She has been battling to sleep while unknown men wander around in her yard. Veteran actress Gcina Mkhize (51) and her kids are being pushed to leave their home in the south of Johannesburg by a man claiming to also own the property.

INTRUDERS

According to Mkhize, the man and his three accomplices have on three occasions tried to occupy the actress' home, claiming to also have a title deed to the house. "They have been harassing me and my kids since January. I have alerted the Mondeor Police on several occasions, but they won't help me, and the intimidation keeps escalating,' she said. "I'm assuming we are all aware of the fact that there's a huge syndicate in our country that specialises in selling people's homes illegally. This guy bought my house under mysterious circumstances. The matter is still under investigation, but he wants me to vacate my home as in yesterday. Where will I go with my kids?' she asked.

DAMAGES

The award-winning actress said she asked the man to apply for an eviction order but said he refused to do so and accused her of using that as a delay tactic. "He has broken into our home on three occasions, and the third time, which was last week Saturday, he brought people to come to reside in my property ngenkani! (forcefully),' Mkhize said. "Two males, total strangers. We were never introduced. One of them is highly arrogant, loud and rude. They play loud music and today they switched off the water while they were out and switched it back on when they came back. What guarantees our safety sharing our yard with these people? We don't know them,' she said.

WON'T BE BULLIED

The actress, who is also a jewellery designer, said her craft materials, including beads and other materials, were grabbed and thrown into the dustbin by the men. "What's sad is that before he broke into my home for the third time, he told me he was going to break in, do what he wanted and he wouldn't get arrested." As he was cutting the lock using some machine, I called the Mondeor Police again for help. It was around 5 pm and as usual, they only came hours later, just before 9 pm. They told me they couldn't do anything because, according to the law, he also had the right to occupy the house. Make it make sense," she added. However, Mkhize stands her ground. "I am not going to be bullied out of my home and neither will I resort to violence. If I die violently or disappear mysteriously, this guy should be the first person of interest,' she said. According to SAPS, no case has been opened at the Mondeor police station.

KNOW YOUR RIGHTS

According to property expert Xolani Gasa, an eviction is legally forcing a person to leave the property that they are staying on if they are considered to be an unlawful occupier, staying without consent, having no right to do so,' he explained. "A landlord can cancel or withdraw consent to have them stay at a property if they are there unlawfully. Unlawful occupiers include defaulting mortgagees and squatters. This simply means that an owner or the person in charge of the property must apply to the court before evicting a person,' Xolani said. "In the case of a granted eviction, the tenant has the right to receive timeous notice of the eviction hearing and is entitled to appear before the court and oppose the eviction. If the occupier has been living in the property for more than six months, the court will have to make some considerations,' Xolani concluded.