The Citizen
Wednesday, 14 July 2010 17:37
NONI MOKATI
JOHANNESBURG - Students at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) are crying foul over “dodgy” accommodation.
According to ANC Brixton branch spokesman Joseph Se-hlabaka, many students had approached the ruling party about alleged money-laundering and the exploitation of students.
It is claimed that the university provided shoddy accommodation to students sponsored by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme of South Africa (NSFAS).
But UJ executive director of students affairs Professor Bobby Mandew said the allegations were baseless and untrue.
A student, who spoke on condition of anonymity, alleged there was overcrowding in some of university approved apartments.
Some students have apparently not been allocated accommodation, despite NSFAS having paid UJ for their residences.
One student charged that some of privately-owned student accommodation establishments were not accredited and were in a dire condition. Some of the “worst” residences are said to be in Ekeinhof, South of Johannesburg, and one in the Johannesburg central business district.
A number of students based in Brixton are vehemently opposing their mooted relocation (by the university) to Ekeinhof.
Students have threatened to embark on a big march if the university failed to meet their demands.
“Our parents are under the impression that we live in well-established houses and yet we are forced to live in dilapidated buildings.
“What’s more frustrating is that some of the flats in town are surrounded by prostitutes at night,” said one student.
An ANC Youth League member was apparently due to face a disciplinary hearing for speaking out on the matter.
Prof Mandew confirmed that one student was facing a disciplinary hearing after he led a group of first-year students to protest outside his house.
nonim@citizen.co.za
Showing posts with label Slumlording. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Slumlording. Show all posts
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Monday, February 1, 2010
Commune Policy grace period deadline looms
By Thuli Malinga: Northcliff Melville Times
Week ending 29 January 2010
The grace period for the new commune policy which started in August last year is coming to an end and slumlords who continue operating illegally will have to face the law come next month.
The new commune policy was started as a result of the continuing conflict between residents and commune residents.
Some of the concerns raised by the community included noise problems resulting from regular partying by students, overcrowded dwellings and the alteration of the suburbs character in some of the properties.
In order to regulate such issues city council proposed a new policy where commune owners would have to adhere to the following:
There should be a maximum of 10 tenants per commune including the caretaker.
There should be not more than two people in any double bedroom.
Provision shall be made for a common room or rooms and kitchens in the commune.
There should be one bathroom per four tenants
The owner or caretaker of the commune should permanently reside on the property for management purposes and accountability.
Commune management should ensure that a compulsory A3 sign is placed on the front boundary of the property.
This sign should have a 24- hour telephone and email address for residents to contact the manager.
City council has warned that compliance of these by-laws will be monitored by a task team. This includes development management, environmental health, Saps, Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department, councilors, student accommodation forums and residents associations.
They will also have partnerships with tertiary institutions alike. More information on the commune policy can be obtained from the City of Johannesburg website.
Week ending 29 January 2010
The grace period for the new commune policy which started in August last year is coming to an end and slumlords who continue operating illegally will have to face the law come next month.
The new commune policy was started as a result of the continuing conflict between residents and commune residents.
Some of the concerns raised by the community included noise problems resulting from regular partying by students, overcrowded dwellings and the alteration of the suburbs character in some of the properties.
In order to regulate such issues city council proposed a new policy where commune owners would have to adhere to the following:
There should be a maximum of 10 tenants per commune including the caretaker.
There should be not more than two people in any double bedroom.
Provision shall be made for a common room or rooms and kitchens in the commune.
There should be one bathroom per four tenants
The owner or caretaker of the commune should permanently reside on the property for management purposes and accountability.
Commune management should ensure that a compulsory A3 sign is placed on the front boundary of the property.
This sign should have a 24- hour telephone and email address for residents to contact the manager.
City council has warned that compliance of these by-laws will be monitored by a task team. This includes development management, environmental health, Saps, Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department, councilors, student accommodation forums and residents associations.
