Housing scam warning from Settlements MEC

Human Settlements MEC, Ravi Pillay, has warned the ­public about housing project scams that used documents purported to be from his department to swindle unsuspecting victims. Pillay said some contractors had already fallen victim to these scams, where they were persuaded to “purchase” contracts. Tabling a R3.4-billion budget for his department in the legislature on Tuesday, he said his department had received 19 complaints where “fraudulent letters” were used to hood-wink unsuspecting people. “What occurs in these cases is that fraudulent documen­tation is used to persuade ­gullible victims to ‘purchase’ contracts,” he said. In one instance an attempt was made to sell a departmental building in Pietermaritzburg, but this was stop­ped in its tracks by a bank. Pillay said there was an attempt by a “unscrupulous person” to sell a Human Settlements building in the CBD.

“The buyer even sought funding from a finance institution. Fortunately, for them the finance institution did some checks,” Pillay said. He also said it turned out that the so-called purchase agreement contained information, including details of a former senior official, that was apparently sourced from department’s website. “It was an amateurish attempt so we were able to pick it up and stop it,” Pillay said. However, the MEC expressed concern about those who complained to the department about being swindled in the housing scams. “Many of those who are ­victims are themselves not clean,” Pillay said. He also said his department and municipalities had now put in place stringent tender processes to award housing contracts. Meanwhile, the department will partner with the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) to investigate the allegation of irregularities in housing allocation.

“We are determined to deal with these allegations in a comprehensive manner. We are finalising a contract with UKZN to undertake a major investigation into these allegations,” Pillay said. The investigation would entail surveying a sample of 200?000 housing units. “The result will tell us the extent of the variance between the approved beneficiary and the persons actually occupying the unit,” he said, adding that this would be followed by a forensic level investigation into specific allegations the ­department had received. “This will include any matters, adequately substantiated, referred to the team by members of the public,” Pillay said. The DA’s Hlanganani Gumbi said if tender scams were to be fought in the department, transparency had to be embraced. Gumbi also said his party reluctantly welcomed the probe into allocation irregularities. “We know this is a political distraction by the MEC as a result of failure to implement housing waiting lists in the province.

“This announcement comes on the eve of what is set to be the ANC’s most difficult local government election,” he said. The IFP’s Joshua Mazibuko said they also welcomed attempts to probe the manipulation of allocation of houses in the province, but he was concerned about the possibility of likely inaction on the findings of the planned probe. “We are praying the good intentions will materialise, but there is no dilly dallying to implement plans,” Mazibuko said. ANC deputy chief whip, Nontembeko Boyce, applauded the department for appointing a “neutral” institution, UKZN, to conduct the investigation that would not benefit interests of certain individuals.