Angry Manenberg residents say the City of Cape Town has demolished a soup kitchen which has been feeding the poor for five years.
They admit that they occupied the land illegally but say it was for a good cause, and were shocked when the vibracrete structures were knocked down by officials on Tuesday morning.
Taaliah van der Brook says: “Some residents decided to occupy this land, yes, we know that it was wrong but we did the City a favour.
“People abused drugs openly, there were taxis being burnt here, I assume for insurance purposes, and stolen cars were abandoned.”
She says they took it upon themselves to do something constructive with the land.
“We make food for the community and I am not using that as an excuse but we are helping people,” says Taaliah.
She says the Madressa tul Iglaas soup kitchen fed 300 people three times a week.
There is also a madressa on site which officials threatened to destroy.
“We used the site as a place of learning and worship.
“And the other spaces we used as garages, because the people who are upstairs in Dorothy Court have no parking.
“The soup kitchen that the officers broke down, they didn’t ask us anything, they just came to destroy it.
“Previously, the officers advised us to go and do the paperwork and we were still in the process when they went behind our backs.
“They were non-compliant,” she claims.
Taaliah says they were willing to hire the land from the City and now fear for the madressa.
“They threatened that they would come back for the other structures. The children are used to coming to their mosque and madressa.
“Where must they go now? We have been operating for five years unbothered. Why now?”
UPSET: Taaliah v.d Brook. Video: Mandilakhe Tshwete
Mayoral Committee Member for Human Settlements, Malusi Booi, explained the City’s Anti Land Invasion Unit removed three structures which were “built on City road reserves”.
“These were newly erected unlawful structures,” he said.
“The City removes unlawfully erected, incomplete and unoccupied structures during daily operations carried out in all areas across the metro.”