They will also have partnerships with tertiary institutions alike. More information on the commune policy can be obtained from the City of Johannesburg website.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Comment sought on housing by-laws
Written by Rudo Mungoshi | |
Thursday, 14 May 2009
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Complaints from neighbours have prompted the City to draw up by-laws regarding communal housing, particularly regarding student digs. A set of draft by-laws is being prepared to crack down on overcrowding in accommodation intended for students and low-income workers, and the City wants public input into its plans. A public meeting will be held on Thursday, 28 May from 6pm to 8.30pm at the council chambers in the University of Johannesburg's new administration building on its Kingsway Campus, to discuss the future of communal housing. According to the assistant director of development planning and facilitation, Linah Dube, the draft policy seeks to address slumlording and reduce the number of illegal establishments in the city. The draft policy is being formulated in response to complaints made by residents staying close to the universities of Johannesburg and the Witwatersrand regarding the behaviour of students living in near-by communes. The complaints relate to:
"The residents are not only complaining about the students. They are also concerned about slumlording and the general decay of the residential area. The slumlords often take advantage of less fortunate students and lowly paid workers and crowd them in inhumane conditions for profit," she said. There are about 63 000 students registered at the two niversities, which only provide accommodation for 15 000 students. The rest of those students whose homes are not in Johannesburg, have to find living space in nearby neighbourhoods. Communal housing provides an income for property owners and renters, while meeting the need for suitable accommodation of students and the working class. Comments on the draft by-laws should be submitted before Monday, 22 June to Linah Dube, at the Metro Centre, 10th floor, A Block; or by email to Copies of the draft by-laws will be available online from 3 June, and at the following Customer Care Centres from 4 June:
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Saturday, May 2, 2009
Tot 30 studente bly in 1 huis in die buurte - Beeld 1 April 2009
Daniëlla du Plooy en Liezl Temmingh
Tientalle studente op klein erwe, gemors en voortdurende geraas en musiek.
Dít is van die probleme wat huis eienaars en inwoners van onder meer Auckland Park, Brixton, Melville en Westdene in Johannesburg ervaar met mense wat erwe onderverdeel en uitverhuur – dikwels onwettig – aan meestal desperate studente van die Universiteit van Johannesburg (UJ).
Volgens me. Cindy Grobbelaar, DA-raadslid vir Vrededorp (wyk 69), weet sy van ongeveer 80 huise wat onwettig in kamerwonings omgeskep is.
In een so ’n huis woon daar volgens haar byvoorbeeld sowat 30 studente. “Hulle wil naby die universiteit bly, want hulle het nie motors nie. Dan woon hulle in haglike omstandighede.
“Van die kamers, waarvoor hul tot R1 700 kan betaal, het net plek vir ’n enkelbed en geen vensters nie. Dít terwyl die eienaars derduisende rande per maand maak.”
’n Eiendomsagent, wat nie haar naam genoem wil hê nie, sê sy doen waardasies vir van dié huise.
“Ek het by een plek ’n student gevind wat in ’n spens woon. Hy betaal R500 per maand, maar kan nie eens regop staan in die vertrek nie.”
In van die huise is glo ook onwettige kragkabels. Volgens haar skep die slumlords, soos sy hulle noem, ook probleme vir ander inwoners. “Die eienaars koop klomp huise in een straat en prop dit vol mense. Dit het ’n vreeslike geraas tot gevolg en lei tot reuse-hoofbrekens vir ander inwoners. “Húl huise se waarde daal, want niemand anders wil daar kom bly of koop nie.”
Grobbelaar sê die huiseienaars kry dít reg omdat die wet nie behoorlik toegepas word nie. Volgens haar is die stad se beleid vir kommuneverblyf nog nie voltooi nie. “Van die eienaars ignoreer bloot die reëls wat daar wel is. Wanneer ons begin met regsaksie, kan dit tot drie jaar neem voordat daar ’n beslissing is. Teen daardie tyd is hulle al skatryk.”
