News24 | Lesufi’s office fails to back up his claim about migrants

Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi has vowed to destroy informal settlements where he says the majority of residents are undocumented migrants.

• Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi’s office has failed to back up his claim that most residents of informal settlements in the province are undocumented migrants.
• At a press conference earlier this month, Lesufi said he had briefed his “team” to destroy informal settlements through evictions.
• Asked how the premier knew that most residents were undocumented migrants, his office could not provide official data.

Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi has announced a crackdown on informal settlements, claiming that most of their residents are undocumented migrants. But his office has not explained how he came to that conclusion.

In a press conference earlier this month, ahead of the launch of his Nasi iSpani Reloaded “mass skills development” programme, Lesufi said the “majority of these new informal settlements are people that are not documented in our country”.

He said the government had “no responsibility” to provide houses to undocumented residents. He also said many people occupying land illegally were attempting to bypass formal housing processes.

In addition, the premier said he had instructed his “team” to begin tearing down informal settlements in the early hours of the morning. “I said to the team, ‘We are going to dismantle this informal settlement at 2am’ .”

“The patience of this government, and the patience of our people in our country, and the accommodating nature of us to ensure that we work within the human rights limitations, has been abused and taken advantage of,” he said.

Outrage at remarks

Lesufi’s words sparked outrage from civil society group Abahlali baseMjondolo, which accused him of launching “a war on the poor”.

GroundUp asked Lesufi’s office how he had come to that conclusion.

“The information is sourced using various means,” said Sizwe Pamla, Lesufi’s spokesperson.

“One of those is through a broad community safety strategy. The provincial government gathers information by supporting local structures where community patrollers work alongside councillors and law enforcement.”

Other sources of information included public forums and engagement with municipalities, he said.

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According to the 2022 census approximately 584 316 people were living in informal dwellings in Gauteng at that time, accounting for 11% of the province’s housing. GroundUp could find no official census data on what proportion of these belonged to undocumented migrants.

Lesufi has previously pledged to destroy shacks. In his 2025 State of the Province Address he said there were around 700 informal settlements in Gauteng. He listed the “mushrooming of informal settlements” as one of Gauteng’s 13 identified problems, calling those who participated in their existence “mkhukhu (shack) mafias”.

Pamla said the removals would be conducted within the framework of the law and in compliance with the Prevention of Illegal Eviction from and Unlawful Occupation of Land Act 19 of 1998.

When asked by GroundUp what would happen to the people who were removed from the settlements, he did not say where people would be relocated to.

The act does state, however, that courts are obliged to consider whether alternative accommodation is available before eviction.

Pamla said the “team” the premier referred to was the South African Police Service (SAPS), municipal police departments, traffic police, wardens, and private security companies, who have all recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to allow for integrated cross-border law enforcement operations.

“These units have been active participants across all five of Gauteng’s corridors as part of SAPS’s Operation Shanela, an initiative to combat crime throughout the province.”

Undocumented migrants found to be living in these informal settlements will be deported, said Pamla.