The city of Johannesburg is helpless when it comes to doing something about so-called building hijackers.
All it could do, said Inner City Task Force spokesperson Roopa Singh on Tuesday, was offer advice.
She could not say how prevalent building hijackings were.
It was up to owners to report the illegal occupation of their properties to the police, she said.
Singh was reacting to a comment by police that the problem had to be sorted out by municipalities.
"The city provides guidance like who to consult and how to go about getting a court order.
"We are not allowed to take people out of a building," Singh said.
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The council's admission of helplessness comes almost a week after two building managers, Charles Joubert and Sipho Kunene, were shot in the back of the head numerous times.
They were getting into their car outside Park Mews in Esselen Street, Hillbrow, after a meeting regarding recent building hijackings.
It is believed they were assassinated by building hijackers.
Property owners and consultants said that although the police had been informed on countless occasions of illegal tenanting of inner-city buildings, they refused to take any action.
The assassinations and hijackings come as the council is trying to refurbish the inner city and is offering tax incentives to those who invest, renovate and develop buildings there.
However, owners are sceptical, saying this could take years and cost hundreds of thousands of rands.
Property owners, meanwhile, would continue losing out on rental money and be left with huge water and electricity bills.
They pointed out that in many cases, utilities refused to disconnect water and electricity, and the criminals collected money for these from the tenants.
The landlord was left to pay the bills. - Sapa
- This article was originally published on page 2 of The Star on August 03, 2005
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