On September 12, 2026, and via this website, Lowvelder published an article titled “Mpumalanga pensioner turns to high court to stop sale of West Acres home.”

The article reported a claim that local attorneys had committed in writing to cancel the auction of the property and then backtracked. After having been informed that the information was incorrect, Lowvelder and the freelance journalist responsible for the article retraced their newsgathering steps.

Regretfully, we were unable to substantiate that a written undertaking to cancel the auction was given. The documents available do not support the claim, and the publication should not have suggested otherwise. The article is therefore retracted unconditionally and in its entirety.

We also record that the Mpumalanga High Court has since removed the related application from the roll.

We apologise unreservedly to Melissa Maritz, Seymore du Toit & Basson Attorneys and our readers for publishing an article without the required pre-publication verification, and for any harm that may have been caused.