‘I spoke to the president’: Panyaza Lesufi defends decision to establish inquiry into Joburg fire

Gauteng premier Panyaza Lesufi has justified establishing a commission of inquiry into the deadly August 31 fire in the Johannesburg CBD, saying he acted on the advice of President Cyril Ramaphosa. 

According to a SABC report, Lesufi said the inquiry, which will be chaired by retired justice Sisi Khampepe, will probe the circumstances which led to the deaths of 77 people when a fire gutted the hijacked building in downtown Joburg.

Lesufi said: “We have appointed the judge, who agreed the terms of reference, and consulted with the mayor of the municipality. There's no objection and I spoke to the president. He indicated that is the best way of handling this matter.

“Whoever needs to appear or submit a report or submit to court, it will up to the judge. I do not want to influence and want this process to be as independent as possible. It must not be influenced by politics or cover-ups. The process is up to a person who is competent.”

Last week Ramaphosa expressed his condolences to the families and friends of those who died after the tragedy.

On Monday TimesLIVE reported that Ramaphosa said serious questions must be asked about why bylaws are not being enforced across cities and how the laws and regulations designed to protect tenants from arbitrary eviction have been used by criminal “slumlords” to prey on society’s most vulnerable. 

Ramaphosa questioned the circumstances in which buildings have become run down, attracting crime and further compounding the problems.

He said it was important to ask serious questions about the responsibility of owners and landlords of inner-city buildings in Johannesburg and major cities around the country that have either been abandoned or fallen into ruin. 

Through his weekly newsletter, the president emphasised it was crucial to ask how at least 200 people were occupying a building that was not built for housing, was unsafe and had no basic services.

“Last Thursday we woke to the news that a building in downtown Johannesburg was on fire, with many of its inhabitants trapped inside,” he said. 

“As emergency services worked at the scene, we heard harrowing accounts of people being forced to jump out of windows, of those who lost all their meagre possessions, and of mothers losing contact with their children as they tried to escape the inferno. 

“Seventy-seven lives have been lost. Twelve of the deceased were children. Scores were badly injured. There are few words that can convey the immensity of this tragedy. Our hearts are heavy.”

Ramaphosa said at a time like this the country had to embrace its common humanity. It did not matter what the nationalities of the inhabitants were or whether they were documented. 

“What matters is that as a people with empathy and compassion, we rally around the survivors who have lost everything, and who are struggling to come to terms with what has happened to them.”

Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said Lesufi and Ramaphosa’s conversation took place in the course of several consultations.

“You'll be aware that as per the statement issued by premier Lesufi, that provincial premiers have legal powers to establish commissions of inquiry.

“So premier Lesufi did not necessarily require the president's direction to take this course of action. The loss of life and the magnitude of the devastation urgently necessitates that authorities get to the bottom of what led to this incident.

“More importantly, we need to ensure that there are preventive measures to avoid such disasters ever occurring again. Therefore, President Ramaphosa commends the immediate steps being taken by premier Lesufi in this regard.”

TimesLIVE