By Thomas Thale
THE Johannesburg city council on Thursday unanimously adopted a revised set of by-laws, thus paving the way for the by-laws to be promulgated "in a matter of months". All political parties in council expressed their overall support for the new by-laws, proposing only a few minor amendments.
The final by-laws have incorporated some of the proposals made by members of the public during the public consultation process.
Adoption of the by-laws is a culmination of a lengthy process of writing a uniform set of by-laws to replace the disparate by-laws of the 12 former local authorities that now constitute the City of Johannesburg. The by-laws have also been brought in line with the Constitution and with the provincial and national legislation.
The draft by-laws were published in November last year, and members of the public were invited to make written submissions and to participate in public hearings held in February this year.
Some of the by-laws generated heated public debate when they were published in their draft form. One of the more contentious by-laws related to street trading.
Addressing the council sitting, Sol Cowan, councillor for the inner city and chair of the Informal Traders Forum, said the new street trading by-laws seek to make trading in the streets of the city more orderly. "We all support street trading, but we need to bring orderliness to the business. Traders will now have to take responsibility for keeping their own trading areas clean."
The new by-laws place stringent conditions on street trading, prohibiting trading in some designated areas. Victor Penning, finance spokesman for the Democratic Alliance, welcomed the by-law as a "good attempt" to bring order to the informal sector, but said the DA had "suggested a blanket prohibition, except where there are stands designated for street trading". The new by-laws make it illegal for street traders to sell outside shops selling similar products.
Another issue which triggered a public furore related to the presence of dogs in city parks. Dog owners did not take kindly to a proposal in the draft by-laws to ban dogs from the city parks. The new by-laws make it possible for dog owners to walk their dogs in city parks, provided they are on a leash and their owners clean up their mess. Environmental health officers will have the power to order the removal of a dog if it poses a health risk.
The adoption of the new by-laws by the council does not mean that they are now in force. What remains now, says Pieter de Klerk, law adviser of the city's legal department, is for the amendments made at the council meeting to be incorporated into the document and for relevant law enforcement forms to be prepared. "Once this has been done, the by-laws will be officially promulgated by publication in the provincial gazette," de Klerk said.
De Klerk expressed confidence that the by-laws will be promulgated within three to four months.
