Jozi shanty town shacks get solar power 

By Everson Luhanga

The Shalazile camp in Denver, set up in October as a temporary shelter for victims of the Marshalltown fire, now has a multimillion-rand solar power system. 

Despite the camp’s lack of drainage and susceptibility to flooding, the City of Johannesburg has provided enough solar power to prevent load shedding and power cuts.

Resident Themba Mdlalose is happy with the project, which guarantees constant power, but thinks the money could have been used to build low-cost houses instead. 

“This project didn’t come cheap. Look at all the solar panels. This is very expensive. I believe many of us could have been housed in proper low-cost houses,” he said.

Mdlalose also feels that installing the solar system means the camp is now permanent. 

“If we were going to move out, the city wouldn’t have invested so much. We must accept that this is home, and we are here to stay.”

He is also worried about the lack of schools in the industrial area of Denver. Most children in the camp are not going to school.

After the fire in Marshalltown, residents were moved to a hall in Bezuidenhout Valley before being relocated to the Shalazile camp, named after the local chief. 

The camp was built on land bought by the Johannesburg Metro Police Department in 2019 for R45-million as a car pound, but the scheme was abandoned because of the high crime rate in the area.

A woman, who wished to stay anonymous, fears the solar system might be vandalised. 

“It is not a safe area for such an expensive project. The same reasons why the JMPD abandoned the place because of crime should have been considered before developing this project,” she said.

Pictured above: The solar panels at the Shalazile camp in Denver.

Source: Everson Luhanga