Lesson to be learnt from demolition furore

There has been an outcry from readers about the partial demolition of a property in Perridgevale, Gqeberha, by contractors of the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality. The metro obtained a court order to effect the demolition as a garage on the property was built without approval. In the main, the outcry stems from the belief that the municipality was targeting property owner Cecil Primo while there are countless other homeowners in the city whose unauthorised alterations go ahead without any form of punishment from the city.

One reader commented on HeraldLIVE’s Facebook page: “This is totally unfair ... the municipality only targets certain areas and not the areas with unsafe, badly built structures & shacks. They should be demolishing all the shacks if that’s the case”.

Though most were vehemently opposed to the demolition, there were a couple who said the city was merely enforcing its laws.

One such reader wrote: “South Africa loves illegal things. He was advised WHILE building to stop. He continued. He was given a notice and still didn’t listen. There are reasons plans need approval ... he could be building over his boundary line, it could be on municipal pipes, etc.”

The crux of the matter is that there are laws and bylaws which regulate property in the city and these must be adhered to. Though there are many who adhere to these regulations, there is a significant number of property owners who simply flout them and this continues undetected.

Primo says the municipality is targeting him and there is a personal agenda against him and his family.

He has vowed to take action against the city.

We will not opine on whether we believe he is being targeted, but what is clear is that Primo was aware in 2018 already that he was building without approved plans. He was also told to stop construction pending submission and approval of plans.

What followed was almost three years of back and forth between Primo and the municipality, which resulted in a demolition order being granted for selected sections of the property.

May this serve as a lesson, painful as it is, to those who circumvent the law when it comes to alterations on their properties. The municipality, however, must ensure it is not being selective in going after errant property owners.

Its regulations must also be enforced in all areas of the Bay.