Public works dept gunning for Tshwane landlord after being ‘overcharged’ for rent

The Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) wants to apply for legal action against the landlord in charge of 17 buildings servicing six government departments in Tshwane.

The buildings, housing National Treasury, police, the Department of Water and Sanitation, higher education, and justice and defence, were forced to shut their doors on Friday.

The DPWI said later in a statement the buildings that had been “illegally closed” last week have since reopened.

DPWI acting director-general Imtiaz Fazel claimed the closure of the buildings by the landlord was “illegal”, reports Pretoria Rekord.

The DPWI provides accommodation to multiple state departments and entities from different landlords.

Fazel said as per a notice given to the landlords, the DPWI did not pay rent.

This after the department tried to engage with the landlord, but no agreement could be reached, he said.

“It is important to note that the closing of the buildings is illegal as no court order has been granted to evict the client departments or close the buildings,” said Fazel.

ALSO READ: Saps criminal record centre closed after rental payment ‘impasse’

DPWI ‘overpaying’

Fazel said the landlord’s “illegal” actions were an attempt to deflect from the evidence of overpayments the DPWI presented to multiple landlords, and was in the process of resolving.

The issue of overpaying dates back to 2019, with the DPWI engaging in a process to review and clean up its leasing portfolio.

This was done by reviewing the price per square meeting the DPWI had been paying, investigating invoices, assessing the value and condition of the buildings being leased, reviewing month-to-month lease costs and scrutinising historical and long-term leases.

Fazel said President Cyril Ramaphosa also signed a proclamation enabling the Special Investigating Unit to probe leases the DPWI had with landlords.

“These multiple processes have uncovered several issues that the department is undertaking in remedying. Chief among these has been correcting situations where landlords have been overpaid,” said Fazel.

He explained the price per square metre was inflated above market rates in several cases, with other problems involving duplicate invoices submitted.

In December last year, the DPWI reached an agreement on new pricing models with “most landlords”, and new lease agreements were signed.

“We have been meeting with landlords who are disputing the DPWI payment records and gave notice to these landlords that we would stop paying rent going forward, using the advance (historical overpayment) that is already with the companies to correct the overpayments.”

DPWI clients were also made aware of the developments, Fazel added.

One landlord acting in bad faith

Fazel expressed frustration that most landlords were working with the DPWI to correct the problems regarding rent, but that one Tshwane-based landlord was “engaged in unethical conduct through the illegal action of shutting the buildings housing several government departments and institutions.”

This despite several reported “incentives” and negotiation attempts with the landlord.

Negotiations between the landlord and the DPWI are ongoing, however, and a consultant has committed to unlocking the buildings, Fazel said.

He also said the DPWI was resolving the matter, and aimed to find a long-term solution to correct the issue of landlords charging the state inflated rental costs soon.

Saps criminal record centre closed

One victim of the landlord dispute was the South African Police Services’ (Saps) criminal record centre (CRC), which was closed for almost one week.

Colonel Athlenda Mathe said saps was not in any rental arrears, and the building was closed due to “an impasse” between the landlord and the DPWI.

Although the CRC reopened on Monday, the temporary closure exacerbated the backlog of issuing police clearance certificates (PCC).

A PCC is an official document issued by the criminal record and crime scene management, which states if a person has had any criminal convictions recorded against them.

The documents are integral for people applying for emigration, or to be eligible to travel or be employed abroad.

NOW READ: Saps criminal record centre reopened after rental dispute

Edited by Nica Richards.

This article first appeared on Caxton publication Pretoria Rekord, by Reitumtse Mahope. Read the original article here.