Sy sê die aanvraag na UJ-verblyf is bloot te groot.“Daar is net te veel studente en geen behoorlike beplanning nie. ’n Gebied moet geïdentifiseer word en in hoë digtheidsverblyf omgeskep word.”
Tientalle studente op klein erwe, gemors en voortdurende geraas en musiek.
Dít is van die probleme wat huis eienaars en inwoners van onder meer Auckland Park, Brixton, Melville en Westdene in Johannesburg ervaar met mense wat erwe onderverdeel en uitverhuur – dikwels onwettig – aan meestal desperate studente van die Universiteit van Johannesburg (UJ).
Volgens me. Cindy Grobbelaar, DA-raadslid vir Vrededorp (wyk 69), weet sy van ongeveer 80 huise wat onwettig in kamerwonings omgeskep is.
In een so ’n huis woon daar volgens haar byvoorbeeld sowat 30 studente. “Hulle wil naby die universiteit bly, want hulle het nie motors nie. Dan woon hulle in haglike omstandighede.
“Van die kamers, waarvoor hul tot R1 700 kan betaal, het net plek vir ’n enkelbed en geen vensters nie. Dít terwyl die eienaars derduisende rande per maand maak.”
’n Eiendomsagent, wat nie haar naam genoem wil hê nie, sê sy doen waardasies vir van dié huise.
“Ek het by een plek ’n student gevind wat in ’n spens woon. Hy betaal R500 per maand, maar kan nie eens regop staan in die vertrek nie.”
In van die huise is glo ook onwettige kragkabels. Volgens haar skep die slumlords, soos sy hulle noem, ook probleme vir ander inwoners. “Die eienaars koop klomp huise in een straat en prop dit vol mense. Dit het ’n vreeslike geraas tot gevolg en lei tot reuse-hoofbrekens vir ander inwoners. “Húl huise se waarde daal, want niemand anders wil daar kom bly of koop nie.”
Grobbelaar sê die huiseienaars kry dít reg omdat die wet nie behoorlik toegepas word nie. Volgens haar is die stad se beleid vir kommuneverblyf nog nie voltooi nie. “Van die eienaars ignoreer bloot die reëls wat daar wel is. Wanneer ons begin met regsaksie, kan dit tot drie jaar neem voordat daar ’n beslissing is. Teen daardie tyd is hulle al skatryk.”
Sy sê die aanvraag na UJ-verblyf is bloot te groot.“Daar is net te veel studente en geen behoorlike beplanning nie. ’n Gebied moet geïdentifiseer word en in hoë digtheidsverblyf omgeskep word.”
Landlord denies packing students in like sardines - The Star 10 April 2009
But investigations find communes to be overpopulated and in a deplorable state
By Candice Bailey
A Joburg slumlord is alleged to be coining more than R1 million a month from 80 overcrowded student communes.
However, Sayed Abdollah Hoseini says he is merely providing much needed student accommodation in the area, of which there is a dire shortage in Joburg.
Two weeks ago the Saturday Star revealed that Hoseini was linked to more than 80 communes in and around Auckland Park, Melville, Westdene, Brixton and Vrededorp, raking in rent of R1m a month.
In one of his communes, the Saturday Star reported, Hoseini had crammed more than 80 people into a 64-roomed mega commune, which sprawled over two properties.Students at the 64-bedroom house in Second Avenue, Westdene, were being charged R1 600 for a single six-square- meter room and R1 200 per person sharing a double room.
Working on a minimum rental yield of R1 600 a room, the fully let property would bring in R100 000 a month to Hoseini despite accusations from students living there that the conditions were inhumane.
Students who spoke to the Saturday Star, told of one room with no windows, while others had windows that could not open. Another of the rooms had been converted into a bedroom from a shower.
This week Hoseini hit back, saying the property had been bought six to eight years ago and that when he wanted to convert it into a 16-bedroom house he was stopped by the city council, which subsequently lost his building plans.He said he had to have students living in the house because it was a running cost that had to be paid. Hoseini denied that he made more than R1m a month in rent, saying he owned only six properties in his personal capacity and a further three through his companies UniHome, Bureau Accommodation and Magadie Homes.
