Last day for Zindzi to clean up property

190113. House number 42 at 5th street in Houghton, Johannesburg. 695 Picture: Dumisani Sibeko.

190113. House number 42 at 5th street in Houghton, Johannesburg. 695 Picture: Dumisani Sibeko.

Published Jan 22, 2014

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Johannesburg - Wednesday is the final day for Zindzi Mandela to clean up her property in Houghton. But a visit to the property on Tuesday showed no signs of an attempt to start the process.

It appears the house has been abandoned by the owners, listed as the Zindzi Mandela Family Trust. That address is listed on her legal documents as her residential address.

The City of Joburg’s environmental health department issued a notice to her after finding “gross overgrowth and general littering… on the property”, and stated this was in contravention of the city’s public health by-laws.

The council gave her 21 days in which to respond, with the last day being Wednesday.

City spokesman Gabu Tugwana said a statutory 21-day notice, which applies to weekdays only, was issued in the owner’s name on December 19.

“The notice expires (on Wednesday) and, by the end of the deadline, the owner has to clean the stand and maintain that standard at all times. Should corrective steps not be taken by the property owner, the city has seven days to get relevant quotations from contractors to clean the place,” he said.

The cost of the clean-up would be added to the owner’s rates account.

Council inspectors did not find vagrants on the premises, he said, but the city’s social development department and Joburg metro police would take steps to probe the allegation.

If vagrants were found, they would be removed and taken to a temporary shelter. This would take place parallel to the clearing of the premises.

The city’s building control department was also ready to go and assess the remnants of the structure that had been vandalised, he added.

Numerous attempts have been made to contact Zindzi for comment, without success.

The Star

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