Tshwane faces huge claims

A consortium of agricultural land owners from the former Kungwini are going to claim huge rates refunds from the City of Tshwane on the basis of the Supreme Court of Appeal’s (SCA’s) judgment in the Lombardy case.

Former DA councillor Lex Middelberg, who drove the DA’s initial support for the landowners’ court action and has since left the party, estimated the claims could amount to several billion rands.

“Even if it is only R1 billion, it is going to be devastating to the city’s finances,” he said.

Large portions of land in the east of Pretoria have been subdivided into smallholdings. The result is high-end lifestyle developments that were zoned as agricultural land. Owners don’t farm, but live on the properties where they are allowed to, for example, keep horses.

The city in the 2012 Supplementary Valuation Roll and the subsequent 2013 General Valuation Roll recategorised these properties from agricultural to residential, which means that the rates tariff increased fourfold, Middelberg said.

“We were just waiting for the Lombardy appeal to be finalised, since the facts in our matter are exactly the same. We will now use this judgment to claim refunds of payments owners made in terms of the unlawful increases.”

He said about 20% of the affected agricultural landowners did not pay the increased rates, as they couldn’t afford it. Since they were in Eskom supply areas, the city could not cut their electricity supply but it did, in some cases, restrict water supply in an effort to force payment.

Attorney Victor Maartens from Maartens Commercial Attorneys said affected Tshwane customers were being bullied into signing debt arrangements.

He cited a client who received an “arrears” rates bill for R75 443.11 for two vacant properties in the former Kungwini. The client was under the impression his bill was up to date.

Maartens said: “City officials don’t know what these charges are for or where they occurred from, but since the system shows the arrears, the client has to pay.”

The city demanded immediate payment and threatened legal action. Maartens cautioned landowners to first get legal advice before signing an acknowledgement of debt.

Even if it is only R1 billion, it is going to be devastating to the city’s finances

Lex Middelberg Former DA councillor