Cape Town - A Cape Town tavern had its liquor licence revoked on Thursday, Western Cape finance and economic development MEC Alan Winde said.
The provincial liquor licensing tribunal convened a full hearing on Thursday morning after tip-offs from the public regarding Tootsies Inn in Elsies River.
Winde said the tribunal found that the inn sold liquor for off-site consumption despite having only an on-consumption licence issued in June 2012.
The inn sold liquor to patrons who looked to be under the influence of alcohol and had had a shooting incident at the premises, indicating “a lack of control”.
It also made structural amendments to the establishment without formal approval and stored liquor in contravention of the approved plan.
A police member was expected to deliver a notice to the licence holder later on Thursday, instructing that trade be ceased immediately.
“As part of our strategy to curb liquor abuse in our communities, the Western Cape government is determined to root out unruly traders,” Winde said.
“This is a warning to irresponsible traders - if you contravene the rules, we will track you down and shut your doors. Our duty is to protect the interests of law abiding citizens by ridding our liquor industry of bad elements.”
A new Cape Town council liquor trading and hours by-law came into effect on Monday.
As it stands, the by-law states that licensed businesses may sell liquor for off-site consumption from Monday to Saturday between 9am and 6pm.
No liquor may be sold off-site on a Sunday, except for wineries, which can trade from their tasting rooms on that day.
The Sunday condition has since been placed on hold after the city announced a new public participation process on Wednesday.
This process was part of the city's consideration of possible amendments to sections of the by-law, said Garreth Bloor, economic, environmental, and spatial planning mayoral committee member.
The announcement followed a request from the city council last week to consider and initiate amendments to the by-law, in terms of the revised trading hours and the Sunday off-site sales prohibition.
Many traders had complained that the by-law would drastically affect sales and employment figures.
The council recommended that off-site consumption be permitted on application by licence holders in certain categories, excluding local business and residential areas.
The first round of participation was expected to commence in mid-April, would be advertised in the media, and run for 30 days.
The second round was a 45-day period, which would allow for input on draft amendments based on comments received in the first round.
The ban on Sunday trading had been temporarily suspended, pending the public participation process. - Sapa