PRESS RELEASE: RP Condemns City’s Deep South Relocation Plan – Slams Rewarding Land Invasions and Overloading Public Services

PRESS RELEASE: RP Condemns City’s Deep South Relocation Plan – Slams Rewarding Land Invasions and Overloading Public Services

‍The Referendum Party (RP) has condemned the City of Cape Town’s plan to relocate residents from Masiphumelele into Fish Hoek, Ocean View, and the Lochiel Road smallholdings, calling it an outrageous betrayal of lawful residents and a dangerous continuation of policies that reward illegality and punish compliance.

As reported in The Cape Independent, the City’s so-called Local Spatial Development Framework will reward land invaders, overpopulate the Deep South, and place even greater strain on public services - including hospitals, clinics, and schools - that are already stretched to their limits.

“For years, hardworking Cape Town families who have paid their rates, followed the rules, and lived here for generations have been pushed aside in favour of those who occupy land illegally,” said RP General Secretary Robert King. “It is fundamentally unfair that those who respect the law are pushed aside while those who break it are rewarded.”

RP argues that the relocation scheme will not ease congestion in Masiphumelele nor rehabilitate the wetlands as the City claims, but will instead deepen the crisis by creating new overcrowded areas while the vacated land in Masiphumelele is quickly re-invaded. The Party warns that this will strain water, sewage, and environmental systems, particularly around Elgin Park - right next to Bay Primary - and further burden nearby public infrastructure.

RP says its Western Cape Illegal Settlements Bill provides the real solution - a constitutional and compassionate framework that restores order, defines unlawful occupation clearly, and ensures fairness for legal landowners. 

The Party expressed its full support for community activists and local residents who are mobilising to oppose these reckless relocation plans and pledged to work with them in defending the rule of law, local stability, and the integrity of Cape Town’s communities and public services.