The Executive Mayor of the City of Johannesburg, Councillor Geoffery Makhubo, has welcomed the decision of the Joburg High Court to dismiss an urgent application by the unlawful and illegal occupants of state land in Lawley, in the south of the city.
The applicants tried to convince the court that they had occupied the land in question since September 2019 and that the Court grant an order that City must compensate and/or rebuild structures demolished as part of an operation against land invasion in the area.
However, the court accepted the evidence provided by the City that it had not evicted any occupiers, instead it had prevented on-going land invasion and demolished incomplete and unoccupied structures.
On Thursday, 16 April 2020, the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD) moved Lawley and carried out a demolition of the unoccupied structures that had been illegally erected on land belonging to the state. This action was aimed at curbing recurring land invasions in the area.
This was an operation preceded by intelligence gathering to identify occupied structures with persons or families residing in them and unoccupied structures. Close to 500 unoccupied illegal structures were identified and demolished. All occupied structures were spared and a process as outlined in law will be undertaken once the lockdown is suspended.
The action by the City is necessitated by a rapid and substantial increase in the acts of land invasions and illegal occupation of buildings ever since the declaration of a National State of Disaster by President Cyril Ramaphosa and the announcement of a 21-day lockdown.
“As the City we unfortunately cannot celebrate victory in this regard because those who exploit the poor and use their suffering to manipulate and fleece them of their hard earned monies are yet to face justice. The poor have become targets of unscrupulous agent-provocateurs. These are criminal syndicates who sell land they do not own to the poor at prices ranging from R1 500 to R6 000 a stand,” said Mayor Makhubo.
The City of Johannesburg has a long-standing Council resolution against evictions and the Government of Local Unity in the City aligns itself fully with the resolution. However, that resolution does not prevent the City from acting against illegal occupations. Such acts of illegality will not be overlooked and the City will act to protect state property and land, said Mayor Makhubo.
“We urge our people not to partake in illegal acts of land invasion. As a city we respect the need to observe the lockdown regulations and have made provision for the homeless but we will also not be complacent in our duty to protect state assets and to maintain law and order during this period.
“The JMPD and the South African Police Service have already arrested suspects in the illegal sale of land and more arrests will follow as the clampdown on invasions continues,” said Mayor Geoffery Makhubo.
Members of the public have been warned to be vigilant and not to fall victim to criminals selling land illegally. The City will continue in its efforts to provide the poor with shelter and affordable housing. This includes the rapid land release programme that aims to provide serviced stands to residents.
“We also wish to once more emphasise the importance of observing the lockdown regulations and implore our people to stay-indoors, observe social distancing and wash your hands with soap regularly for 20 seconds,” said Mayor Makhubo.
Related stories
