Sars the tenant-partner in R125m Alberton building

pretoria - the sa revenue service (sars) has come clean, admitting it entered a joint venture with black empowerment group kagiso property holdings to develop a massive r125 million purpose-designed building in alberton, south of johannesburg.

this follows denials by sars that it was the partner and tenant for the building. sars had said it was comfortable in its present offices in alberton.

but spokesperson sechaba nkosi confirmed yesterday that sars would be leasing the offices from january 2006. the confirmation followed a report published in business report last week stating that secrecy surrounded the identity of the government entity that had entered into the joint venture with kagiso property holdings.

the public works department stated that it could not find any records to confirm a transaction involving kagiso property.

nkosi denied that sars had entered into the lease in secret.

"it is just that we needed to brief our staffers about the pending move before they hear about it from outside sources.

"the move is part of siyakha, a sars transformation programme that is aimed at reorientating the organisation to make it more efficient and customer friendly. siyakha means 'we are building' in zulu," he explained.


"the programme has been completed successfully in the western cape and kwazulu-natal. gauteng is just starting, and sars believes that it will be rolled out throughout the country by the middle of next year." details of the venture agreement have not been disclosed.

marius muller, the managing director of kagiso property, previously confirmed that the building was for the exclusive use of a government tenant and that a 12-year lease commencing on january 1 2006 had been signed.

the development would be the biggest office complex in alberton and second in size only to the alberton city shopping centre.

the alberton building, which will have a floor area of 27 000m2 and is being erected on a site facing the n12 highway in alberton, is only about 10km from the johannesburg city centre.

it is being built by listed construction group murray & roberts, which will hand over the completed building in stages from september next year.