A National Council of Provinces (NCOP) delegation kick-started its Local Government Week oversight visits in Site C Khayelitsha yesterday with a visit to PHP Projects, which fall under Western Cape Provincial Government’s Human Settlements department where the delegation heard numerous challenges related to housing allocation.
Local Government Week is an opportunity for NCOP delegates to visit communities to better understand the challenges they experience. The theme for this year’s event is “Restoring the dignity of our people through spatial planning, provision of human settlement and water and sanitation”.
Challenges at the PHP projects include: the beneficiary lists; allocated subsidies to companies that have since ceased operating, deserted plots and the age of some of the beneficiaries.
The Chairperson of the NCOP, Ms Refilwe Mtsweni-Tsipane, the leader of this group of delegates, said the NCOP decided to focus in the Western Cape to understand the challenges experienced by ordinary citizens.
Councillor Kaya Kama, who joined the delegation from Ward 89, said the challenges in the human settlements were of long standing and need focused attention. The delegation heard how elderly women paid subsidies but never received a house.
Councillor Kama said many of the companies and suppliers claimed from the province but never built structures and the directors of the companies involved were nowhere to be found.
Sibongile Maputi
18 September 2025
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