The access restriction fees in Tshwane were definitely not exorbitant and had been calculated in terms of the municipality’s tariff policy. A Pretoria News report says this is according to the city in its response to the application by Residents Against Crime, which asked the Gauteng High Court (Pretoria) to take the metro to task regarding its ‘unreasonable and exorbitant’ tariffs on access restriction applications (to gated communities).

The organisation is asking for an order that the city’s tariff for access restriction applications, set out in its 2017 budget, be reviewed and set aside. It claims the city was charging 300% more for these services than its neighbouring municipalities.

The organisation is asking in the alternative that the issue be referred back to the city to reconsider a more reasonable fee for these Chapter 7 applications. But Simon Sithole – for the city – said in answering papers that its tariffs set for gated communities could not simply be compared against that of other municipalities.

He said in terms of the Systems Act, a municipal council must adopt and implement a tariff policy on the levying of fees for municipal services provided by the municipality itself or by way of service delivery agreements. Sithole said there was nothing irrational regarding the city’s charges regarding access control applications if one looked at the bigger picture. He asked that the court dismiss the application. The report notes no date had yet been set for the application to be heard.

Full Pretoria News report