Friday, 27 January 2012
Tenants question eviction
Tenants at the Empangeni Rail Housing Estate have accused Transnet of attempting to evict them without following due process. Two weeks before Christmas, a letter was delivered by Transnet staff, giving them three months to leave. This was accompanied, say tenants, by verbal threats that the bulldozers ‘will move in on 1 April, whether you’ve moved or not’. Senior researcher at the Community Law Centre at University of Western Cape, Ebenezer Durokaye, said that the Prevention of Illegal Eviction and Unlawful Occupation of Land Act protected children, the elderly and one-parent households from eviction.
These categories of people have to be offered alternative accommodation. The letter delivered to tenants, on a Transnet letterhead, stated, ‘You are hereby given three months’ notice from the date of this letter, to vacate the premises’. The letter, signed by Natasha Davids, Portfolio Manager: Transnet Property Eastern Corridor, reads: ‘The delapidated (sic) state of the houses pose an inherent risk to the inhabitants (people living in the house) and a health and safety risk to Transnet. You are informed that the property is unsafe for occupation and are advised to vacate the property as soon as possible.’
Tenants believe it is a ploy by Transnet to find a ‘legal’ loophole to evict them, as many houses are in fact quite solid. They point out that, since 2006, Transnet has tried several times to evict them, including suddenly presenting them with inflated ‘arrears’ bills (for tens of thousands of rands, in some cases), or claiming the municipality had ordered an eviction. Transnet’s eviction threats have had the effect of scaring off many of the original tenants; as soon as they leave, the empty houses are immediately occupied by squatters, and at least one house is being used as a brothel, said a tenant. There is no security presence by Transnet, and no apparent attempt to secure empty houses.
Served notice
In response, Transnet’s Mboniso Sigonyela, spokesman for Transnet SOC Ltd, issued the following statement: ‘Transnet Property has served notices to residents of Empangeni Rail Housing Estate informing them of the risk of continued occupation of the houses. ‘These are not eviction notices. All evictions done by Transnet are conducted in a fair and reasonable manner and in full compliance with applicable laws, including the Prevention of Illegal Eviction and Unlawful Occupation of Land Act and subject to court processes. ‘We are not aware of anyone who is being evicted without following due process.
‘Our decision was informed by the municipality’s resolution to rezone the area into a business park as well as the poor state of the structures which pose serious safety risks to the occupants. ‘Regarding cases of illegal occupation, Transnet Property makes every effort to protect its property from reoccupation.
However, several legal experts pointed out that written Notice to Vacate was the first step in an eviction, as a court would be told that legal notice had been given to tenants.