I fully support the Minister of Housing and the Environment, Dr Roodal Moonilal over the uprooting of farmers on State land earmarked for the construction ofhouses. In all fairness to the minister, he has a mandate to deliver, in the short space of five years, affordable housing to thousands of people who have applied to the HDC for a shelter to call their own. Interestingly, unlike the agricultural sector, there is no such thing as "short crop," whereby houses can be provided in three to six months by the construction sector. And remember a year has already gone under this new administration.
Further, everywhere you turn people are complaining that the economy needs stimulating butwhen attempts are made to so, petty differences take centre stage. Rather than the union leaders use their influence to throw water on the HDC/farmers' impasse, they are fanning the flames to satisfy their own agenda. These are the same individuals who chastised their comrade Watson Duke and labelled him "sellout Duke" for accepting five per cent and a home for public servants. Clearly, the more things change the more they remain the same in this country.
Owen Clarke
Via e-mail