Isipingo businesses raided
FINES totalling more than R150 000 as well as warning notices have been issued to several Isipingo businesses, including a garage convenient store infested with cockroaches and a popular takeaway whose staff wash cooking utensils on the dirty ground outside.
Staff from several eThekwini Municipality departments carried out a three-day clean-up and education campaign in Isipingo last week.
Those on the wrong side of the law included:
A tuckshop that did not have fire-fighting equipment, despite displaying a sign it had. Health officials also confiscated a cream, which they said caused cancer, from the shelves.
A mosque, which was fined R1 500 for not having an approved building plan.
A takeaway, which was fined R1 000 for not following a previous instruction to improve conditions.
Another takeaway, which faces possible closure after officials found it to be unhygienic.
A homeowner who had three broken electricity meters and who is suspected of running a panel beating business in a residential area.
The businesses were picked at random and officials, accompanied by a POST team, were surprised by what they found.
On Thursday, they swooped on a house in a quiet residential area after noticing light emitting through an open, albeit blacked-out window.
People could be heard talking and the city team asked them to open up.
Inside, a makeshift factory was found with workers making ID card holders and key rings, among other things.
Notices were issued for several transgressions, including not having a fire escape or fire equipment. The city’s Health Department issued a R1 000 fine. The building was potentially a health hazard, an official said.
A bewildered worker said the business had been running for more than 50 years.
One of the owners, who requested anonymity, said he was glad the officials had come out to the area and “educated” him about the proper procedures. However, he was not happy about the way they had done this.
“We aren’t really sure what the raid meant, but we did get some education on the matter. It’s not a nice feeling to see people barge in, but I think maybe if we were a bit more educated on these laws, we could have avoided it. However, I do feel this could have been better for the long term,” he said.
The business has been shut down.
Businesses in the Isipingo CBD have been raided several times in the past few years.
POST reported last week that the team found medical waste – used syringes, cotton swabs and bandages – on a vacant land next to a doctor’s surgery. The doctor blamed his staff – and thieves – for the dumping.
“Things are always going missing. I can’t even begin to tell you how much of my stuff has been taken – my bins, my compost, waste boxes and even my welcome carpet with my name on it has been taken from the reception area,” he said at the time.
The head of Development Planning, Management and Environment, Musa Mbhele, said his team was not done with the area.
“Each time they (businesses) think we are done and begin to start these illegal things again, we will pounce on them. We want to send a message that they either do things the right way or stop.”
He said the campaign was part of a clean-up operation, and residents and business owners could expect to see more policing activity as the city tries to revive the once-thriving CBD and surrounding community.
“We have people out in full force in Isipingo, putting up new road signs, fixing CCTV cameras and potholes, reconnecting electricity and water to homes as well as (removing broken) infrastructure. We also want to take over the abandoned or broken buildings, and turn them into youth and rehab centres,” said Mbhele.
Isipingo is seen as a key economic and industrial hub. Mbhele said businesses had invested in the area which was why they wanted to ensure the by-laws and regulations were adhered to.
“Residents have also invested in the area, and as a city we want to ensure that there is a balance in society where business and residents can coexist harmoniously,” he said.
Mbhele said the clean-up campaign would continue until next year.
“This programme is also ongoing in different areas, including the Durban CBD, Pinetown CBD, Chatsworth and Lamontville, to name a few.”
Local councillor Sunil Brijmohan said that since the first raid in July, the area had been looking much better.
“The infrastructure was falling apart. Every vacant site was becoming a dump site. It has been six weeks and this area looks brighter,” he said. “The municipality is doing a great job educating and enforcing.”