BETHLEHEM, Free State – Families in Bakenpark are living in increasingly desperate conditions as a severe housing shortage forces multiple generations to share cramped accommodation, with some properties housing up to nine people sharing a single outside toilet.

Over 32 years, only 12 new RDP houses have been built in the Free State community to address the housing backlog, leaving the dream of owning land and a home out of reach for most residents.

The severe shortage has forced parents, children and grandchildren to live together on the same property in four-room houses. Many residents have erected informal structures to create additional living space, while those who can afford it build small brick dwellings on the same stand.

Earlier this year, residents conducted a peaceful march to Dihlabeng Local Municipality and submitted a memorandum to the Speaker outlining concerns about housing and other service delivery issues. The community has received no response and no indication that their concerns are being addressed.

The lack of action has resulted in growing frustration, with some residents now considering illegal land occupation out of desperation. The municipality has responded by threatening to arrest residents.

Free State MEC for Human Settlements Saki Mokoena and municipal officials recently visited the area but did not engage meaningfully with residents about the housing crisis, according to residents. Comments by the housing manager during the visit further inflamed tensions and deepened the community’s frustration.

Democratic Alliance councillor Marius Marais said the party will table questions in council, request urgent intervention from the Free State Department of Human Settlements, and press for a clear implementation plan to address the housing backlog.

“These living conditions are difficult, undignified and unsustainable,” Marais said.

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