No-shows at parliamentary briefing on Tafelberg

The Western Cape government opted not to attend a parliamentary committee meeting on Wednesday to discuss the implications of the Tafelberg judgment. The Constitutional Court's landmark ruling in the Tafelberg case mandated the City of Cape Town and the Western Cape government to provide affordable housing in the city center. This came after a decade-long fight against the provincial government's sale of the Tafelberg School site in Sea Point, which has now been cancelled.

The municipality and province were ordered to submit reports to the Western Cape High Court within three months outlining their plans for redressing spatial apartheid. The provincial government was invited to the meeting but chose not to send their infrastructure minister, Tertuis Simmers, citing the need to seek legal advice on the judgment's implementation.

Simmers explained that they were unlikely to receive this advice by the meeting's date of 5 August. Sello Dithebe (ANC) dismissed Simmers' excuse as "flimsy and disrespectful," while Thulani Gamede (MK) called it a missed opportunity for the province to address the challenges it faces in housing. Housing Minister Thembi Simelane expressed her intention to meet with the province and report back to MPs.

The Social Housing Regulatory Authority (SHRA) was also scheduled to present its plan to address blocked housing projects, but Simelane criticized their late delivery of the presentation, stating it was unacceptable as they had not received it in time for her office. MPs had previously expressed frustration when they received SHRA's presentation on the morning of the committee meeting, causing them to leave without presenting.