TELKOM has called off an auction of prime redevelopment land in Greyville after it emerged that there were pending land claims on the property.
The claims were lodged by former residents who lost their homes and land during apartheid’s forced removals and have been fighting to have their property returned, under the banner of a community group known as the Block AK Action Committee.
This week Telkom’s chief corporate affairs officer, Mpho McNamee, said it was standard procedure to check with the Land Claims Commission if any of their land or properties were subject to claims and twice the commission had confirmed in writing that there were no claims.
“We then heard that Block AK Action had gone to the auctioneers to inform them that actually this land was under claim, which contradicted the letters we had received. We went back to them (commission) and this time we said… we’ll give you all the various lots that make up this erf because it was consolidated as one erf at some point.
“And on 13 August, again, they came back and said there’s no land claim on any of these lot numbers, including the combined consolidated ones. So we were quite comfortable to go ahead and auction the land.”
Adverts calling on potential bidders to register at a cost of R50 000 for the land situated on the corner of Osborne Street, Kolling Street and First Avenue in Greyville had already been published by auctioneers IN2ASSETS, and was scheduled for the hammer on August 29.
However, after Block AK’s continued communications with the commission which included the sharing of erf numbers, it emerged that the land was subject to claims.
McNamee said only on August 16 did they receive a third letter from the commission acknowledging a land claim.
“We were quite surprised to actually see that, after two letters confirming that there (weren’t any land claims). It seems that perhaps Block AK Action had given them different information, which would have pulled up a land claim.”
Telkom had then informed the auctioneers that they would need to remove this property from the auction.
“It's part of the normal process and we'll have to understand from the commission what the next steps are and what they want to do with this particular land,” McNamee said.
Mohammed Vahed, who heads up Block AK, said they were vindicated and relieved that Telkom had cancelled the auction of property. However, they were disappointed that the commission had not stopped the auction as it had done on previous occasions in 2008 and 2011.
“We now call upon the Land Claims Commission to finalise our longstanding claims of over 32 years. We had 317 claims,” he said.
Vahed said many of the claimants had already died before their claims were finalised. “We do not get updates any more on the status of claims. Claimants get frustrated with Land Commission offices because phones don't work, they cannot get through, no follow-ups, lost files and no help from staff,” said Vahed.
McNamee said the Greyville land was just one of many properties that Telkom was auctioning off across the country as they were in the process of rationalising the business.
“These are properties that have not been utilised for many years. Obviously, in trying to ensure that we run a more efficient business, we have been trying to auction and sell as many properties as we can. Greyville was one of them,” she said.