LYDENBURG – The new valuation of property that TCM wants to implement is causing a ruckus among residents and businesses in town.
Recently all the residents, business and farmers who own property within the council’s borders received communication indicating the new valuation of their properties, to be used for assessing their rates and taxes.
Most of these valuations indicate a substantial increase, hence also a substantial increase in the rates to be paid to TCM from July 2014.
Mr Leon de Jager, chairman of Afriforum in Lydenburg, said these very same residents and business have for the past four years or more, experienced a steady decline in service delivery from TCM. “We are subjected to days without water, days without electricity, a municipal dump site where there is no management or control, a sewerage system where pump stations are frequently not working, resulting in sewerage overflow into our streets and rivers, all the roads and streets in our town are so badly potholed that it has become risky to drive in our town.
The town’s water and electricity distribution is on the point of total collapse, according to reports from the technical committee that was established to jump in and manage and repair the water distribution.”
He said during the past four yours or more, TCM has failed to employ suitably qualified personnel in the technical, financial and other departments of the council. “We have been subjected to poor service, incorrect accounts, illegal cutting of electricity as well as a racist approach, cutting supplies only in the ‘white part’ of town.”
De Jager states that there has been no improvement in the finances of TCM. “The threat from Eskom to cut the electrical supply to TCM is a good example. The Auditor General could not even give an “opinion” of the financial status of TCM due to the books being in a mess. Millions of rand have been wasted (fruitless and wasteful expenditure) and cannot be accounted for.
How then can we as residents and business be expected to accept an increase in the valuation of our properties if our town is collapsing around us? How can we trust TCM to manage properly the extra income to be generated from the increased rates and taxes?”
He said all residents and business should object to (lodge an appeal against) the valuations received. “Or accept that you will be paying more and getting less.”
In the light of the new proposed valuation, the South African Property Owners’ Association (SAPOA) wrote a letter to the acting municipal manager, Mr Godfrey Nkosi, regarding the public having to pay to get an objection form for the general valuation roll.
Established in 1966, SAPOA is a unique, member-driven organisation that aims to represent, protect and advance members’ commercial and industrial property interests within the property industry in terms of ownership, management and development.
The letter stated. “With regard to Notice 41 of 2014 calling for Inspection of the General Valuation Roll and Lodging of Objections, we are concerned about members of the public having to pay to get an objection form. The right to object is a democratic principle, but having to pay a fee limits the democratic right of a person. Kindly furnish us with the legislation or policy which was used to apply this rule.”
According to Ms Rechelle Jevon, executive personal assistant to Mr Neil Gopal, CEO of SAPOA, they have not received any communication or response from TCM.
Steelburger/Lydenburg News questioned TCM on its overall lack of response to the letter written by SAPOA. The newspaper also queried the same lack of response regarding the fee for an objection form. The communications department of TCM said that Nkosi was not available for comment but that the matter would be brought to his attention.
