VANDERBIJLPARK – The DA says the Emfuleni Local Municipality was not kicked out of the OK Building, a commercial office building housing the municipality’s customer care and finance departments, but instead vacated the premises without giving the required notice.

Last week, the Freedom Front Plus (VF Plus) alleged that the municipality had been “kicked out” of the building due to non-payment of rent, claiming that arrears had led to the termination of the arrangement by the property owner.

However, the DA disputes this version of events, saying Emfuleni was operating on a month-to-month, verbal lease agreement and was therefore legally required to give at least 30 days’ notice before vacating the property.

According to the party, this did not happen.

The municipality was not kicked out as stated in the media, in fact they moved out without giving notice and ELM now faces legal action to the tune of R2 million

The DA alleges the owner is now considering legal action against the municipality for approximately R2 million in damages and related losses linked to the sudden departure.

The party also warned that the manner of the relocation could expose Emfuleni to allegations of irregular or unauthorised expenditure, should a court find that proper contractual procedures were not followed.

“The municipality moved without giving proper notice, exposing itself to avoidable legal and financial risk,” the DA said, adding that the situation reflects deeper concerns about administrative discipline within Emfuleni.

*In a notice issued this week, the municipality said its customer care offices previously located in the OK Building had been relocated to the former ABSA building in FW Beyers Street, Vanderbijlpark Central, but that services were temporarily disrupted due to delays in installing and configuring IT systems and network infrastructure.