Public Works to evict three former MK MPs from state subsidised housing

The Department of Public Works is set to launch court proceedings against three former uMkhonto we Sizwe MPs who have refused to vacate their state-funded homes in the parliamentary village despite being removed from Parliament in August 2024. Archive photo: Ashraf Hendricks

The Department of Public Works will soon go to court to evict three former uMkhonto we Sizwe (MK) MPs who have refused to move out of heavily state-subsidised housing ever since their removal from Parliament in August 2024.

Minister of Public Works Dean Macpherson has authorised court proceedings, including seeking a cost order against the MPs, his spokesperson, James de Villiers, said in a statement.

The three former MPs are living in a parliamentary village, of which there are three to accommodate MPs in Cape Town: Acacia Park in Goodwood, Pelican Park in Grassy Park, and Laboria Park in Belhar. It is not clear in which village the former MPs live.

Rent in the villages range from R182 to R362 a month, depending on the size of the house. It includes “basic furniture” as well as free electricity and water. MPs also receive a “settling allowance” when they move in to buy items not included in the house, such as kitchenware and linen. They also have access to a free shuttle bus to and from Parliament.

De Villiers said eviction proceedings will be launched in “the coming days”, adding that this comes “after months of delays by the former MPs” and “unsuccessful efforts to resolve their vacating the properties”. They were served with notices by the State Attorney to vacate the houses by 6 March, but failed to do so.

GroundUp reported in April 2025 that France Bongani Mfiki, Garatwe Agnes Mogotsi and Nomado Grace Mgwebi were appointed as MPs of MK on 25 June 2024, but removed by the party on 7 August and stripped of their party membership. They were among 18 MK MPs dismissed.

A fourth former MP, Lawrence Edward McDonald, who served in Parliament for the ANC from May 2019 until 28 May 2024, also initially failed to move after not returning to Parliament after the 2024 election. He subsequently moved out.

The three former MPs were among ten dismissed MK MPs who went to court to reverse what they described as their “orchestrated” expulsion. They filed an urgent application seeking to prevent Parliament from swearing in their replacements until the court had ruled on their case. But Judge Kate Savage dismissed the matter with costs, ruling that the applicants failed to show they had a prima facie right to be reinstated.

After the MPs were fired, their replacement by high-profile figures prompted accusations of cronyism.

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