Cape Town - While court proceedings in the Amazon River Club development have again been postponed, the Liesbeek Action Campaign (LAC) and affiliate bodies have accused the developers of using delaying tactics.
The Liesbeek Leisure Property Trust (LLPT), however, denied this and labelled the group’s comments “untrue and defamatory”.
This follows a meeting on August 11 with Judge President John Hlophe and the legal teams involved, and a new date to hear the contempt of court matter was set for August 22 and 23.
This however, did not materialise and the matter has been postponed.
In a joint statement, the LAC, Goringhaicona Khoi Khoin Indigenous Traditional Council (GKKITC) and Observatory Civic Association (OCA) said that “courts continue to delay urgent hearings and the developer’s allies delay proceedings, as the sacred site is destroyed by profiteers”.
“When the contempt case was due to be heard on the July 27, Tim Dunn sought to intervene on the basis that their intervention (to establish themselves as representing the GKKITC and not Cullinans) was urgent. Yet, now that the date was set to hear that matter, they raise all kinds of reasons why it is not ready to be heard, as a means of delaying the hearing of both applications.
“These delaying tactics by the developers and their allies cannot help but make one wonder about the Stalingrad tactics being employed in this form of abusive lawfare that the OCA and GKKITC is being confronted with,” the statement read.
The LLPT confirmed that they will continue work on site.
The LLPT said: “The Liesbeek Action Campaign, OCA and GKKTIC latest comments are untrue and defamatory.
On August 18 the attorneys’ acting for the various parties (including the LLPT’s attorneys) were advised by the office of the Chief Registrar of Judge President Hlophe that a judge was not allocated to simultaneously hear the two matters ... This non allocation has nothing to do with the developer and so the allegation that the LLPT are somehow the reason for this delay is therefore without any foundation.
“The Supreme Court of Appeal overturned (Deputy Judge President Patricia) Goliath’s refusal to allow her orders to be appealed and in turn the SCA ordered that the full bench of the high court urgently consider the LLPT’s (and others) application for the dismissal of the entire Goliath DJP judgment and Orders.
“The legal representatives of the parties to the court proceedings arranged with the Judge President that the full bench of the Western Cape High Court was to hear the application for dismissal of the Goliath orders on October 11 and 12, 2022.
“If the matters are ripe for hearing, the office of the Judge President will allocate the judges to hear the matter,” said the LLPT.
The City said it is not participating in the contempt application and therefore is not in a position to comment on it.
“It should be noted that the City intends proceeding with the appeal process in respect of the interdict granted, as well as its opposition in respect of the review application,” said mayco member for spatial planning Eddie Andrews.
Cape Times