N WATERSKEIDING VIR DIE REGTE VAN BELASTINGBETALERS

Media-vrystelling deur die Nasionale Belastingbetalers-Unie
28 April 2009
‘N WATERSKEIDING VIR DIE REGTE VAN BELASTINGBETALERS
Dit is ‘n bekende feit dat dienslewering na aan ineenstorting is in meeste
munisipale distrikte in Suid-Afrika. Daar was ook gemeen dat daar min of
niks is wat gewone belastingbetalers aan die saak kan doen nie. Dit gaan
nou egter verander.
Die afgelope paar jaar het 21 dorpe met ‘n pro-aktiewe aksie begin deur hul
belastinggeld terug te hou en in ‘n trust in te betaal. Nog 230 dorpe is in die
proses om dieselfde aksie te implementeer.
Die terughouding van belastings was gedoen ingevolge die gemenereg
beginsel van “contractus non adempleti “ d.i. waar ‘n party in ‘n kontrak nie
presteer nie, die ander party dan ook nie hoef te presteer nie, terwyl die
uitvoering van die dienste deur inwoners gedoen word ingevolge die
gemenereg beginsel van “negotiorum gestio”, waar, wanneer die eienaar van
‘n eiendom nie die eiendom onderhou nie, die huurder (inwoners) self die
eiendom kan onderhou en die kostes vanaf die eienaar kan eis.
Hierdie aksies gaan nou egter aan ‘n toets onderwerp word. In Sannieshof in
die Noordwes Provinsie, waar dienste sowat twee jaar gelede ineengestort
het, het die inwoners in November 2007 ’n amptelike dispuut met die
munisipaliteit verklaaren kennis gegee dat sommige inwoners hul
belastinggeld in ‘n eie trust sou inbetaal. Ingevolge die dispuut is ‘n bepaalde
tyd lank op die munisipaliteit gewag om die dispuut op te los, maar toe die
munisipaliteit na die bepaalde tyd nie gereageer het nie, het die inwoners hul
belastinggeld gebruik om self die dienste te lewer.
Die leidende gesag agter die dispuut en die pro-aktiewe aksie was die
Nasionale Belastingbetalers-Unie (NBU). Die suksesverhaal van Sannieshof
– waar die dorp se dienslewerende funksie aanmerklik beter is as voorheen
onder die munisipale leiding – het die dorp die vertoondorp van burgerlike
aksie gemaak.
In plaas daarvan dat die Stadsraad van Sannieshof gepoog het om
dienslewering te verbeter, het hulle besluit om liewer die kwessie van
munisipale dispute na die hof te neem. Die uitspraak sal vir eens en vir altyd
bepaal of pro-aktiewe aksie deur belastingbetalers wettig is ingevolge Suid-
Afrikaanse wetgewing. Dit moet benadruk word dat die kwessie van
belastingweerhouding nog nooit in ‘n hof getoets is nie. Die uitspraak sal ‘n
diepgaande uitwerking op munisipaliteite reg deur die land hê.
As Sannieshof se Stadsraad die saak wen, dan sal belastingbetalers in Suid-
Afrika oor geen wettige middel beskik om swak en selfs nie-bestaande
dienslewering aan te spreek nie. As die uitspraak in die guns van Sannieshof
se belastingbetalers, gesteun deur die NBU, sou wees, sal dit beteken dat
alle Suid-Afrikaners wettiglik munisipale belastings mag weerhou as hulle nie
tevrede is met die wyse waarop hul dorpe en stede bestuur word nie. Dit is
duidelik dat die implikasies aansienlik sal wees.
Ironies genoeg sal Sannieshof se Stadsraad belastingbetalers se geld
gebruik om die saak teen die belastingbetalers te veg. Die NBU sal die saak
verdedig met fondse wat hy van mense ontvang wat in burgerlike vryheid
glo. Dit is baie belangrik dat alle belastingbetalersorganisasies, asook
individue die NBU se toetssaak ondersteun.

