Nearly a year after the tragic George building collapse, Minister of Human Settlements, Thembi Simelane, has found that the preliminary report suggests that several procedures were not followed and were in breach of the Housing Consumers Protection Measures Act.
Simelane made the announcement on Sunday, and said she has undertaken to implement all recommendations in the final report of the National Home Builders Registration Council (NHBRC) into the building that collapsed in May 2024.
“The current preliminary report suggests that several procedures were not followed, a breach of the Housing Consumers Protection Act Measures Act, 1998 (Act No. 95 of 1998) and the recently signed Consumer Protection Act 25 of 2004,” said Simelane’s office.
They said the NHBRC is a regulatory body established to protect the interests of housing consumers and to regulate the home-building industry in South Africa.
They added that its primary functions include ensuring that home builders are registered and adhere to prescribed building standards and ethical practices and conduct inspections during various stages of construction to ensure compliance with national building regulations and technical standards.
“Upon its finalisation, should it happen that there are procedural flaws and compromise of NHBRC building standards, we will not hesitate to refer its recommendations to the law enforcement authorities for investigation and possible criminal charges," said Simelane.
She underscored that if any crime was committed including by officials at NHBRC, she would not hesitate to act.
The minister said she was aware that the George building collapse is of public interest and will take the nation into her confidence once the final report has been concluded.
She appealed for the nation’s patience as the process is at an advanced stage.
She said she would not conduct further media engagements on the matter while a final report is being prepared.
Earlier, the National Chief Inspector said a decision on the findings of the report compiled by the Department of Employment and Labour on the incident would only be made available once she granted it.
On May 6, 2024, the building, which was set to become a block of flats, collapsed in Victoria Road in George leaving construction workers trapped inside.
A total of 34 people died and 28 were left injured and were rescued by the efforts of the South African Police’s K9 Unit and others.
Cape Argus