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Usindiso fire: Bobby Shabangu, Wikipedia / Helen Botes: JPC
We’ll see you in court, OUTA tells Helen Botes
- Former JPC CEO Helen Botes plans to defend OUTA's action to declare her a delinquent director.
- JPC removed Botes as a director the day after OUTA announced its delinquency application.
- The delinquency application continues regardless of whether or not Botes is a JPC director, as it is about long-term accountability and blocking her from being a director of any entity.
The former CEO of the City of Joburg Property Company (JPC), Helen Botes, has formally notified OUTA that she intends to defend the organisation’s application to have her declared as a delinquent director.
“We’ll see you in court,” says Advocate Stefanie Fick, OUTA Executive Director.
OUTA lodged a case in the Johannesburg High Court on 29 July 2025. Papers were formally served on Botes on 13 August, OUTA publicly announced the action on 14 August and, on 15 August, the JPC formally removed Botes as a director (see image below).
Botes now has until 25 September to file her plea with the court.
The case calls for the high court to declare Botes to be a delinquent director, which would block her from being a director of any entity. She was the JPC CEO since August 2008, serving three consecutive terms.
JPC is named as the second defendant and the City of Johannesburg as the third defendant. JPC is a municipal entity wholly owned by the City. The JPC and the City are cited as interested parties, and OUTA does not seek any relief against them unless they oppose OUTA’s claim against Botes. OUTA has not received any indication that either the City or JPC intends to defend the case.
OUTA wants Botes to be declared a delinquent director firstly, and most importantly, because of the Usindiso building fire, which killed at least 76 people. The Usindiso building has been owned by the City since 1954 and managed by the JPC since it was established in 2000. Thus the JPC and Botes were responsible for the state of the Usindiso building. The second reason is her role in unlawful procurement of Covid-19-related services for JPC.
“OUTA is delighted to see that Botes has been removed as a director of JPC,” says Fick.
“Our case against Botes will continue, as it is about ensuring lasting accountability. A delinquent-director order will prevent her from ever holding such a position again.”
There have been confusing messages from the City over whether or not Botes still works for the City (see here and here).
“We hope the City and JPC are not paying her legal fees. She should account for her own actions, and pay her own legal fees,” says Fick.
OUTA is represented by Advocate Niël du Preez, SC, and Advocate Sonika Mentz, instructed by attorney Andri Jennings of Jennings Inc.
More information
A soundclip with comment by Advocate Stefanie Fick, OUTA Executive Director, in English is here and in Afrikaans is here.
Helen Botes’s notice of intention to defend is here.
OUTA’s announcement of this case on 13 August 2025 is here.
More information on OUTA’s work on delinquent directors is here.
Image below: CIPC records show that Helen Botes was removed as a JPC director on 15 August, the day after OUTA announced legal action to have her declared a delinquent director.
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