As elke belastingbetaler in Suid-Afrika R20 per jaar, of R100 vooruit vir vyf
jaar, tot hierdie kernsaak bydra, dan sou dit genoeg wees om die beste
regsverteenwoordiging te verseker. Dit sal die beste belegging wees wat
enige belastingbetaler ooit kan maak want dit kan die toekomstige
wangebruik van belastingbetalersgeld deur plaaslike owerhede aanspreek.
Enige individu, organisasie of burgerlike entiteit wat graag die NBU wil
ondersteun, moet asseblief kontak maak met hul plaaslike
belastingbetalersvereniging wat op hulle beurt weer kontak kan maak met
mnr Jaap Kelder, voorsitter van die NBUby info@zanli.co.za
Enigiemand wat direkte bydraes tot die NBU wil maak, kan hul skenkings
deponeer in die bankrekening van die NBU: Eerste Nasionale Bank,
Rekeningnommer 6211 203 4921, tesame met hulle naam en dorp as
verwysing.
Media Release issued by the National Tax-payers Union
April 28 th 2009
A WATERSHED FOR THE RIGHTS OF RATEPAYERS
It is a well-known fact that service delivery is close to collapse in most
municipal districts in South Africa. It has also been believed that there is little
or nothing that the ordinary ratepayer or taxpayer can do about this. This is
about to change..
Over the last few years, twenty one towns have embarked on a proactive
action where they have paid their municipal rates into a trust account
. Another 230 towns are in the process of implementing the same action.
The withholding of the monies was done under the common law principle of “
contractus non adempleti “ ie. where one party to a contract does not
perform the other party does also not need to perform while the undertaking
of the services by the residents themselves was done under the common law
principle of “negotiorum gestio” where, when the owner of a property does
not maintain a property, the tenant ( residents) can maintain the property and
recover the costs from the owner
However, these actions are about to be put to the test. The North-
West Province town of Sannieshof, where services collapsed completely two
years ago, declared a formal dispute with their council in November 2007,
notified the municipalitythat certain residents would be paying their rates into
a trust account, and in accordance with the dispute, waited on the
municipality to rectify matters. When the municipality after a given time
period failed to respond, the tax payers started implementing the services
themselves by utilizing the withheld funds.
The guiding force behind this dispute and protest action has been the
National Taxpayers Union (NTU). The success story of Sannieshof – where
the town services function appreciably better than they did under municipal
supervision - has made the town the poster-child for civil action.
The municipal council of Sannieshof, instead of working towards improving
defective municipal services, has instead decided that it will take the matter
of municipal disputes to court. The ruling in this case will decide for once and
for all if pro-active action by ratepayers is legal under South African law. It
must be stressed that country wide citizen actions in withholding funds have

never been tested in a court before, and the outcome of this case is going to
have a profound effect on municipalities across the country.
If the Sannieshof council wins the case, it means that rate and taxpayers in
South Africa have no legal recourse against poor or non-existent service
delivery. If the Sannieshof residents, backed by the National Taxpayers
Union, win the case, it means that all citizens of South Africa can legitimately
withhold their rates from municipalities if they are not happy with the way
their towns or cities are being run. As can be seen, the ramifications are
immense.
The Sannieshof council will, ironically, be using tax-payers money to fight
this case against tax payers. The NTU will be fighting this case using money
raised from people who believe in civil liberty. It is vitally important that all
ratepayers’ associations, citizen organisations and private individuals support
the NTU in this test case. If every ratepayer in South Africa donated R20 per
annum or R100 for a five year membership towards this pivotal matter, it will
provide the funding to ensure the best legal representation possible. That
contribution will be the best investment that a ratepayer can ever make, as it
could prevent future abuses of ratepayers’ money by local municipalities.
Any individuals, organisations or civil bodies who wish to support the NTU in
this crucial test action must please contact their local ratepayers associations
who can in turn contact NTU chairman Jaap Kelder
at info@zanli.co.za Anybody wishing tocontribute directly to the NTU can pay
their donations directly into the bank account of the National Tax Payers Union ,
First National Bank, Account number 6211 203 4921 with their name and town as a
reference.