Coming up on
3rd Degree:
Episode: Inner City Decay
Broadcast date: Tuesday, 26 May 2009 at 21h30
Channel: e.tv and the eNews Channel
Tonight 3rd Degree investigates Johannesburg's deteriorating housing and accomodation situation.
Across Joburg’s inner city, hijackers are taking over buildings and refusing to pay landlords. The result is an increase in rundown buildings and slums where health hazards and criminals thrive.
In some cases, tenants baulk at increases in rent and set up accounts for water and lights with the City themselves. In other cases, unscrupulous operators persuade tenants to pay rent into a trust account, and then siphon off the funds themselves.
With owners, who've been barred from their own buildings, hiring dangerous bouncers to solve the problem, the violence is escalating.
Inner city development is taking strain, as owners cannot afford their rates and taxes, depriving the city of much needed income.
3rd Degree asks: what can be done to end the inner city's downward spiral?