Hijacked properties are a big issue in Ferndale

Councillors from various wards and suburbs in Randburg gathered at the Fontainebleau Church to discuss their ongoing fight against the growing issue of hijacked and abandoned properties.

The councillors, with Solly Msimango, the DA Gauteng provincial leader and a leader of the official opposition in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature, and other representatives paid a visit to four hijacked buildings in Ferndale and one in the Randburg CBD.

Ward 104 councillor Emi Koekemoer explained that the purpose was to see how the opposition government can intervene and make people aware of what is happening.

“We have tried every avenue at the local level. It has been referred to law enforcement units, to problem properties but none of these properties have ever come anywhere close to being resolved. It’s like complete conflicts back and forth and the problem I have as a councillor is that I am constantly visiting these properties every year and nothing has not been done and hopefully the opposition government can intervene and have a solution.”

Two properties were visited on Long Avenue: one is an abandoned building and the other belongs to the government. The structure is amid overgrown trees and grass, empty, and on the verge of collapse. The security company is in charge of the building 24 hours a day.

Eight families are residing in the hijacked building on Cork Avenue. The water taps are dripping, and there are live electrical wires hanging wildly connected. The structure is a hazard because it has been extended with shack rooms and it has a thatch roof.

Jeremia Nhliziyo, who claimed to be a caretaker of the building, said that he started working there in 2023 and he had no idea that the place had been hijacked.
“I came here looking for a job and a place to stay. All I do is make sure the tenants are well taken care of, I clean and fix things that needs to be fixed and I have a place to stay and a job.”

Koekemoer disclosed that the tenants burned things, which once caused a neighbouring house to catch fire. She added that they were recently alerted to another building on Hans Schoeman Street and they found out that it’s the same people that took over the building on Cork Avenue.

“On our inspection with the City of Johannesburg’s Citizen Relationship and Urban Management (Crum) in December we discovered that it’s the same people. They go around looking for empty buildings in the area and occupy them.”

The building at the corner of Bond and Main Street is hijacked property. She confirmed that there is an eviction order for the building that was issued in 2021.

“It’s an ugly situation in there, there is prostitution, drugs, children and illegal immigration. We did an oversight last year (2023) November and roughly about a week after a part of the building there caught fire.”

Msimango said that there is a huge problem of lawlessness and of people who have seen that the government does not care and there are lots of loopholes.

“The fact is, it is their building being hijacked and yet, they are not doing anything about it except to place security personnel who also fail to overpower these hijackers –that is a problem. Somebody is milking the system and nobody is doing anything about it. We need to find a way to recover these buildings and use them for homeless people or any other things that can benefit the community. Government needs to come on board so we can figure out how we can go about it.”

Koekemoer added that it is high time provincial and national government address these issues if they want votes in the coming elections. “We are hoping the Gauteng provincial government can account for these properties that are costing taxpayers millions. There also needs to be a fast-tracking of eviction orders and demolitions as some of these buildings are completely uninhabitable.”

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