Why am I not surprised by that the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) is a slumlord? Or that the block of flats it owns in Sea Point has stood empty for years and is now being illegally occupied by alleged drug dealers and criminals.
According to Cape Town's Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, JP Smith, a list of bylaws applicable to anyone owning a block of flats was hand-delivered to the SABC along with a notice informing them that the council would take legal action to force the Corporation to clean up Rocklands Villas in Sea Point.
How naive is JP Smith?
Let's face it: The SABC can't even clean up its own management team or its licence fees, so how on earth could it possibly clean up a building that it has forgotten about long ago?
According to Nomfundo Mpuntsha, regional manager of the SABC, the corporation was eager to sell the block of flats, but the flats would first have to be refurbished (refurbished using my licence fees, my taxes and yours too).
Mpuntsha also said that a tender for the rehabilitation work would soon be advertised. Soon, in the SABC's terms anyway, is usually a very long time.
Remember, we only got TV in 1975.
Smith also claims that in terms of the new bylaw, the council has "serious teeth" and once gazetted (probably in 2010) slumlords can be issued with spot fines of R20k per transgression or can even be sent to jail.
The SABC, sadly, is typical of all the other parastatal organisations in South Africa. It wastes taxpayers' money, it pays inflated salaries and bonuses to its management staff and it fails to protect and maintain the assets that it owns.
It's not unusual to hear that the councils (or other organisations) are forced to issue summons against a government department or parastatal because of contractual disputes or non-payment of outstanding accounts.
Worse still, the government, local and provincial authorities and the parastatals actually have no idea which properties they own. The Department of Public Works claims it is establishing a register of government properties, but it has been making these claims ever since Pa fell off the bus.
The first step in forcing the SABC to revamp Rocklands Villas – and any other properties it might own – is for the Cape Town Council to issue a spot fine against the organisation and immediately seek a court order compelling it to repair the building.
At the same time, residents in Sea Point should petition their local Member of Parliament so that the matter can be debated and resolved during one of the Parliamentary Sessions that mostly seem to achieve nothing.
But let's face it, while these steps might embarrass the SABC, they will not force it to act decisively because it can't. The SABC is capable of about as much speed as a dead albatross.
While it is commendable that the Cape Town Council has taken action against the SABC, it is actually facing even more of a challenge at Senator Park in Long Street, where only 23 unit owners (out of a total of 168) actually live.
More importantly, the flats themselves have been "redlined" by the banks making it impossible for any buyer to get a bond.
Now in terms of the new bylaw, if the owner of the building is not available or is missing, then all the tenants in that block automatically become liable for the bills. So they must pay the fine. And then, they must do the remedial work too.
This has got to be Cape Town's dumbest idea ever.
Clearly, money must grow on trees in Kirstenbosch because that's the only possible way squatters might amass the cash needed to refurbish Senator Park.
While I think the Council's intentions are noble (after all, all they want is a cleaner, safer city) the bylaws as drafted make as much sense as a decree from the Mad Hatter's Party.
I do believe that cities must get rid of the illegal tenants living in hijacked buildings. I also think that Cape Town Council should introduce and enforce some sections of the new bylaws.
I also think the bylaw should be extended to allow the council to confiscate properties that have been abandoned by the owners. Then, once that legislation is in place, the derelict buildings should be evacuated.
Immediately thereafter, the building should be transferred to Superman Sexwale's Human Settlements Department and he should use these buildings as the core for a realistic housing plan.
Superman could use the money earmarked for low-cost housing projects to fix up the dilapidated buildings in the city centre because that would be a lot cheaper and a lot more realistic than the show commission by the previous housing minister, Fashion Queen Sisulu, at a cost of R22m.
So here's what I suggest:
- Derelict buildings should be confiscated by the local authority;- Existing tenants should be turfed out on their ear; - Those poor souls who actually own a section of the building should be given temporary housing at no cost;- The confiscated buildings should be handed over to the Department of Human Settlements and Superman must then appoint private sector contractors to do the refurbishment at a reasonable price;- Once the work is done, existing homeowners would be free to move back into a newly-refurbished flat at no additional cost;- Finally, the empty refurbished flats should be allocated to those people who are legitimately waiting for state housing.
That way, the money invested in low-cost housing projects is put to good use while derelict buildings are renovated and cleaned-up, ready for occupation.
To me that seems an eminently more suitable solution than imposing fines of R20k on tenants because the owners can't be found.
Fines do nothing to eliminate the chronic housing problems we face.
My suggestions do.
So, wake up Cape Town!
Take the lead and show South Africa just how clever you really are.
*Hartdegen writes a regular column for Property24.com. The content of his columns constitutes his personal opinion and doesn't pretend to be facts or advice. Contact him at paddy@neomail.co.za.
Readers' Comments Have a comment about this article? Email us now.
Excellent article and i agree totally! – Daniel