GAUTENG LIQUOR MESS WON'T BE SORTED SOON

Twenty six inspectors have to visit 8000 liquor outlets in Gauteng to assess whether they comply with the Gauteng Liquor Act of 2003.

We discovered this on an unannounced visit today (13 April) to the Gauteng Liquor Board in Johannesburg.

There are 6000 liquor outlets that have applied for conversion of their existing licences under old legislation.

It is estimated that there are another 2000 license-holders who have failed to apply for conversion and are therefore illegal.

It will be a daunting task to inspect all these outlets to enforce compliance.

They also face a legal minefield as the Gauteng Liquor Act is badly drafted and there are many court challenges.

It appears that the legal requirement that bans liquor selling within 500 metres of a school or church will be very difficult to enforce.

In addition, there are more than 2000 existing licence holders who have traded legally for many years and it may well be unconstitutional to take their existing rights away even though they are near a school or church.

There is little chance that Premier Nomvula Mokonyane's promise to crack down on illegal traders will happen soon.

The Democratic Alliance believes that defects must be remedied in the Gauteng Liquor Act and management problems fixed speedily at the Liquor Board.

Statement issued by Jack Bloom MPL, DA Gauteng Caucus Leader, and Dr Gavin Lewis MPL (DA Gauteng Economic Development Spokesman, April 13 2011

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