Owners of dilapidated buildings in Mthatha face hefty fines

The mayor of the troubled King Sabata Dalindyebo Local Municipality has issued an impassioned plea to commercial property owners in Mthatha.

“Please take good care of your buildings. Either you refurbish your properties or demolish them.

“Because if you don’t, we might have to slap you with a hefty fine,” mayor Nyaniso Nelani told scores of building owners during a virtual meeting on Thursday afternoon.

About 11 buildings have gone up in flames under mysterious circumstances in the Mthatha CBD since 2021.

These included historic landmarks such as the Transkei Hotel in Elliot Street and Grosvenor Hotel in busy Sutherland Street.

The two hotels, however, are now being renovated by their owners.

Recently, KSD municipal bosses said 50% of buildings in Mthatha were not safe and did not adhere to safety and health regulations.

The municipality conceded it did not have an emergency fire prevention bylaw.

Organised business, meanwhile, has previously warned that Mthatha could be turned into a ghost town if the fires are not averted.

They also complained that some buildings were being used as hideouts by criminals.

“The municipality does not own buildings and properties,” Nelani’s spokesperson, Olwethu Mabovula, said on Friday.

“Our role is simply to come up with bylaws and implement them.

“The [mayor’s] meeting was to give commercial property owners confidence.

“We have had issues with mysterious fires, so we had to assure them that Mthatha is still a safe place.”

More than 100 buildings in Mthatha, including state properties, have been hijacked in recent years by a syndicate.

During a council meeting in 2023, Nelani confirmed a new draft bylaw dealing with unsightly and dilapidated buildings in Mthatha and surrounds had been adopted and gazetted by KSD.

He said through the bylaw, the municipality reserved the right to renovate buildings or issue a R10,000 fine to owners for failing to maintain or fix them.

On Friday, Mabovula revealed that while some owners had taken heed of the bylaw, many had still not bothered to conform to it.

“We are trying to restore the dignity of Mthatha so that it appeals to investors and tourists. 

“Some dilapidated buildings are being renovated and we are rolling out a paid parking system.

“It is only a matter of time before CCTV cameras are installed in the CBD,” she said.

Vuyisile Ntlabati, one of the organised business leaders in Mthatha, said most properties in the CBD had become an eyesore.

He said KSD had to shoulder some of the blame for failing to implement bylaws to force owners to take better care of their buildings.

He said municipal environmental and building inspectors had to inspect buildings before allowing people to use them.

“The buck stops with them. Don’t wait until someone starts operating.

“Force even the landlords to ensure the building is compliant before they lease it out.

“Now they [KSD] are not enforcing bylaws. All they keep telling us is that they are reviewing bylaws.

“Why not enforce the existing one in the meantime?”

Ntlabati said the municipality had two options — it could slap owners of dilapidated properties with contravention notices or maintain those buildings and bill the owners.

Mthatha Ratepayers and Residents’ Association spokesperson Madyibi Ngxekana blasted the municipality for its lax bylaws and “lazy” environmental and building inspectors.

He also accused the municipality of allowing some properties in the CBD to be invaded.

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