Each of the communes housed only 10 to 15 people and the commercial building housed between 40 and 60 people, he said. "It's impossible to have 80 properties. It is a complete lie. I don't have 80 properties. I wish I had an income anything close to this figure. "We all know that the property business is a loan-based business. We are all working for the banks. I can prove that for the last two years I was running this business at a loss," he said.
But the Saturday Star understands that officials in the City of Johannesburg have linked Hoseini to 75 properties and have been investigating links to several others. A city council official said not all the properties were registered in Hoseini's name as some were registered in the names of relatives.
This week the Saturday Star visited one of the buildings Hoseini owns in Vrededorp.Although Hoseini said his commercial building housed only between 40 and 60 people, the Saturday Star found that it had been converted into an overcrowded 104-room commune.The three-story building is at 38 8th Street in Vrededorp.There is only one kitchen per floor to serve the 30 rooms on that floor. The kitchens contain contain three two-plate burners and three fridges.There are about five toilets per floor and none has proper doors, only shower curtains. All the showers are unisex. The rooms are R1 600 for a single room. It is understood that there are also double rooms but that there were students sharing single rooms. With around 90 of the 104 rooms in the commune in operation, Hoseini is estimated to earn more than R140 000 a month from this commune.
A third-year student, who lives at the commune, spoke to the Saturday Star on condition of anonymity."The conditions are deplorable," he said.There was one TV room in the entire house which was in the basement, he said. "The kitchens are deplorable. The rooms are deplorable. The bathrooms are deplorable."He said that while the commune was supposed to be fitted with DSTV, the decoder was not there and while there were several washing machines on different floors, only one worked on the second floor, which most of the students used.
The individual bedroom which the Saturday Star saw could only fit a single bed, but would still accommodate a cupboard and a desk. The room is about 1m wide and less than 6m long. Another student said she was ashamed to say she lived there. "It is supposed to have weekly cleaning services, DSTV and be a quiet environment, but there is always noise, no DSTV and the place is dirty. The windows don't open."Some of the rooms are built in the middle of the property and have windows that open up on to the passage or staircase and have no fresh air.
Hoseini denied that the conditions at the Vrededorp commune were "unlivable". "What is overcrowded? Overcrowded by whose definition?" asked Hoseini.He said: "There are 45 000 students that need accommodation close to their school. "If the city council and universities are serious about addressing the issue, they can allocate a large piece of land and by 2012, I will accommodate 20 000 students."
Published on the web by Star on April 10, 2009.
© Star 2009. All rights reserved.
By Candice Bailey
A Joburg slumlord is alleged to be coining more than R1 million a month from 80 overcrowded student communes.
However, Sayed Abdollah Hoseini says he is merely providing much needed student accommodation in the area, of which there is a dire shortage in Joburg.
Two weeks ago the Saturday Star revealed that Hoseini was linked to more than 80 communes in and around Auckland Park, Melville, Westdene, Brixton and Vrededorp, raking in rent of R1m a month.
In one of his communes, the Saturday Star reported, Hoseini had crammed more than 80 people into a 64-roomed mega commune, which sprawled over two properties.Students at the 64-bedroom house in Second Avenue, Westdene, were being charged R1 600 for a single six-square- meter room and R1 200 per person sharing a double room.
Working on a minimum rental yield of R1 600 a room, the fully let property would bring in R100 000 a month to Hoseini despite accusations from students living there that the conditions were inhumane.
Students who spoke to the Saturday Star, told of one room with no windows, while others had windows that could not open. Another of the rooms had been converted into a bedroom from a shower.
This week Hoseini hit back, saying the property had been bought six to eight years ago and that when he wanted to convert it into a 16-bedroom house he was stopped by the city council, which subsequently lost his building plans.He said he had to have students living in the house because it was a running cost that had to be paid. Hoseini denied that he made more than R1m a month in rent, saying he owned only six properties in his personal capacity and a further three through his companies UniHome, Bureau Accommodation and Magadie Homes.
