Opa Kharima-Banda, 69, stands unshakingly in the middle of a classroom which she bought for R16,000 in 2020 and converted into a four-room apartment for her family of eight.
A colourful curtain with bright African print zig-zags inside separating three makeshift bedrooms, an open plan kitchen and a living area. On one side of the “apartment” is a blackboard with the names of Kharima-Banda’s grandkids scribbled clumsily with a permanent maker.
The high ceiling is ripped open, exposing the live wiring running across. The room is dark as there are no windows. Some of her neighbours' “apartments” are crammed.
The building that Kharima-Banda now calls home was once a school called Shoshanguve Central School.
The building now houses more than 100 families who live in squalor conditions in now badly dilapidate structure with no sanitation and relying on illegal connections for power supply.
Residents started moving into the school in 1999 when its pupils and staff were relocated to other schools in the area.
Kharima-Banda, a Zimbabwean national who recycles bottles and sells fruit and veg for a living, said she bought her place unknowingly that it was once a school.
“I bought the classroom for R16,000 from a guy who used to live here. He used to be my customer and he told me about this place. I was told that it was just a hostel that needed people for occupation,” she said, adding that she did not have a problem buying it since the water and electricity came free. She said the location of the school was perfect for her as she'd be closer to a university campus.
According to people who live close to the school, Soshanguve Central was among the best schools in Gauteng. The school also had boarding facilities.
Piet Khoza,72, who lives next to the building which has been renamed to Block G hostel by the locals, said: “Many learners came from other provinces. It was mainly for children who came from privileged families that could afford it.”
He said the school changed from being a boarding school to a normal school after 1994, and after it lasted only three years before it began to fall apart.
“The pupils were dispatched to neighbouring schools because of renovations. They said the state of the school was bad so they’ll build another school around Soshanguve, abandoning this one,” said Khoza, adding that a few years later criminals started vandalising what was left of the building, while others used it for criminal activities.
“Comrades (local politicians) told residents to occupy the building because a lot of dead bodies were found in the building,” Khoza added.
Grace Louwdant, 60, lives in classroom number 16. She was visiting a friend who had a birthday party 21 years ago when she was told that new blocks needed occupiers.
She said that at the time she had recently divorced and was renting a house in Soshanguve East. The rent was too much for her so she moved in at the school.
“When I started living here, the school had no furniture; the walls were in a bad condition; there was no fence and electricity,” she said, explaining that electricity was later cut off and toilets were blocked regularly without being serviced or attended.
“We now steal electricity from the street poles and we relieve ourselves in the bushes and pit toilets. Our living conditions are very bad,” she said.
Phathutshedzo Nephawe lives with her family of seven. She said foreign nationals had taken over most parts of the hostel.
She said she did not know how her late grandmother got them their “apartment” back in 2010 when they moved from Limpopo to look for employment in Gauteng.
“After my grandparents passed on, the whole family moved here in 2016,” Nephawe said.
According to Tshwane municipality deed search, the building once belonged to the Gauteng department of education, which later transferred it to the department of human settlements for residential purposes.
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