outrage, residents are occupying these homes without certificates of occupation from the eThekwini Municipality, in direct contravention of building and safety regulations. This is not just administrative negligence — it is a dereliction of duty that endangers lives. Officials responsible for this must be held accountable for dereliction of duty.”
Annipen also highlighted that the contractor owes the municipality millions of rands in unpaid rates. “To add insult to injury, the contractor owes the municipality millions of rands in unpaid rates, yet there appears to have been no effective effort to recover these funds. This is a gross betrayal of the public trust and a slap in the face of law-abiding ratepayers who meet their obligations month after month.” He called for urgent action from the city, including full cost recovery, special leaves for implicated officials, enforceable timelines for completion, and greater accountability. Additionally, he requested independent oversight from the Public Protector, the Auditor-General of South Africa, and the KZN MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA).
Mervin Govender, general secretary of the Phoenix Tenants Residents Association (PTRA), said the report “validates the concerns raised for years by residents and community organisations who have persistently called for justice and transparency.” He added: “The Phoenix community demands immediate suspension and prosecution of all implicated officials as well as fast-tracking of title deed transfers to all qualifying long-term occupants. Housing is a constitutional right, not a privilege. Corruption that deprives legitimate beneficiaries of their homes, is a violation of human dignity and the law.”
The Phoenix Infill Housing project, established by the eThekwini Municipality in 2000, was intended to use vacant land to provide affordable housing for residents. The SIU’s 2023 report revealed that a number of public representatives had improperly benefitted from and profited off the properties. The SIU submitted four disciplinary referrals for financial misconduct to the municipality on 7 June 2022 and two months later, on 2 August 2022, submitted criminal referrals to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regarding one official.