Each of the communes housed only 10 to 15 people and the commercial building housed between 40 and 60 people, he said. "It's impossible to have 80 properties. It is a complete lie. I don't have 80 properties. I wish I had an income anything close to this figure. "We all know that the property business is a loan-based business. We are all working for the banks. I can prove that for the last two years I was running this business at a loss," he said.
But the Saturday Star understands that officials in the City of Johannesburg have linked Hoseini to 75 properties and have been investigating links to several others. A city council official said not all the properties were registered in Hoseini's name as some were registered in the names of relatives.
This week the Saturday Star visited one of the buildings Hoseini owns in Vrededorp.Although Hoseini said his commercial building housed only between 40 and 60 people, the Saturday Star found that it had been converted into an overcrowded 104-room commune.The three-story building is at 38 8th Street in Vrededorp.There is only one kitchen per floor to serve the 30 rooms on that floor. The kitchens contain contain three two-plate burners and three fridges.There are about five toilets per floor and none has proper doors, only shower curtains. All the showers are unisex. The rooms are R1 600 for a single room. It is understood that there are also double rooms but that there were students sharing single rooms. With around 90 of the 104 rooms in the commune in operation, Hoseini is estimated to earn more than R140 000 a month from this commune.
A third-year student, who lives at the commune, spoke to the Saturday Star on condition of anonymity."The conditions are deplorable," he said.There was one TV room in the entire house which was in the basement, he said. "The kitchens are deplorable. The rooms are deplorable. The bathrooms are deplorable."He said that while the commune was supposed to be fitted with DSTV, the decoder was not there and while there were several washing machines on different floors, only one worked on the second floor, which most of the students used.
The individual bedroom which the Saturday Star saw could only fit a single bed, but would still accommodate a cupboard and a desk. The room is about 1m wide and less than 6m long. Another student said she was ashamed to say she lived there. "It is supposed to have weekly cleaning services, DSTV and be a quiet environment, but there is always noise, no DSTV and the place is dirty. The windows don't open."Some of the rooms are built in the middle of the property and have windows that open up on to the passage or staircase and have no fresh air.
Hoseini denied that the conditions at the Vrededorp commune were "unlivable". "What is overcrowded? Overcrowded by whose definition?" asked Hoseini.He said: "There are 45 000 students that need accommodation close to their school. "If the city council and universities are serious about addressing the issue, they can allocate a large piece of land and by 2012, I will accommodate 20 000 students."
Published on the web by Star on April 10, 2009.
© Star 2009. All rights reserved.
Slumlord running dozens of overcrowded communes - Star 27 March 2009
Westdene house has 64 rooms, some allow only a single mattress to fit inside
By Candice Bailey
A Johannesburg slumlord could be coining more than R1 million a month running more than 80 overcrowded communes and cramming up to 70 desperate students into a house.
However, his lucrative business may be under threat if a draft proposal by the City of Johannesburg to regulate communes and address slumlording is passed.
Dr Bagsagnani Sayyed Hoseini is involved with more than 80 houses in Auckland Park, Melville, Westdene, Brixton and Vrededorp areas. DA ward councillor Cindy Grobbelaar says Hoseini is not the only slumlord in those areas. Others own up to 20 houses and are raking in up to R18 000 a month per house.
According to an informal study done by Grobbelaar and residents in the area, there are around 84 illegal communes in the Westdene area alone. Horror stories include squashing 56 people into a 400sq m property in Fulham Road, Brixton, and setting people up in rooms as small as 6sq m each.
The Brixton woman has converted her 400sq m home into a 28-bedroom house, with two people sharing each room. Grobbelaar has labelled Hoseini as one of the worst slumlords, saying he has absolutely no regard for the law.In one house, he built rooms into a garage. In another there are illegal electricity cables.
