KZN ANC: COMPANIES THAT DEFY BUILDING REGULATIONS MUST BE BLACKLISTED

20 November 2013

Building companies found to be deliberately flouting building regulations must be barred from the industry, KwaZulu-Natal African National Congress (ANC) spokesperson Senzo Mkhize said.

Mkhize was reacting to reports that construction at a mall in Tongaat, North of Durban, where a roof collapsed on Tuesday afternoon killing workers and injuring nearly 30, should not have been taking place.

"The ANC is appalled that this tragedy happened barely a month after the eThekwini Municipality had ordered the construction to stop. Had the company complied, surely this disaster could have been averted. Meeting the demands of the building regulations is a law that every citizen of this country should obey regardless of their status in the society. We therefore call on government to ensure that companies that contravene building regulations are blacklisted," Mkhize added.

Furthermore, Mkhize called on ANC cadres throughout the province to be on the lookout for individuals and companies that do not follow correct processes when building structures. "Our government has drafted clear regulations that have to be obeyed to avoid disasters like the one that happened in Tongaat yesterday. The eThekwini Municipality must ensure that they pursue the matter and the police must thoroughly investigate the circumstances that led to this disaster."

The ANC commended the emergency workers who worked throughout the night searching for survivors in the pile of rubble, he said. "We would like to send our sincere condolences to the families of all people involved in the tragedy and we wish those in hospital a speedy recovery."

Statement issued by Senzo Mkhize, ANC KwaZulu-Natal, November 20 2013

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