City's community halls no longer an option for Provincial Government

By Tina George
13 June 2008

Yesterday the city of Cape Town submitted an affidavit to the Cape High Court opposing the Provincial Government’s interdict to force the public to open its community halls to manage the refugee crisis in Cape Town.

This follows after Provincial Government ruled that municipal community halls be used to house displaced foreign nationals.

However the city stated that facilities which are not being used on a regular basis, like Wingfield Airforce Base, Fort Ikapa, unused schools, and vacant public works buildings be used instead as the halls are used as pension pay outs and are needed in a case of flooding and fire where people need to be sheltered.

According to spokesperson Robert Macdonald they are now able to enter into a situation where both the province and the city together with other departments can begin to negotiate and work out a functional way to address the crisis.

“We are holding a meeting tomorrow of a new task team that has been formed through the provincial government the City of Cape Town and the United Nations and Home Affairs.

“We should be able to form one strategy within the next few days so that we can find a compromise that works for all spheres of government and that provides the best solutions for the public and the refugees.”