Threatened construction firm gets interdict against forum

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02-06-2016
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An interdict has been granted against a shadowy uMlazi group that has allegedly been threatening employees of a construction company, demanding a share of a building contract it has with the eThekwini Municipality.

The Durban High Court issued the interim order on Wednesday, interdicting the Delangokubona Business Forum from intimidating workers and subcontractors of Elias Mechanicos Building & Civil Engineering.

The forum, which failed to appear in court, has until June 22 to oppose the interdict, failing which, it will be made permanent.

Judge Mahendra Chetty has also forbidden the forum from going near the site near Springfield Park – where a four-level parking and repair garage is being built for the municipal fleet – or to any site where the contractor is working.

The company’s owner, Elias Mechanicos, had gone to court to get an interdict against the forum after his employees were threatened on site on Monday.Mechanicos said the interdict was a victory for his employees, who wanted to come to work to provide for their families, his company and other businesses that had allegedly been intimidated by the forum.

He said the intimidation had cast an “oppressive and pessimistic” mood over the company, but the mood had now lightened.

He said it was not only a victory for the company itself, but other businesses which had been intimidated by the forum.

Mechanicos said the alleged actions of Delangokubona affected the profitably of businesses at a time when the country faced a tough economic climate.

Peter Barnard, of Cox Yeats Attorneys, who represented Mechanicos, welcomed the interdict.

He said the intimidation had affected both his client and the municipality.

Barnard said he would meet the police to discuss the logistics of enforcing the interdict, including a possible response team to provide a speedy response should Delangokubona visit their site again.

In an affidavit before the court in support of the interdict, quantity surveyor Declan Weyers said he was on site on Monday when about 15 Delangokubona members entered and told a security officer they wanted to see the contract manager.

Weyers said their community liaison officer told the contract manager that the group wanted to see him.

Although they found this request strange, they complied and he went to meet the group. Weyers said he was “taken aback” by the number of people.

“I immediately began to become intimidated as soon as we went into the spare office and began talking.”

The group wanted to talk to someone who could make decisions on their demands and were unhappy they could not get a decision there and then.

Weyers told the group that he did not have the documents and would arrange a meeting with the relevant person who could make a decision. The response seemed to pacify the group.

He said the group, which later identified themselves as representatives of Delangokubona, then demanded a meeting today with someone who did have the authority.

They demanded that by the end of the meeting 10% of the contract value must be subcontracted to them, Weyers said in his affidavit.

Weyers said he tried to finish the meeting as soon as possible and went to meet Mechanicos and legal representatives to brief them.

A decision to get an immediate interdict was then taken.