Johannesburg Human Settlements MMC Mlungisi Mabaso has issued a warning that anyone acting as a landlord at the illegally occupied Ginger Park informal settlement in Paulshof will face criminal charges. “We will not allow these building hijackers to behave as if they own the City of Johannesburg,” Mabaso said. This comes in the wake of a recent oversight by the department, during which a resident at Ginger Park demanded R50,000 per family member before agreeing to vacate the area.
The visit, led by Mabaso, followed a court order to relocate residents from the illegally occupied land between Witkoppen and Main roads. Ginger Park is home to over 400 people living in makeshift structures, with no access to basic services such as water, sanitation, or electricity, and the area has deteriorated into a dumping ground. One of the residents, 60‑year-old Thapelo Mogoboya, said he has lived on the property for most of his life and insisted that the department provide his family with alternative accommodation, access to basic services, and compensation of R50,000 per family member.
“I have lived here my whole life. The department must find a new place for my family, give us water and electricity, and pay R50,000 for each family member, it’s that simple,” Mogoboya said. He explained that he inherited the main building from a former employer around 40 years ago and claimed that other families later built shacks around it without paying rent.