One commune that the Saturday Star visited in Second Avenue, Westdene - owned by Hoseini - has 64 tiny rooms on the property. The large house has been built over two properties. Some of the rooms are so small that they allow only single mattress to fit in lengthways. The rooms have tiny windows shaped like the minarets of a mosque, which do not open. Room 29 downstairs has no windows, while another person is living in a room that has been converted from a shower cubicle. One of the students in the house says the room is still fully tiled like a bathroom.Single rooms are charged at between R1 600 and R1 700 while double bedrooms are R1 200 per person. Students at the commune complained about the conditions, saying it was not what they had signed up for. "It leaks when it rains. There are only two kitchens. It is horrible. We just have to survive," said one of the students, who spoke on condition of anonymity. An 18-year-old first-year student said she been shown a "nice" room in another house, and after she signed a contract, she was told that the room was taken and she had to go live in different house where the rooms were much smaller. The rooms are advertised as having DStv. But students said the DStv had been "scanning" for the past two months.
Hoseini was not available for comment as he is currently overseas. His wife, who took the Saturday Star's call and refused to give her first name, disputed that Hoseini was involved in so many houses.She initially said there were two houses in Collins Road, Brixton, and one in Caroline Street. Later in the conversation she said there were two in Caroline Street. She would not comment on how many rooms there were in the Westdene house.
Published on the web by Star on March 27, 2009.
© Star 2009. All rights reserved.
By Candice Bailey
A Johannesburg slumlord could be coining more than R1 million a month running more than 80 overcrowded communes and cramming up to 70 desperate students into a house.
However, his lucrative business may be under threat if a draft proposal by the City of Johannesburg to regulate communes and address slumlording is passed.
Dr Bagsagnani Sayyed Hoseini is involved with more than 80 houses in Auckland Park, Melville, Westdene, Brixton and Vrededorp areas. DA ward councillor Cindy Grobbelaar says Hoseini is not the only slumlord in those areas. Others own up to 20 houses and are raking in up to R18 000 a month per house.
According to an informal study done by Grobbelaar and residents in the area, there are around 84 illegal communes in the Westdene area alone. Horror stories include squashing 56 people into a 400sq m property in Fulham Road, Brixton, and setting people up in rooms as small as 6sq m each.
The Brixton woman has converted her 400sq m home into a 28-bedroom house, with two people sharing each room. Grobbelaar has labelled Hoseini as one of the worst slumlords, saying he has absolutely no regard for the law.In one house, he built rooms into a garage. In another there are illegal electricity cables.
One commune that the Saturday Star visited in Second Avenue, Westdene - owned by Hoseini - has 64 tiny rooms on the property. The large house has been built over two properties. Some of the rooms are so small that they allow only single mattress to fit in lengthways. The rooms have tiny windows shaped like the minarets of a mosque, which do not open. Room 29 downstairs has no windows, while another person is living in a room that has been converted from a shower cubicle. One of the students in the house says the room is still fully tiled like a bathroom.Single rooms are charged at between R1 600 and R1 700 while double bedrooms are R1 200 per person. Students at the commune complained about the conditions, saying it was not what they had signed up for. "It leaks when it rains. There are only two kitchens. It is horrible. We just have to survive," said one of the students, who spoke on condition of anonymity. An 18-year-old first-year student said she been shown a "nice" room in another house, and after she signed a contract, she was told that the room was taken and she had to go live in different house where the rooms were much smaller. The rooms are advertised as having DStv. But students said the DStv had been "scanning" for the past two months.
Hoseini was not available for comment as he is currently overseas. His wife, who took the Saturday Star's call and refused to give her first name, disputed that Hoseini was involved in so many houses.She initially said there were two houses in Collins Road, Brixton, and one in Caroline Street. Later in the conversation she said there were two in Caroline Street. She would not comment on how many rooms there were in the Westdene house.
Published on the web by Star on March 27, 2009.
© Star 2009. All rights reserved.
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