Ward Councillor, Peter Helfrich, says “Over my dead body – I will not allow the Cape Coloured Congress or anyone else to disrupt the housing project in Macassar”
The ward councillor, Peter Helfrich, for ward 109 in the City of Cape Town, where an R132 million mega housing project is currently underway, which will accommodate 2469 beneficiaries, came out strong to condemn the utterances of the Cape Coloured Congress (CCC) who threatened to disrupt the project.
In a video shared on Facebook on 4 August 2023, the CCC threatened to disrupt the housing project in Macassar because, according to them, a “white contractor” was appointed to build the homes and not them.
Helfrich said the fight of the CCC was never for locals to be appointed to build these homes. According to him, members of the CCC are themselves contractors and they want these contracts for themselves.
“The CCC is not fighting for local companies to be appointed as contractors but for companies owned by their members to receive these contracts. They are not fighting for the people as they claim but for their own pockets. They do not want to follow the correct tender processes but want to bully their way into contracts to line their own pockets.” – said Councillor Peter Helfrich
“I saw the video where they threaten to disrupt the housing project in Macassar. To hell with them. Over my dead body. I will not allow the CCC or anyone else to disrupt the housing project in Macassar. Residents have been waiting for many years to receive their homes and will never allow a small political party like the CCC to disrupt this project in any way” – said Councillor Peter Helfrich
“These would-be construction mafias must understand, if they try in any way to disrupt the housing project in Macassar, they will be dealt with. If they have not seen the inside of a jail before, we will quickly introduce them to it. I call on any contractors who are threatened in any way by them to inform me immediately so that we can have them arrested” – said Councillor Peter Helfrich
“Also, this practice of the CCC to stop work simply because a white contractor was awarded a tender, or closing shops simply because black people are employed at these businesses is plain racism. In the 2021 elections, the CCC could not even manage to obtain 3% of the vote and has since also lost the little support it obtained because of this behaviour. This is a clear indication that most coloured people do not share the hatred they have towards white and black people.” – said Councillor Peter Helfrich
“The CCC is very badly mistaken if they think the residents in our ward will allow them to disrupt the housing project in any way. The handful of them left in the ward will quickly realise that residents will not allow this. No contractors will be stopped or threatened in any way. We want this project to continue so that we can receive our homes we have been waiting so long for” – Community Leader, Felicity Solomons
Ricardo Absalon, a member of the community responded to the post of the CCC on Facebook saying “Please make me understand what the problem is with this contract that was rewarded to ASLA. Like previously asked did you submit when the tender process was started. And as I can hear you are a representative of CCC thus I would think that as the CCC party you will fight that the ppl within Macassar that.has been waiting for how many years( some died already) that’s waiting to own their own houses. A party like CCC I personally think will rather fight to see that happen then to come and throw a spanner in this process where there’s finally a light to ppl waiting for houses. Please do enlighten me on what the real agenda is behind this. [W]hy after the contract has been awarded to a specific company. Why did you or anyone that is capable to do the work not submit a tender.” – Community Member, Ricardo Absalon
Craig Damon, a member of the community responded to the post of the CCC on Facebook asking, “Did you or any other builders in Macassar submitted your profiles for the tender when it became available at City of Cape Town? Im not fighting you nor am I protecting ASLA, I am just curious” – Community Member, Craig Damon
“I want to assure residents that the housing project will continue in Macassar without any disruptions, and no dying political party will stop that” – said Councillor Peter Helfrich
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