Makana will impose fines on anyone found guilty of illegal building operations. This includes building without approved plans, construction using substandard building methods and allowing occupation of incomplete buildings.
Makana will impose fines on anyone found guilty of illegal building operations. This includes building without approved plans, construction using substandard building methods and allowing occupation of incomplete buildings.
Makana Municipality’s technical and infrastructural services director, Dabula Njilo told the Land, Housing, Infrastructural development and Disaster management committee that the council could be sued if any accidents occurred as a result of illegal operations. The legislation which prevents such civil action has not been enforced.
In previous years, the council used to serve notices to stop illegal building operations and avoid possible claims. Former Makana acting Municipal Manager, Thabiso Klaas said most of the notices were ignored by builders in the past 15 months.
"These notices were handed to our attorneys, but up to now, no one was prosecuted," Klaas wrote in a letter to the local chief magistrate in August.
"This is the reason for investigating a penalty system similar to that of the traffic department," he said.
The penalty system is derived from the Act on National Building Regulations that details how much is payable for various offences.
