Residents of Orlando East have banded together to help stop what they believe is the illegal eviction of one of their neighbours from her home.
Nora Mfema, 74, has been ordered out of her one-bedroom home in Rathebe Street by her nephew, Duma Mfema, who gave her the home in the first place.
“I used to live in Meadowlands, renting rooms for 17 years, until my elder brother’s son asked me to come and live here after both his parents died. The house was initially our parents’ home, but when they died, my brother moved his family here. I’ve lived here for four years now, and two days ago I was told out of the blue to move out,” said Mfema in disbelief.
A group of residents formed a human barricade around Mfema’s small unenclosed yard on Friday, singing in protest against her impending eviction.
According to Mfema, her nephew has sold the house to a wealthy businessman who plans to bulldoze it and build a guesthouse. “He (her nephew) didn’t tell me the truth from the start. I have no papers proving I own the house now, or that it was owned by my parents. He is the one who brought me here, now he wants me out – like this? I’m very sad. If it weren’t for these people around me, I don’t know where I’d be right now.”
The founder of Soweto Concerned Residents, Simon Mthembu, said many people in Soweto, particularly the elderly, were victims of illegal evictions, as many lived in houses for which they had no title deeds.
“The community are very angry about this and we will fight for Mfema. Where is ubuntu if you throw someone out on the street in winter?”