Joburg tackles illegal outdoor advertising

JOHANNESBURG SOUTH: According to the City of Johannesburg, more than half of outdoor advertising billboards, banners and posters in Johannesburg have been illegally erected and do not comply with the applicable Outdoor Advertising by-laws.

But Jack Sekgobela, the city of Johannesburg’s outdoor advertising operations manager, warns that this will soon be a thing of the past as the city will begin to charge landlord rates and taxes on the properties where such signs have been erected. “Such a transgression falls under illegal use as per the rates policy penalties,” Sekgobela said.

Should the property owner fail to honour the stipulated penalties for illegal use, the outdoor advertising unit shall instruct the city’s rates policy department to disconnect water and electricity on the property, Sekgobela warned.

The advertising industry must be aware that Section 3(1) makes it illegal to erect any sign prior to the written approval of the council. With the local government elections on the horizon, Sekgobela advises political parties to familiarise themselves with Sections 27 and 28 of the by-law.

“Any political party or interested person who may want to get mileage from outdoor posters must familiarise themselves with the by-laws,” he said. The Outdoor Advertising Unit will, in conjunction with the JMPD, identify and remove illegal posters without any notice to the owners of the posters that have been erected illegally.

“Our main problem really is not with banners and blimps, but with huge signs that are erected across the landscape of the city illegally. In cases where signs are found to have been erected illegally, the city has to incur costs by taking the responsible media owner to court to get the illegal sign removed. Often such cases end up in court and take a long time before they are resolved,” he said.

For more information, email the outdoor advertising unit at thamisi@joburg.org.za or call 011 407 6062.